UKRI

International Travel Award Scheme for the Biological Sciences

The questions, word limits and assessment criteria below are the funder’s own, taken from the published competition material. You still submit through their service; this is where the writing happens first.

6 questions, straight from the funder

Their word limits are on every box, counted live as you type, and what the assessor is told to look for sits beside it. All of that is free. The pre-sift check — every mechanical rule that rejects a proposal before anyone reads it, run over what you have written — comes with the pass.

Application questions

Q1 Summary

0 / 550 words

In plain English, provide a summary we can use to identify the most suitable experts to assess your application. We usually make this summary publicly available on external-facing websites, therefore do not include any confidential or sensitive information. Make it suitable for a variety of readers, for example: opinion-formers policymakers the public the wider research community

Q2 Purpose

0 / 2500 words

Why is the travel needed?

What the assessor looks for

  • the value added to current or future UK bioscience by developing international contacts
  • the benefits likely to be gained from the collaboration
  • why travel needs to happen at this time
  • why the place you are travelling to is the best place to go to, in terms of people, skills and resources
  • why you or a team member are the best person to carry out this visit
  • a plan for how the collaboration will be taken forward after the funding has ended
  • the strategic relevance and reach of the collaboration – to what extent will it benefit more than one group

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q3 Resources and cost justification

0 / 500 words

What will you need to deliver your proposed work and how much will it cost?

What the assessor looks for

  • travel costs
  • subsistence costs
  • contributions from the international partner in cash or kind
  • are comprehensive, appropriate, and justified
  • represent the optimal use of resources to achieve the intended outcomes
  • maximise potential outcomes and impacts

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q4 Ethics and responsible research and innovation (RRI)

0 / 500 words

What are the ethical and RRI considerations, implications and issues relating to the proposed work? If you do not think that the proposed work raises any ethical or RRI issues, explain why.

What the assessor looks for

  • the relevant ethical and RRI considerations, including both the research or topic area itself and the design and delivery of the project
  • the wider implications of the proposed work, and how you will maximise the positive societal, environmental, and economic benefits arising from the project, whilst minimising unintended negative impacts, such as research misuse or accidental harm
  • how you will manage these considerations throughout the lifecycle of the project

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q5 Project partners: letters (or emails) of support

Upload a single PDF containing the letters or emails of support from each partner you named in the project partners section. These should be uploaded in English or Welsh only.

What the assessor looks for

  • confirm the partner’s commitment to the project
  • clearly explain the value, relevance, and possible benefits of the work to them
  • describe any additional value that they bring to the project
  • have a page limit of one side of A4 per partner

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q6 Host organisation’s support

0 / 500 words

Provide details of support from your research organisation and how international travel will add value to an existing BBSRC research grant.

What the assessor looks for

  • their position or role
  • the department, school or institute they lead
  • their contact details

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

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