The British Heart Foundation’s Clinical Early Career Research Fellowship is a new scheme for resident doctors who’ve finished a PhD and don’t want their research to stall while they get through specialty training. It buys protected postdoctoral research time, either part-time alongside training or full-time out of programme. The next deadline is 13 January 2027.
The BHF funds research into heart and circulatory diseases, and that remit takes in the vascular side of brain health, including stroke, small vessel disease and vascular dementia.
Who can apply
You need to be a resident doctor in higher specialty training with a UK national training number, and you must hold a PhD or have submitted your thesis by the application date. Any clinical specialty is welcome, as long as the project sits within the BHF’s cardiovascular remit. Residency requirements don’t apply.
What it covers
You choose how to structure it, and you’ll need to justify the choice:
- Part-time, at 20% to 50% of your time alongside clinical training, for up to four years (or the equivalent of two years full-time).
- Full-time, during an out-of-programme period.
The award covers your salary at the equivalent NHS banding, a part-time technician or research assistant if fully justified, consumables and essential equipment, a training fund of up to £3,000, up to £1,000 a year for travel to meetings, and up to £200 a year towards caring costs. Stays of up to six months at an overseas or second UK institution are allowed if you can justify them.
You’ll need a named Primary Academic Advisor, a support letter from your Training Programme Director with a plan showing how research and training fit together, and the BHF strongly encourages up to two mentors.
Deadlines and decisions
The next deadline is 13 January 2027 at 17:00, by which point the application must be fully submitted after sign-off from your Head of Department and Administrative Authority, so build in time for that. Miss it and your application rolls over to the following round, which closes on 16 June 2027. Shortlisted candidates are interviewed on 11 May 2027, with decisions by the end of May. The Clinical Fellowships Committee decides after external review.
How to apply
The BHF encourages an informal chat first. Email fellowships@bhf.org.uk with a CV of no more than two sides of A4, a one-page project description and an estimated cost. Applications go through the BHF’s online system at researchgrants.bhf.org.uk. The case for support is a single PDF in Arial 12, and the BHF rejects applications in any other font size before they’re considered, so check the formatting rules in the scheme guidance carefully. You’ll also need a Gantt chart and a weekly timetable. For broader advice, see our guide to securing your first research fellowship.
Read the full details and apply
Visit funding web page
(https://www.bhf.org.uk/for-professionals/information-for-researchers/what-we-fund/clinical-early-career-research-fellowship)