Junior Research Fellowship Programme

Eligibility for this is programme is limited to those Colleges which have been assessed as exempt from making a Contribution to the University under Statute G, Chapter II. This list is updated annually and currently comprises the Colleges listed below:

• Clare Hall
• Darwin College
• Downing College
• Fitzwilliam College 
• Hughes Hall 
• Lucy Cavendish College
• Murray Edwards College
• Robinson College 
• St Edmund's College 
• Selwyn College
• Wolfson College

The Application deadline is Thursday 06 May 2027, 12 pm (noon).

Applications should be made by the College via the online application form linked here.

The application will comprise:

1. Detailed information on the JRF Stipendiary/Non-Stipendiary package the College will provide, to include information on the benefits provided by the College and the total financial value of the package. Details on any other sources of funding making up the value of the package should be provided.

2. A letter addressed to Director of INT, Professor Gemma Burgess, that has been signed by the College. The letter should be no longer than 3 sides of A4 and should include a response to the following questions:

The JRF post in your College

• Why would your College like to host a JRF and what are the benefits to your College and the wider University in doing so?
• How will the JRF contribute to the teaching and the wider intellectual life of your College?
• Will the JRF be asked to supervise undergraduate or Masters' students in College and/or act as Director of Studies? Please note that INT JRFs would not normally be expected to teach more than 4 hours a week
• What professional and personal development support will be available to the JRF via the College?
• What additional facilities and relevant resources will the JRF be provided with by your College?
• Will the JRF have a mentor in College? Please provide details of the support/mentorship available to the Fellow 

Recruitment of the JRF

• When does the College intend to advertise the post?
• When will the JRF start?
• What processes has your College established for engaging with the relevant University Department/Faculty in the selection of your JRF? Apart from providing a check on the quality of the selected person, the appointee will also benefit from a formal association with a cognate academic community. The College should liaise with the relevant Head of Department for assurances about the facilities and resources available to the prospective JRF
• What processes are in place to ensure that the JRF is welcomed and integrated into your College and the wider University?

3. A template job description for a College Junior Research Fellow.

Applications will be considered by a Sub-Committee of the Trustees. Decisions will be announced by the end of May or early July 2027. 

If the application is successful, Colleges will be able to start recruiting for their Junior Research Fellow to start in October 2028.

Please note:

• Newton Trust JRF awards are made to Colleges, not directly to the Fellow
• The INT does not accept applications directly from prospective JRFs
• The Trust plays no part in the selection of Fellows - the selection is made by the College advertising the post. 
• The INT cannot provide research expenses for College JRFs

Personal Data: The Trust's policy on the collection and use of personal data during the application process and any subsequent grant administration can be found here. 

Conditions of the Junior Research Fellowship:

1. the College needs to demonstrate that the Research Fellowship cannot otherwise be afforded (the Trust does not offer partial funding for an existing Fellowship that a College has routinely funded in full from general endowment);
2. the College has either secured sufficient funding to supply the rest of the cost or it will use the Trust’s offer to seed fundraising efforts for the remainder of the costs (in the latter case, the Trust’s offer will be conditional on the College providing evidence of matching funding having been secured before the JRF can be advertised; if this condition is not met within two years of the date of the Trust’s offer, the offer will lapse);
3. the Fellowship may be advertised in any subject falling within the accepted scope of ‘Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences’. Note, however, that these JRFs cannot be used with the primary aim of filling teaching or directing needs in the College. If this is the primary aim, then an Academic Career Development Fellowship (ACDF) will be more suitable;   
4. the Research Fellow will normally have the opportunity to teach for up to four hours per week while in Cambridge; however, the teaching arrangement is not a requirement of the Trust and should not be a binding contractual agreement;
5. any teaching would be remunerated by the College separately - please note that the INT does not help with supervision payments (see ‘College Eligibility’ concerning those Colleges with limited or no requirement for undergraduate teaching);
6. if the Fellow leaves before the end of his/her tenure, the College should inform the Trust immediately; the Trust will reclaim unused contributions pro rata;
7. any variation sought in the usual terms and conditions (eg parental leave) should be discussed at the earliest opportunity with the Director;
8. any unspent INT grant must be returned to the Trust at the end of the grant period;
9. each eligible College may receive INT financial support for one Stipendiary JRF at any one time (ie once a fellowship has been awarded, the College will not be eligible for a second stipendiary award till the present holder has reached the end of his/her tenure, or left the post). Similarly, only one Non-Stipendiary JRF may be held at a time. However, the Trust is happy for a College to hold one JRF of each type simultaneously. Colleges who wish to seek a new JRF appointment of either type may apply to the Trust before the current JRF’s end of tenure.  A College holding a current ACDF may apply for a JRF to overlap with it but may not hold a stipendiary JRF in AHSS subjects in the same year as it receives a supplementary award for an ACDF.  Tables showing possible eligibility cycles for JRFs and ACDFs may be found here.
10. INT Trustees expect the total value of the package (salary plus benefits such as accommodation/rent bursaries) for stipendiary JRFs to be equivalent to at least the lowest point of the PDRA salary scale (point 39 of the single spine);
11. the Trust will pay a proportionate share of the costs of parental leave according to the policy of the College concerned (please contact the Trust);
12. in the case of a JRF whose tenure has been extended for a year or more through medical or maternity leave, the College may consult the Director to discuss applying for a new JRF to start before the current holder has completed the third funded year;
13. ‘Isaac Newton’ or ‘Newton’ should appear in the title of the Fellowship; the Trust has no objection to another name (e.g. of a donor) also appearing in the title to indicate a joint award.

