Vallee Scholar Awards: for outstanding early-career investigators conducting basic biomedical research.
The University of Oxford may nominate one candidate for the 2026 Vallee Scholar Award. This career development award provides funding of up to $400,000 over four years for junior faculty whose research and professional growth will be advanced by participation in the program, which includes annual meetings during the grant period.
Eligible costs include salary for others (such as postdoctoral fellows, graduate students and research assistants) and expenditures for supplies, equipment, research travel, and extra care-giving expenses. The use of award funds for salary support of the applicant is not permitted. Up to 10% of the grant can be used for institutional indirect costs. Graduate student tuition payments cannot exceed $10,000 per year.
Internal expressions of interest are invited, from which the cross-divisional panel will select one candidate.
How to Apply
Internal expressions of interest must be submitted via the IRAMS online application system by 12 noon on Monday 10th November 2025. Departmental Approver sign-off must also be provided in IRAMS.
The expression of interest should consist of the following, combined into a single PDF:
- Applicant statement (maximum of one page) describing the strengths of your research and your achievements, and why you are a good fit for the award.
- CV describing your career history, including key publications.
Please note that the selected candidate should seek guidance from Research Services if they are invited to submit a full application.
Eligibility
To be eligible, applicants must:
- Have received his/her PhD/MD or other professional degree within 12 years of the application deadline (1st February 2026).
- By the same date, the candidate should be in an independent research position at the nominating institution and have been an independent researcher for 6 years or fewer.
This time frame may be extended by one year per child for new parents up to a maximum of two years.
If you are unsure if you are eligible, please send your CV and a summary of the potential issue you have identified to research@medsci.ox.ac.uk as soon as possible and before submitting your internal application.
Timeline
The Medical Sciences Divisional Office will notify all applicants of the outcomes on or around 19 November 2025. The Head of Department of the candidate selected for nomination should email a Letter of Nomination to the Vallee Foundation no later than 1st December 2025. This letter should include the name and email address of the nominee; a description of the merit of the candidate and his/her research; an account of the institution's selection process including whether or not a committee was convened and the names of the committee members; and confirmation that the candidate is in a tenure-track or tenure-track-equivalent position and falls within all eligibility requirements. Upon receipt of the Letter of Nomination, the Vallee Foundation will provide the nominee with details of how to apply so they can complete the application by 1st February 2026.
More Information
Guidelines from the funder are available here.
Please direct questions to research@medsci.ox.ac.uk
