APEX Awards

Aims

In partnership with the British Academy, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal Society ("the Academies") and with generous support from the Leverhulme Trust, the APEX award (Academies Partnership in Supporting Excellence in Cross-disciplinary research award) scheme offers established independent researchers, with a strong track record in their respective area, an exciting opportunity to pursue genuine interdisciplinary and curiosity-driven research to benefit wider society.

The objectives of this scheme are to:

• promote collaboration across disciplines, with a particular emphasis on the boundary between science, engineering and the social sciences and humanities
• support outstanding interdisciplinary research which is unlikely to be supported through conventional funding programmes
• support researchers with an outstanding track record, in developing their research in a new direction through collaboration with partners from other disciplines
• enable outstanding researchers to focus on advancing their innovative research through seed funding

Eligibility requirements

Applications must be within the remit of more than one of the Academies. Applications that span the remit of The British Academy and The Royal Academy of Engineering are encouraged.

The British Academy Remit – In any discipline within the social sciences and humanities - in some cases, creative and professional practice may play a significant role in shaping the methods and/or outcomes of research. In all proposals, whether practice-led or not, a clear scholarly rationale is required for the choice of research methods, processes and outputs.

The Royal Academy of Engineering Remit – Applications are welcome from any engineering discipline. Engineering is defined in its broadest sense, encompassing a wide range of diverse fields, including computer science and materials.

The Royal Society Remit – Natural sciences (including agriculture, mathematics, technology, computer science, materials, medical, environmental and engineering sciences, but excluding clinical medicine). For a full list, please see our guidance page. If there is any doubt about the eligibility of a project, contact the Grants team.

You can apply for this scheme if you are:

• A researcher with a strong track record as an established independent researcher (this can include engineering researchers, humanities and social sciences scholars and scientists).
• Based at a UK university or not-for-profit research institution for at least the duration of the project.

Applicants will be expected to collaborate with a research partner (co-applicant) from a different discipline to their own, who is based at the same institution or a different university in the UK. All applications must be supported by the applicant’s Head of Department, who will be asked to provide assurance that the researcher will be permitted to use the institution’s facilities during the period of the award and can be released/partially released from teaching duties (if required).

Applicants may only submit one application per round.

Please see the FAQs for further guidance. Enquiries about eligibility can be made to [email protected]

Value and duration

Awards of up to £100,000 can be held for up to 24 months. Successful applicants will also have the opportunity to separately apply for up to £10,000 to create and lead public engagement projects linked to their APEX Award.

Awards are expected to commence between 1 October and 1 December 2024 .

Application process

Applications should be submitted through the Society’s grant management system Flexi-Grant® by 3:00pm on Wednesday 1 November 2023.

Your application will go through the assessment process detailed in the APEX Awards scheme guidance.

You will be notified of the result of the application process in July 2024.

We are committed to supporting applicants with disabilities. If you require a reasonable adjustment during the application process, please contact the team [email protected] or phone +44 20 7451 2666 to let us know.