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Overseas Bursary

Overview of the Scheme

The British Ecological Society (BES) Overseas Bursaries scheme provides grants for ecologists in developing countries  to carry out innovative ecological research. It aims to support excellent ecological science in Africa.

Currently the grants are restricted to citizens of African countries and associated islands.

Each grant is normally up to £7,000 over an 18 month period and is intended for the purchase of the basic tools needed to conduct a research project, limited in-country travel and in some cases part of the applicant's salary. It cannot be used for international travel or education. Individuals applying to carry out research in Africa but whose University is based outside Africa are not eligible to apply for funding. This grant cannot be used to support research degrees, however researchers who have already been registered at a research institute or university for at least 6 months by the deadline date of the Overseas Bursary application can apply for funding for research that goes towards a degree. Applicants in these circumstances need to indicate that they have already gone some way in starting their research and that the money will not go towards course fees or personal salary. Some funding may be provided to cover applicant's expenses during research where it is shown that they will not be able to afford the time off from other paid employment. In these cases applicants must state if the research work will be possible without BES funding to cover this lost income.
Repeat applications, year after year for essentially the same project will be rejected. Where relevant, successful applicants will be linked by the BES to ecologists from overseas countries who share related research interests. Successful applicants also receive free membership of the BES and a free subscription to one of its journals for the duration of the project. Links with countries outside the applicant’s country are actively encouraged and progress in establishing such links may be used when deciding on awarding any follow-on Fellowship grant.

The applications will be judged by a panel of assessors on the basis of the applicant's personal qualifications, the scientific quality, novelty and feasibility of the proposal, and the relevance of the planned research results.
Successful applicants may go on to apply for a BES Overseas Fellowship that funds further research work, the applicant's salary and international travel.

All applications must be accompanied by a statement of support from the host institution.  This statement should include why the project is important, what support they will give to the applicant during the project and a statement that any equipment bought for the project will be made available for anyone in the host institution to conduct ecological research.

Repeat applications, year after year for essentially the same project will be rejected.

Research Areas

Funding is for innovative ecological research. Funding is for any area of ecological science excluding research focused solely on agriculture, forestry and bioprospecting. Survey work may only be considered for funding where it can be clearly shown that it is needed as preliminary work for a longer term research project.

The proposed project could be part of an existing programme but the application should be for a clearly defined piece of research. Researchers must also ask themselves how their research will affect, or be affected by, local ecological and socio-economic conditions where the research is likely to be implemented.

Notes

Applicants should note that Bursary scheme awardees on successful completion of their proposed research qualify to apply for the "Overseas Fellowship Scheme".

Value of the award:

up to £7,000

Closing date:

The deadline is the 1st of September. Applications will be considered on an annual basis. Applicants will be advised of the outcome within two months of the deadline.

Application:

This grant is only available by applying using the BES online application form. 

To view or download the online questions before filling in the online form click here (this form is only for guidance and applications will need to be submitted using the online form)

To apply for this grant  click here

Conditions:

Applicants for a BES Overseas Bursary must satisfy the following criteria:

• the host institute will need to send in a signed letter of support before the application deadline.
• be a scientist and a citizen of a country in Africa or its associated islands
• have at least a MSc or equivalent degree
• be working at a university or research institution (including field centres, NGOs, museums etc.) that provides basic research facilities
• the research will be done in a developing country

Letters of support from host institutions can be scanned and emailed or faxed to the BES office or Grants officer. For full email addresses please look at the contact section of the BES website.

To view previous grant reports and to download a report template please visit the report section of our website. Reports should be no more than 8 pages long including a one page cost expenditure breakdown.

After successfully completing their Overseas Bursary Grants, applicants can not apply for future Overseas Bursary Grants as the Fellowship scheme and Small Ecological Project Grants are the grants to be used for continuation and further research funding.

Committee responsible for the grant:

Overseas Bursary and Fellowship Panel

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