A Crick Africa Network (CAN) is offering career acceleration scholarships African women supported LifeArc is a platform for early-career biomedical scientists to develop translational science programs and become independent scientists.

The Crick Africa Network (CAN) is looking for African scientists Ambitious early-career individuals who can demonstrate strong scientific and leadership potential, a keen interest in translational science, and a commitment to establishing their own research groups and pursuing their careers on the African continent.

Eligibility

To be eligible to apply for the African Career Accelerator Scholarship, you must have:

• Citizenship or permanent residency status for an African country.
• A PhD in a relevant field with two to five years of postdoctoral experience, or a clinical PhD (MBChB) with at least three years of relevant research experience.
• A strong track record indicating potential as a scientific leader on the African continent.
• A strong proposal for translational science in one of CAN's research areas.
• Approach and reach an agreement on your science proposal with your mentor at your chosen African partner institute and your chosen mentor at Crick before submitting your science proposal.

Fellows will also be expected to spend some time in the United Kingdom, using the research and laboratory facilities of the Francis Crick Institute and LifeArc.

Benefits

Fellows will have the opportunity to be supported by one or more of Crick's 21 scientific technology platforms (STPs). LifeArc will also offer translational development courses and host fellows for three to 12 months in one of its UK laboratories.

The mentorship from the chosen African partner institute, Crick, and LifeArc will provide support with grant writing, publication, research ethics, and translation.

There is a strong spirit of collaboration and interaction throughout the network, and fellows will be encouraged to learn from each other as well as from their mentors. Fellowships will cover salary, research costs, research assistant salary, and travel and living expenses.

Research topics

All projects must have translational potential. Our definition of translational science is that it serves clinical, commercial, or environmental benefits. It must address a clear unmet medical need and bridge the gap between basic science discovery and product development, and may include...

• human genetics
• Disease pathogenesis and immunogenetics.
• pathogen genomics or bioinformatics
• pathogen-host interaction,
• diagnostics and biomarkers,
• pandemic preparedness
• antimicrobial resistance (AMR), or
• Discovery of medicines and vaccines for development.
• Before submitting your application, you should read the application notes (PDF).
• If you have questions about the translational potential of your proposed research idea and how LifeArc could support its development, please contact Andy Merritt, LifeArc project leader and head of academic engagement, at [email address]. andy.merritt@lifearc.com.
• Applicants must have identified a mentor at their chosen African partner institute and at Crick before applying. Crick research labs can be found in our A-Z list of labs.
• Applications must be submitted through our online academic recruitment portal.
• Only fully completed applications will be considered.

Deadline: November 12, 2023.

Click HERE to sign up