British Academy
Call for Project Proposals:
British Academy Research Projects Application forms for a new
call for proposals for Academy Research Projects are now available
on e-GAP: https://egap.britac.ac.uk
The British Academy has a strong record in the promotion of
collaborative, infrastructural, and often international research.
The programme of Academy Research Projects currently gives academic
recognition and modest financial support to about 50 projects, and
the Academy is now looking to expand this through the adoption of a
small number of new projects.
This programme does not offer the kind of major funding
currently available via the AHRC or ESRC, and it is expected that
any project supported under the scheme will need to be able to
demonstrate that it is independently financially viable. Academy
Research Projects typically share the characteristic of being
infrastructural projects or research facilities, intended to
produce fundamental works of scholarship, in most cases for the use
of a variety of disciplines, rather than to produce interpretative
works or monographs. Another typical feature is the contribution
made by the voluntary work of many scholars, whether as organizers
or participants. A full list of the current portfolio of ARPs is
available on the Academy’s website, while successful projects
adopted in response to the last Call for Proposals in 2007 are
listed at http://www.britac.ac.uk/funding/awards/posts/ARF_2007_Awards.cfm.
The Academy does not, however, have preconceived ideas about the
type of project that may be proposed in response to this Call for
Proposals, in terms of length of time required for completion, or
organization. The onus is on project proposers to convince the
Academy that their project is particularly suited to Academy
support, benefiting from the academic recognition offered by
Academy Research Project status, which may assist projects in
appealing to a wide range of funding agencies both in the UK and
abroad, both public and private. The Academy will also make
available to projects small-scale research expenses, normally up to
a ceiling of £5,000pa (on a competitive basis), to meet certain
kinds of costs that can be difficult to cover through other funding
applications.
Application forms and further details for the 2011 competition
are now available in the online e-GAP system at
https://egap.britac.ac.uk (potential applicants who are not
currently registered in the system will need to do this first, by
using the ‘register’ option on the log-in page, to obtain access to
the system).
Please note that the application process involves two stages. In
the first instance the Outline Stage form only is available. Only
those project directors invited to do so will be able complete the
Second Stage Application Form.
Level of award:
Up to £5,000pa. Period of award: Once adopted into the ARP
programme, the project will be required to submit an annual
progress report, together with a bid for financial support (if
needed) in 5 year tranches. Projects are subject to thorough
review, normally every five years, where the case for continuing
Academy support is assessed. Given satisfactory progress, there is
no specific limit on the length of time the project may expect to
continue its association with the Academy. Projects performing
unsatisfactorily will be given time to try to resolve any
short-term difficulties, but the Academy reserves the right to
terminate the association after a due period of notice.
Suitable Projects:
Directors of projects of the kind described above, whether
existing or new, in any field or fields of the humanities and
social sciences, may approach the Academy for support through this
scheme. The applicant should be the project director, and must be a
UK resident but need not be in a permanent full-time academic post
in the UK. Co-applicants may be co-directors of the project and may
come from anywhere in the world. The Academy expects to use this
opportunity to broaden the current portfolio of projects into a
wider subject base. Accordingly, the Projects Committee has
identified two broad generic areas from which new proposals will be
particularly welcome.
These are:
• Social Sciences
• Projects which contribute to the Academy’s Languages and
Quantitative Skills programme
Languages and Quantitative Skills: In the Government’s
announcement of the allocation of Science and Research Funding for
2011-12 to 2014-15, funding was confirmed for a new programme to
strengthen support for research in languages, and in the use of
rigorous, especially quantitative, methods across the social
sciences and humanities.
This programme will be multi-faceted, involving a range of
activities and outcomes. Applications are particularly welcomed
from projects which might specifically contribute to this new
programme, with a particular focus on communication and public
understanding. (http://www.britac.ac.uk/policy/Languages_and_Quantitative_Skills.cfm)
Number of awards:
The Academy expects to be able to add a small number of new
projects to the existing portfolio up to a maximum of five, but
there is no specific number of awards available. The Academy
reserves the right not to adopt any of the projects proposed.
Previous calls for proposals were issued in 2003, (when the
Academy received 17 proposals and adopted four projects – a success
rate of 23.5%); and in 2007 (when the Academy received 72 proposals
and adopted eight projects – a success rate of 11%).
The closing date for completed Outline Stage
applications is Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Page last updated 9/26/2011