Call for Applications: IMMANA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2021-2022, UK

Deadline for applications: December 31, 2020

To be considered for the programme, all applicants must submit a Full Application. Applicants should not expect to receive feedback on their Full Application prior to notification of selection. Please click here for the application portal! Details are available in the Call for Applications.

Career development Fellowships on Innovative Methods and Metrics for Agriculture and Nutrition Actions (IMMANA Fellowships) aim to create a cadre of emerging leaders in agriculture, nutrition, and health research.

This workstream of the IMMANA programme is led by the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University. It consists of annual rounds of 6 Fellowships each year. The application  portal will soon be open for the sixth round of funding. 

In each annual round, IMMANA will award six 12-month post-doctoral Fellowships to emerging leaders who are applying and/or validating new methodological approaches with mentors in ongoing research programmes in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The Fellowship includes a research stipend, a travel allowance, and an honorarium for each of the mentors.

Eligible candidates have completed a doctoral degree in any field related to agriculture, nutrition or health research and practice.  

Fellows conduct their research in Africa or Asia under the joint supervision of two mentors, one from the applicant’s current or previous employer or academic institution, and one from a host institution where the applicant proposes to advance their work.

Fellows are selected through a competitive process by the Independent Panel of Experts. The review process is also overseen by the IMMANA Steering Committee, comprised of members from FCDO, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, UKRI, USAID and CGIAR’s A4NH programme.

Funding

Six Fellowships will be awarded through a competitive selection process. Each Fellowship will be
provided for a 12-month period and cannot be renewed. Each Fellowship must also involve two Mentors. During that period, Fellows will receive the following financial support:
• A fixed stipend of £40,800 paid in quarterly instalments against satisfactory completion
of programme milestones.
• A research allowance of £9,000 to cover travel and other fieldwork expenses, also paid as lump
sums for achievement of programme milestones.
• An honorarium of £2,100 to each of the Mentors paid in two instalments at mid-term and end of
the year, on submission of a satisfactory mentorship report.

Eligibility

Eligible candidates will have completed a doctoral degree (PhD, DPhil, DPH, MD, DVM or similar
terminal degree) in any field related to agriculture, nutrition or health research and practice, and be
actively engaged in research, education, and engagement at the intersection of two or more of
these fields. We are particularly interested in applicants who aim to build careers or already have
institutional affiliations in a research institute or university in Sub-Saharan Africa or South Asia, but
applicants maybe of any nationality and have earned their doctorate anywhere. During their
Fellowship year, successful candidates will complete and submit for publication at least one potentially high-impact research finding, which they will also communicate through scientific groups including the Agriculture, Nutrition and Health Academy. IMMANA Fellows are expected to play an active role in the ANH Academy, bringing diverse perspectives to leadership across disciplinary and institutional boundaries. The IMMANA programme aims for equal representation of women and men with a wide range of expertise, and we particularly welcome applications from citizens of LMIC countries.

Applicants must propose to to validation and/or apply a recently-developed methodological
approach to agriculture, nutrition and health research under the joint supervision of two Mentors,
one from the applicant’s current or previous employer or academic institution, and one from a host
institution where the applicant proposes to advance their work. At least one of the two Mentors
must be physically located in Sub-Saharan Africa or South Asia.

Timeline 

Please click here for the application portal!

• Concept notes must be submitted by 31 December 2020. Applicants are welcome and encouraged to submit a concept note to confirm eligibility and receive valuable feedback, however it is not required in order to submit a full proposal. Feedback on concept notes will be provided on a rolling basis and no later than 15 January 2021. 
• Full proposals must be submitted by 1 February 2021.
• Selected applicants will be notified no later than 16 April 2021.
• Fellows begin their Fellowships between 1 June and 1 December 2021.

Source / More information: Official Website.