Research career path for health and care practitioners
This refers to anyone providing clinical care including medics, allied health professionals, dentists, nurses and midwives
The research career path for health and care practitioners aims to support and develop health and care practitioners as clinician scientists. This supports people along their research career journey from doctoral training to research leadership while balancing their clinical commitments.
The figure below summarises the HRB funding schemes, relative to career stage, which are developed already or under development. Some additional funding schemes are also available through the SFI-HRB-Wellcome partnership.
Funding calls targeting specific health and care research career stages
Individuals studying for an undergraduate degree should apply to the following annual research funding call:
HRB Summer Student Scholarships
CloseThe Doctoral training stage targets graduate researchers who are pursuing a doctoral (PhD) degree. The training stage is usually thorough and broad and should focus on the acquisition of research methodologies and skills as well as professional and generic transferable skills.
The HRB funds doctoral training through structured and mentored programmes awarded to a collaborative team of senior investigators. These programmes support cohorts of doctoral trainees/candidates. The HRB does not support individuals directly through fellowships or other personal awards at doctoral stage.
Opportunities at this stage include:
- Wellcome-HRB Irish Clinical Academic Training programme (ICAT)
- Collaborative Doctoral Awards in Patient-focused Research (CDA)
You can view CDA programmes funded in 2018.
ClosePhD holders undertake periods of postdoctoral research that takes them through consolidation and progression career phases. This experience aims to increase their breadth of research knowledge, skills, methodologies and capabilities as well as establishing national and international collaborations and networks.
Opportunities at this stage include:
- Clinician Scientist Postdoctoral Fellowship (CSF) this new call will be posted on the HRB website in Autumn 2019
- Wellcome Clinical Research Career Development Fellowships
- Wellcome Research Awards for Health Professionals
These are researchers with enough postdoctoral experience who are progressing towards research independence. During this transition, researchers further develop a research vision, establish a research team, manage a research programme and establish new and/or strengthen previous collaborations.
You can view EIA funding awarded
CloseResearchers at this career stage usually:
- lead a team and a research programme as independent investigators;
- have a track record in securing several research grants as principal investigator, co-applicant or collaborator;
- have a track record of significant research contribution to scientific knowledge demonstrated by several relevant research outputs as independent investigator;
- have experience in mentoring and leading a team and have a long-term research vision.
Schemes include:
- Clinician Scientist Awards (CSA) (available as part of the next HRB strategy post 2020.)
- Wellcome Senior Research Fellowships
There is also a suite of other opportunities for training and career development throughout the year. Some are annual calls and some are once-off calls.
- Fulbright-HRB Health Impact Awards
- NCI Summer curriculum in cancer prevention
- Conference and event sponsorship scheme
- Research Visits – Ulysses