BES POST Fellowship

*Applications for the 2013 Fellowship are now closed*

The British Ecological Society sponsors a three month Fellowship at the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST) for 2nd or 3rd year PhD students in ecology.

Closing date: Friday 19th April
Interviews: Wednesday 22nd May

The Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology

The Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST) is an office of the two Houses of Parliament (Commons and Lords). POST is responsible for providing balanced and independent analysis of science and technology-based issues of relevance to Parliament.

POST regularly publishes short briefing papers (POSTnotes) and longer reports giving parliamentarians a broad overview of the background to an issue and an analysis of the policy implications.

BES POST Fellowship

The BES POST fellow will work on a policy topic grounded in science and technology and will be expected to produce a POSTnote, contribute to a longer report, or assist a Select Committee of either House in a current inquiry.

The exact topic of the Fellowship will be determined by the Board of POST. Applicants should therefore be aware that, on joining POST , the Fellow may be working on something other than his/her originally-proposed topic.

The Fellow will be expected to organise a seminar to inform or disseminate their work.

Eligibility

Eligibility is restricted to postgraduate students registered in an ecology PhD in a UK university who are engaged in their second or third year of full-time study or part-time equivalent at the time of application.

Funding Arrangements

The successful applicant will receive a £5,000 award to cover his/her living costs while undertaking the three-month fellowship at the Houses of Parliament, London. While a Fellow is based at POST, computing, email and other facilities necessary for the project will be supplied by POST.

Start date

The start date will be in mid September or thereafter. This is to be agreed between the applicant, POST, the applicant’s supervisor and University.

Restrictions

Candidates will have to receive parliamentary security clearance before they can receive the BES POST Fellowship. POST is a strictly non-partisan organisation. Fellows will be expected to abstain from any party political activity and generally to uphold the principles of parliamentary service, including a commitment to confidentiality, during their time with the Office.

Apply

To apply, please submit:

1. A completed POST Fellowship application form, which has been approved by your Head of Department or principal supervisor.
2. A two-page summary of a proposed topic for a POST publication. This summary should demonstrate why you think this project would be of particular parliamentary interest. This should also demonstrate your ability to write in a style suitable for a parliamentary (rather than academic) audience.
3. A one page document illustrating:
   • Your interest in and suitability for the Fellowship.
   • How the training you have received and your research and other experience to date will enable you to carry out this work
4. A BES Ethnic and Gender monitoring form.
   

The final application and monitoring form should be sent by post to:

Attn: BES POST Fellowship Application
British Ecological Society, Charles Darwin House, 12 Roger Street, London WC1N 2JU.

Please note, late applications will not be accepted. A panel consisting of BES and POST personnel will assess the applications.

Interviews

Interviews will be held in London on Wednesday 22nd May 2013.

Queries

Any queries relating to the application process should be directed to the Policy Team at the BES on 020 7685 2500 or via Policy@BritishEcologicalSociety.org.

Dr Jonathan Wentworth from POST is available on 020 7219 2161 to discuss any general aspects of the scheme.

Please note that neither the BES nor POST can advise on the strength or weaknesses of individual proposals.