Undergraduate Research Bursaries

We offer bursaries to fund undergraduate summer research placements in chemistry-related research areas, for both lab-based and remote projects.

The purpose of the awards is to give experience of real research to undergraduates students to encourage them to consider a career in scientific research.

Please note that this year, all applications need to be approved by the Supervisor’s Head of Department before they can be submitted. This is done electronically as part of the application. Please ensure you give the Head of Department enough time before the deadline to approve your application. If you do not know who your Head of Department is, please contact your project supervisor. If your project is not at the University in which you are enrolled, you need to nominate the Head of Department at the institution you are visiting.

Who can apply?

In order to be eligible, the student must meet all of the following criteria:

They are in the middle years of their first undergraduate degree at time of application
Mature students are eligible to apply, but must not have a previous degree in any subject.
They are members of the RSC. Student membership is free and it is very quick and easy to join. For more details, please see our membership page.
They must be registered at a UK or Republic of Ireland Institution (whether full-time or part-time) for the majority of their undergraduate degree in the chemical sciences.
They must not be in receipt of financial support from other sources for the project that is the subject of application.

Please ensure you read our Guidance for Applicants and our Frequently Asked Questions document fully before you begin your application.

What can I request funding for?

✓

The bursary provides a contribution to the student's wages equivalent to 35 hours per week at the UK National Living Wage (£12.21 per hour from April 2025) for a total workload equivalent to 6 to 8 weeks. The work can be completed on a full-time, part-time, or flexible basis.

We welcome applications for both lab-based and remote projects.

✕

The project must not count towards the student’s academic credits, be used for expeditions or be conducted overseas for more than 50% of the project time.

Application timelines

Please note for fairness and transparency to all applicants, we must apply our rules consistently. This means that we do not allow late applications. You are welcome to apply in the next application round providing you meet all
eligibility criteria of that round.

Applications Open	13 January 2025
Applications Close	17 February 2025 (2pm UK time)
Initial eligibility decisions	Week commencing 3 March 2025
Funding decisions	By early May 2025
Reports Requested	Week commencing 6 October 2025

Assessment criteria

All applications will be checked by RSC staff. Your application will not proceed to peer review if:

You do not meet our eligibility criteria (see above)
Your application is incomplete
Your application does not adhere to the length limits instructed in the application system

All remaining eligible applications will undergo peer review by members of our Researcher Grants Peer Review Group and final funding decisions will then be overseen by:

Professor John Dean, Northumbria University
Dr Joëlle Prunet, University of Glasgow
Dr Jóhannes Reynisson, Keele University

They will assess applications on the following criteria. No more than four applications from an individual institution will be funded. We request that institutions are thoughtful about the number of applications they submit (if submitting more than 4) and are considerate about the time given by our volunteer reviewers to ensure the scheme runs smoothly for our applicants.

Where a student applies to undertake their project at a different UK/ROI university to the one they are enrolled in, the application will not count towards the allocation of either university.

Merit of the student	Reviewers will assess the student’s aptitude and interest in practical work; their academic abilities; career ambitions and how much this project is likely to benefit them.
Suitability of the project	In addition to high-quality science achievable in the time available, the project must be suitable for the student’s skill level, whilst providing an appropriate level of challenge. It should give the student experience in a range of techniques and concepts.
Supervisor support	The application should demonstrate how the student will be given the support they need to make the most of their time in the lab. The application should also take into account provision of adequate resources to train and supervise the student.