Deadline: 02-Oct-2025
The Lisa Jardine Grant Scheme offers early career scholars the opportunity to exploit history of science collections, including the Royal Society’s own, in support of their research in the field of intellectual history.
Grants are intended to encourage the free movement of researchers across disciplines and countries, to stimulate academics studying intellectual history to consider science in their research and encourage scientists to look back at the origins and historical data related to their discipline. Applicants are encouraged to look at the Royal Society’s strategic objectives, to demonstrate how their research might further these general goals, but applications will be judged on the strength of their academic content in intellectual history, history of science and related disciplines.
The scheme provides a maximum award value of £8,000 to fund up to three months research subsistence and international travel. Scholars may apply for research subsistence of up to £2,000 per month to a maximum of three months for living expenses and domestic travel while attending the Royal Society Library and nearby scholarly collections. Both international and UK-based scholars are required to incorporate research at the Royal Society as part of their proposal under this strand. In addition, international travel funding of up to £2,000 is available for short exploratory research trips of no more than one month or for one-off event attendance. UK-based scholars may apply for travel to any relevant international destination, while non-UK-based scholars may only apply to travel to the UK and are required to incorporate research at the Royal Society as part of their proposal. Applicants may apply for both subsistence and travel, with awards determined according to the strength of the proposal.
Eligibility is open to doctoral candidates with at least one year’s experience toward thesis stage, or applicants at an early stage of their research career who have completed their PhD in the last ten years or have no more than ten years of actual research experience since their PhD. Career breaks and part-time working are taken into consideration. Applicants must hold a permanent or fixed-term contract in an early career position or as a doctoral candidate for the duration of the award, within an eligible organisation such as a university, library, museum, gallery or other non-profit heritage body.
Awards provide a maximum of three months’ financial support, which must be used within a 12-month period. Activities eligible for funding include research visits to the Royal Society Library, lasting between one and three months, and complementary research at related UK institutions. UK-based scholars may also travel internationally under this scheme, while non-UK scholars may apply only to travel to the UK. Activities must focus on cultural studies topics related to the history and philosophy of science, with emphasis on the Royal Society’s collections, and may encompass interdisciplinary approaches across the natural sciences and related fields. Special consideration will be given to Early Modern topics, such as seventeenth-century studies.
Applications will be assessed based on academic strength and novelty of the proposal, contribution to the academic field, identification and justification of materials to be consulted, research background of the applicant, strength of host organisation support, mutual benefit of collaboration, and potential for long-term collaboration.
The Royal Society is committed to removing barriers for disabled people in research careers and encourages applicants to request adjustments to support their participation in the selection process. Application closes on 2 October 2025.
For more information, visit The Royal Society.
