British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowships — Fellowship

The British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowships support an annual cohort of early-career researchers in the humanities and the social sciences, and the scheme is funded by the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. A Fellow spends three years at a UK university or other eligible research organisation, working on a self-designed research programme with a mentor in the host department. The purpose is to let a researcher finish a substantial piece of publishable work and build the record needed to compete for a permanent academic post.

The award is non-renewable and runs on a two-stage competition, with an outline round in the autumn and a second round the following winter for those invited forward. Any field within the humanities or social sciences is eligible, and proposals may draw on creative or professional practice as long as the scholarly rationale for the method is clear.

Benefits & funding

The Academy funds 80 per cent of salary costs plus directly allocated and indirect costs under the Full Economic Costing regime; the host institution carries the remainder.
The starting salary is set by the host institution on a grade appropriate to an early-career researcher.
Research expenses are funded at 100 per cent up to £10,000 across the three years, and may be spread unevenly between years.
Funds cannot be moved between budget headings once awarded.
The Fellowship runs for three years and is not renewable.
Excluded costs include non-specialist computer equipment, permanent resources, departmental overheads, and publication costs such as open access fees.

Eligibility

Applicants must work in a field within the humanities or the social sciences and be based at an eligible UK university or research organisation for the whole Fellowship.
Three routes qualify an applicant: British citizenship, nationality of a European Economic Area country regardless of where the doctorate was earned, or a doctorate from a UK university regardless of nationality.
Applicants who meet none of those may still qualify by showing a strong prior association with UK academia — at least one year in a non-permanent teaching or research post at a UK institution, completed by 1 January 2027. A UK master’s degree on its own does not count.
The viva voce examination must fall between 1 April 2024 and 1 April 2027. Applicants who are reasonably confident their viva will happen before that date may apply, and must withdraw if the date moves.
Exemptions to the viva window can be sought for circumstances such as maternity leave or illness arising after the viva.
Applicants must hold postdoctoral status by the time the Research Awards Committee meets.
Anyone appointed to a permanent academic post in higher education at any point in their career, in the UK or overseas, is ineligible; an exemption may apply where the permanent post was 0.5 FTE or less.
Applicants who do not reach the second stage may not reapply. Applicants invited to the second stage but not awarded may reapply from the first stage if they still meet the eligibility requirements.
No age limit and no minimum years of work experience apply.

Can you apply?

Here's who can apply

Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.

Residence required
UK
Education required
PhD Enrolled · PhD

Check my eligibility — free

Circlebreaker is a free database of global fellowships, scholarships and programs — every one decoded like this.

We only check the criteria we have data for. Always confirm full eligibility on the official page before applying.

Application process

1
Check which eligibility route applies and, where an exemption is needed, contact the Academy before applying.
2
Secure a UK host institution and department, and identify a mentor who holds a paid position in that department.
3
Register an ORCID identifier and create an account on Flexi-Grant, the Academy’s grant management system.
4
Complete the outline application: eligibility declaration, research proposal, proposal focus, applicant details, career summary, equal opportunities, and referee statement. The proposal itself runs to 2,000 words, with a 150-word abstract, a 600-word account of the doctoral research, an 800-word plan of action, and shorter sections on outputs, dissemination and data deposit.
5
Nominate one referee who can speak to the significance and feasibility of the project — normally the doctoral external examiner. The referee may not be the mentor, the doctoral supervisor, an internal examiner, or based at the proposed host institution, and the statement must be marked complete before the application can be submitted.
6
Send the application for host institutional approval at least five working days before the closing date; institutions set their own earlier internal deadlines.
7
Submit, with institutional approval in place, by 17:00 BST on 30 September 2026. Unapproved applications are removed from consideration.
8
Outline results are announced in January 2027. Applicants taken forward complete the second stage, which opens on 13 January 2027 and closes on 17 February 2027, with final results at the end of June 2027. No interviews are held before offers are made.

Program timeline

Outline stage opens
1 July 2026
Outline application and institutional approval deadline
30 September 2026, 17:00 BST
Outline stage results announced
January 2027
Second stage opens
13 January 2027
Second stage deadline
17 February 2027
Final results announced
End of June 2027
Earliest Fellowship start date
1 September 2027
Latest Fellowship start date
1 January 2028