Where the Trust’s offer is conditional on the College raising sufficient funding to cover the remainder of the costs, the Fellowship may not be advertised before this condition has been met and full funding has been secured.

Posts should be filled in open competition on intellectual excellence. 

Whilst colleges are free to set their own Fellowship stipend according to their general policy needs, the INT Trustees expect the total value of the package (salary plus benefits such as accommodation/rent bursaries) for stipendiary JRFs to be equivalent to at least the lowest point of the PDRA salary scale (point 39 of the University's single spine).  the Trust’s contribution is, however, fixed at £25,000 p.a. 

Fellowships will normally be advertised for three years’ tenure.

The advertisement should explain that the Fellow should be prepared to offer up to four hours’ teaching a week for the College, but that would not be a binding contractual agreement and teaching would be remunerated separately. The Trust appreciates that not all individual appointees might be able to offer regular teaching, and that some Fellows might wish, for research purposes, to spend a term or a year away from Cambridge. 

The Trust strongly recommends that all Colleges offering INT College Research Fellowships work with the ‘Churchill Group’ when recruiting their JRF, and to agree, so far as possible, on the application materials to be submitted by candidates (especially the nature and length of research statements) and the form that references should take.

The INT also strongly recommends that you engage with the relevant University Faculty in the selection of your JRF. Apart from providing a check on the quality of the selected person, the appointee will also benefit from a formal association with a cognate academic community.  You might find it useful to ask the relevant Head of Department for assurances about the facilities and resources being available to the top candidates of your JRF short-list.

The title ‘Isaac Newton’ or ‘Newton’ should appear in the advertisement as part of the title of the Fellowship. The Trust’s square wordmark should also be used where possible; please see our website for information about the Trust's logo and style guide.

Once the Junior Research Fellow has been successfully recruited, the College will be asked to provide INT with a CV of the recruited Fellow(s).

The Junior Research Fellow will also be required to complete INT's Personal Data Consent Form.

Junior Research Fellows will be regarded as employees of the colleges where the award is held and therefore be subject to the college's terms and conditions of employment.

The College should inform the Trust as soon as possible when any condition of matching funding has been met.

The College should inform the Trust when an appointment has been made and a provide a copy of the selected candidate's CV.

Once the Fellow has taken up the post, the College should send the Trust (via administrator@newtontrust.cam.ac.uk) a formal invoice for payment of the first annual contribution. Only one payment can be made in each financial year, so each subsequent invoice should be sent after 31 October annually.

If a Fellow leaves part-way through an academic year, the Trust will seek a refund of the unused portion of the award pro rata.

A brief annual report of progress and a final report on activities and achievements is to be submitted to the Isaac Newton Trust by the Fellow. 

The annual report can be accessed here

The final report can be accessed here.

Due acknowledgement of support received from the Isaac Newton Trust should be made in any publication resulting from the Fellow's research, whether an article, a paper, a book, or any other output.  The Fellow is also expected to acknowledge support in any form of media communication, including media appearances, press releases, book launches and conferences, and to inform the Trust of such activities. 

Fellows should tag the Trust on social media and include INT’s logo where relevant.