Opportunity status:
Open
Funders:
Funding type:
Grant
Publication date:
10 July 2025
Opening date:
30 April 2026 9:00am UK time
Closing date:
2 September 2026 4:00pm UK time
Apply for funding to investigate the causes, progression and treatment of human disease.
Your project must:
* focus on a mechanistic hypothesis
* include an experimental intervention or challenge in humans
You must be based at an eligible research organisation. If you are taking the next step towards becoming an independent researcher, you may be eligible to apply as a ‘new investigator’.
There is no limit to the amount of funding you can apply for or the length of your project.
We will fund 80% of your project’s full economic cost.
This is an ongoing funding opportunity. You must be invited to apply for stage two of this funding opportunity.
Who can apply
You can only apply for this funding opportunity if we have invited you to do so following a successful stage one application.
To lead a project, you must be based at an eligible organisation. .
Who is eligible to apply
To be eligible to apply for this funding opportunity you must:
* show that you will direct the project and be actively engaged in the work
* be part of a team that submitted an experimental medicine stage one application and, after successful assessment, have been invited to submit a stage two application for this funding opportunity. Additional team applicants can be included that were not in the stage one application
If you do not have a contract of employment for the duration of the proposed project, by submitting an application the research organisation is confirming, if it is successful:
* contracts will be extended beyond the end date of the project
* all necessary support for you and the project will be provided, including mentorship and career development for early career researchers
New investigator applicants
We welcome applications from early career researchers. The new investigator grant is aimed at researchers who are capable of becoming independent researchers and who are now ready to take the next step towards that goal.
If you are applying for this funding opportunity as a ‘new investigator’ you must:
* have
* be able to demonstrate that your skills and experience at the time of your application match those of the ‘transition to independence’ career stage, as set out in the MRC
* use this grant to support your long-term career goals and chosen career route
* be able to demonstrate you are the sole intellectual leader of the application and the proposed work
If you meet the eligibility criteria, you can also apply if you:
* are employed as a postdoctoral research assistant, although this grant cannot start until your current work finishes
* hold a lecturer appointment, a junior fellowship or another research staff position
* hold, or have held, an early career training fellowship such as an MRC skills development fellowship
* do not have a contract with your chosen host organisation
* are not currently based at the eligible research organisation that has agreed to host your new investigator award
* are either a non-clinical or clinically active researcher
* have any number of years of experience
Who is not eligible to apply as a new investigator
You are not eligible to apply if you have already achieved independence. New investigator awards support individuals who have not previously led a research team or been awarded a substantial grant as fellow or project lead (formally known as principal investigator).
A substantial grant is typically defined as for three or more years and including salary support for one or more additional team members.
You are also not eligible to apply as a new investigator if you have:
* an award or have held an award that facilitates the transition to independence
* applied for an MRC new investigator award twice before
* an application for any UK Research and Innovation fellowship currently under consideration, including, or
If you are unsure whether you meet the eligibility criteria as a new investigator, or have any questions about your eligibility, you should contact to find out whether you can apply.
See further details on the
Resubmissions
We will not accept uninvited resubmission of applications that were submitted after 1 April 2026 to MRC, the rest of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) or any other funder. An uninvited resubmission is an application that was previously unsuccessful and has been submitted again without being invited by MRC. This includes applications that are unchanged, minimally revised, or substantially the same as the original submission.
You may apply twice for an MRC new investigator award. If you are applying for a second time, we invite you to resubmit your first application or your second application may be a new application.
We advise you to allow sufficient time between applications to consider and respond to feedback.
Your other team members (new investigators)
We recognise and support the value of team science and interdisciplinary research, which may be important to your career development. Therefore, project co-leads, specialists and other team roles may be included if you are applying as a new investigator.
Your team members should bring essential complimentary research, technical expertise or skills to the project, that you as the new investigator project lead cannot provide, or you are aiming to develop.
We encourage you to use the appropriate application sections, such as ‘Applicant and team capability to deliver’, to make your leadership role clear and justify the team around you.
It is not usually appropriate for a current or recent supervisor or lab head of the new investigator to be part of the applicant team, as this may make your leadership unclear. If this is essential to the proposed work, it must be specifically justified.
International researchers
As MRC is a lead funder for this funding opportunity, international researchers can apply as ‘project co-lead (international)’.
Project co-leads (international) make a major intellectual contribution to the design or conduct of the project. Their contribution and added value to the research collaboration should be clearly explained and justified in the application, using the appropriate application sections, such as ‘Applicant and team capability to deliver’.
Read the for more details.