Early Career Researcher Community Fund

Events/Activities must:

• Be led by a  postgraduate student or member of research staff.
• Benefit a minimum of 8 Early Career Researchers.
• Take place between 1^st October and the 30^thJune each year.
• Seek to develop the research and/or professional skills of participants and/or enhance research culture and community at Imperial.
• Be delivered with sustainability in mind.
• Applications from students registered within CDTs/DTPs/DLAs will also be asked to confirm how the event/activity will be opened to the wider student community.

• The event or activity must be ECR-led and for the benefit of a minimum of 8 ECRs.
• Individuals may submit up to one application per annum. Priority will be given to new initiatives and/or new target group. For Postdoc Representatives, only one application per Postdoc Representative group can be submitted each academic session.
• The fund is not available to support repeat activities i.e. those which have previously received funding through this grant.
• Retrospective applications will not be considered.
• Activities must take place between 1st October and 30th June each year (any expenses should be claimed by the middle of July at the very latest).  Activities which take place outside this timeframe will not be considered.  
• When thinking about how to ensure your event/activity is sustainable, you may wish to review Imperial’s sustainability objectives (Imperial Zero Pollution | About | Imperial College London) and consider the impact of your event on travel, goods, waste, and the environment etc.
• The fund cannot be used to purchase alcohol and requests for catering must be in line with Imperial’s expenses policy.
• The maximum grant available per application is £500 (events or activities which exceed this amount will require match funding from elsewhere).
• In order to share examples of best practice with the ECR community, grant recipients are required to write a blog post about the activity. All blog posts must be received by the Early Career Researcher Institute (ECRI) no later than early July so that funds can be distributed in the same financial year in which the activity took place.  Funds will not be transferred if this deadline is missed or if the blog post is not submitted. Guidance for writing your blog post can be downloaded here - Guidance for Writing a Blog Post.pdf‌
• It is usual practice for ECRI to reimburse the academic Department of the  organiser for the agreed cost, following the event.
• Applications from under-represented groups are particularly welcome.

• All applications are considered by the Early Career Researcher (ECRI) Administration Group which meets on a monthly basis.