Research Grants Overview

The Isaac Newton Trust funds research undertaken at the University of Cambridge in all subjects. Most of our research grant programmes provide short-term funding, designed to complement larger projects or applications. Strategic grants are offered to provide longer-term project support.

The Trust should not be the project’s primary funder and applicants are encouraged to approach other funding bodies first wherever possible.

We aim to be as responsible and flexible as possible, therefore if you have any questions regarding the schemes offered or the application process, please contact us.

The INT currently runs the following research grant programmes, open to Principal Investigators employed by the University. Details for each programme, including upcoming deadlines and how to apply, can be found on the following research grant programme pages:

• Emergency Bridging & Underwriting
• Project Start-up Grants
• Fellowship Support
• Strategic Grant

Applications must be completed with the assistance of your departmental Research Grants Administrator. Applications do not need to be processed by the Research Operations Office before submission. However, calculating staff costs in a Worktribe standalone budget is recommended.

Trustee Meetings 

All decisions are made at Trustee meetings, which happen once a term on the dates given below. Please note that the INT will not consider applications made between the advertised funding rounds or by those from outside of the University of Cambridge.

Candidates will be informed of their application outcome soon after the respective Trustee meeting. 

Application Outcomes

The Trust does not release referees' reports or provide application feedback.

Formal offer letters are issued within two weeks. Awardees will be provided with an INT reference number which should be quoted in any communication related to the award. Please note that this reference number is not the same as the project code provided by the Research Office. 

If funding offers are accepted and specific conditions are met, formal confirmation letters are sent to the applicant, the host institution, and to the Research Office.

Research grants are normally set up and managed by the Research Office, in collaboration with the host institution finance office. The INT does not manage the grant.

An invoice can be submitted to the Trust after the start date of the awarded project. Where the grant is for more than one year, only one year of the grant will be paid at a time. Only one invoice will be paid per grant per INT financial year (July-June).