Oxford Physics is welcoming of expressions of interests (EOIs) from individuals from groups underrepresented in Physics, including women, individuals of Black or other minority ethnic origin, individuals who are disabled or those from the LGBTQ+ community.
A recent University of Oxford report found that researchers who are women, racially minoritized, disabled, and/or LGBTQIA+ face systemic barriers to securing research funding. Details of the report can be found at the link below.
Structural inequalities in academia also mean that some individuals have faced more barriers to success than others, meaning that your academic merit can not always be objectively judged through your CV and list of research outputs.
The Research Facilitation team is committed to improving equality and accessibility in our internal processes to support fellowship applications. We want to help all candidates present their cases in the best possible way to stand the best chance of success, and to ensure that the most promising candidates are supported through our internal processes to make applications to the research funders.
If you believe that any factors not related to your academic capabilities might influence assessment of an expression of interest or fellowship application then we encourage you to discuss this (in confidence) with a member of our team.
Research productivity
These factors (which may have influenced your research productivity) might include, but are not restricted to:
- Parental/carers leave
- Part time working/career breaks/non-standard career paths
- Sick leave or disability
- Time spent on activities not directly related to your research, or which do not directly generate research outputs
Funders are increasingly moving towards a more holistic assessment of candidates and applications, with less emphasis on research outputs, and there are usually opportunities to discuss details such as those listed above within the application. If you can be specific about, for example your number of working years/months since your PhD, this can help reviewers/funders assess your application in context.
Research sponsorship
Having an academic in Oxford Physics who will sponsor your fellowship application is a requirement of our Expression of Interest (EOI) stage and fellowship application process. Sponsors are often required to provide supporting material for your application, and should play an important role in supporting you through the fellowship application process.
However we do not wish the requirement for a sponsor to be a barrier for anybody to submit an EOI.
If you are having issues securing a research sponsor please get in touch with a member of our team and we can discuss this with you.
Neurodivergence, language barriers and communication
If you would prefer to communicate with our team in a specific way (phone, email, etc) please do let us know and we will do our best to accommodate this.
If English is not your first language, we recommend asking a native English speaker to proof-read your EOI or application text.
Some funders allow extra time in interviews for those that need it, but you will need to ask for this.
Adjustments
Please contact our team via fellowships@physics.ox.ac.uk or talk to the Research Facilitator looking after your fellowship application if you would like to discuss anything addressed here or if you need any adjustments or additional support in order to complete your application, prepare for a mock interview, etc.