Autumn 2025 RSE Research Awards programme opens today

The RSE Research Awards autumn 2025 programme opens today, providing funding opportunities for all academic disciplines across all career stages.

Ten different research funding opportunities are on offer, designed to enable Scotland’s academics to realise their potential, stimulate research in Scotland, and promote international collaboration.

The RSE’s Research Awards programme has two calls per year in spring and autumn.

The deadline for this call is noon on Wednesday, 22 October 2025 (except the ‘Healthy Planet, Healthy People’: Catalyst Award, which has a deadline of noon on Thursday, 4 December 2025).

We are pleased to highlight the following developments for this round:

• The amount awarded for Personal Research Fellowships has increased to a maximum salary of £52K plus £5K research costs.
• International Bilateral Visits are open with the Australian Academy of Science, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, the Accademia Nazionale Dei Lincei (Italy), the National Science and Technology Council (Taiwan), the Slovak Academy of Sciences, and the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts.
• International Joint Projects are offered through two streams:
  Stream one is for applicants applying with a partner institute of their choice. Through this Stream, the RSE may accept applications that have not secured match-funding. In particular, in accordance with Scottish Government priorities and in support of Scotland-Africa relations, applications are welcomed from the following six countries: Malawi, Zambia, Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, and Uganda. Prior permission must be sought in advance. Applications without prior permission will be marked as ineligible.
  Stream two applies to applicants applying with a Sister Academy with which the RSE holds a Memorandum of Understanding. This round includes the National Science and Technology Council, Taiwan (NSTC), and, as the first UK collaborator, the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service).
• Ireland-Scotland Bilateral Network Awards, offered jointly by the Royal Irish Academy (RIA) and the RSE, are available to support collaborative research projects between Ireland and Scotland under the theme of Community and Diaspora.
• ‘Healthy Planet, Healthy People’: Catalyst Awards supported by the Williamson Trust are open for a third round and have a later deadline of noon on Thursday, 4 December 2025.
• The Scotland-Asia Partnerships Higher Education Research (SAPHIRE) Fund, supported by the Scottish Government, returns for this round.
• The Scotland-Lower Saxony Research and Innovation Scheme is open for a second round of applications.