UKRI Future Leaders Fellowships

Future Leaders Fellowships Round 11 — Academic Track

Supports United Kingdom research leaders in all disciplines to build independent programmes via UKRI Future Leaders Academic fellowships.

The Future Leaders Fellowships Round 11 — Academic Track is a flagship UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) programme designed to develop the next generation of research and innovation leaders at UK universities, NHS trusts, and eligible research institutes. The fellowships are administered across all eight UKRI councils — AHRC, BBSRC, EPSRC, ESRC, Innovate UK, MRC, NERC, and STFC — making them genuinely cross-disciplinary. The total funding pool for Round 11 is £110 million, shared with the industry track, and approximately 80 fellows are anticipated. UKRI funds 80% of full economic cost; the host institution covers the remaining 20%.

Fellowships run for an initial four years and may be extended by a further three years, for a total of seven years of funded research independence. Per-award funding has historically ranged from £300,000 to over £2 million depending on the scope of the proposed programme. Applicants must be researchers transitioning to or establishing research independence, based at an eligible UK host organisation. The host institution must commit to providing an open-ended independent research position during or after the fellowship. Career breaks, part-time working histories, and sector transitions are explicitly accommodated. The academic track opened on 2 February 2026 and closes on 16 June 2026 at 4:00 pm UK time via the UKRI Funding Service.

The selection process involves expert review by at least three independent referees, an applicant response stage of ten working days, shortlisting panel assessment, and a final interview scheduled for the week commencing 17 May 2027, with funding decisions issued within eight weeks of interview. Applicants should focus proposals on ambitious, interdisciplinary programmes that demonstrate a clear pathway to research leadership; UKRI explicitly values proposals that span council boundaries and tackle systemic scientific challenges.