Ahead of this, the Irish Research Council (IRC) will host a webinar on Wednesday 22 February 2023 for prospective applicants.

DOROTHY aims to promote and support people from wide-ranging disciplines, methodologies, sectors and settings to advance their research training to generate knowledge and capacity to prepare for, respond to and solve public health crises. It is a collaboration between the Health Research Board (HRB), the IRC and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

According to Dr Annalisa Montesanti, Programme Manager at the HRB:

“Health emergencies demand rapid responses based on best practice. DOROTHY COFUND will train and launch the careers of future experts able to tackle public health crises as multi-faceted societal challenges which require interdisciplinary, intersectoral and international perspectives. This will ensure that the highest quality research and evidence is available in advance to inform how we address events like COVID. We look forward to working in partnership with the Irish Research Council and the Environmental Protection Agency to achieve this.”

Eight awards were made in the first round of the call. Another 17 are expected to be made in round two.

Dr Rachel Clarke, Programme Manager for DOROTHY COFUND, will deliver a 45-minute webinar at 2.30pm (Irish time) on 22 February 2023 that will cover:

  • Introduction to the DOROTHY programme
  • Structure of the fellowships – how to design your research project
  • Benefits for fellows and their host institutions – remuneration and training programme
  • Eligibility and other criteria
  • Guiding you through the application process – tips for writing the best possible application
  • Evaluation process – how your application will be assessed
  • Key dates
  • There will also be the opportunity to ask questions.

Register here for the webinar.

More information on the DOROTHY COFUND programme is available here.