British Academy Global Talent endorsement: a guide for humanities and social science researchers

Disciplines

Which subjects does the British Academy cover?

The British Academy reviews applications from the humanities and social sciences. The full sub-discipline list is published, and you should use it to decide which endorsing body, if any, covers your area. For the endorsed funder route, UKRI reviews applications from any discipline.

• Economics, economic history, and business and management studies
• Law, philosophy, theology and religious studies
• Political studies, international relations, sociology, demography and education
• History, classical antiquity, archaeology, and the history of art, music and architecture
• Languages, literatures, linguistics, and culture, media and performance studies

Split subjects

Psychology, geography, archaeology, law and ethics need a closer look

Some subjects appear on more than one endorsing body's list, so check the exact sub-discipline, not just the broad field. Computer science, artificial intelligence and machine learning are not on the British Academy list.

Four routes

You can apply through a job, a fellowship, a grant or peer review

Routes 1 to 3 are fast-track. Route 4 is peer review by experts in your field, and you can apply with or without a job offer. Route 1 covers UK universities and listed research organisations, which include organisations such as Chatham House and the National Archives.

Eligibility

You must be an active researcher with a PhD or equivalent experience

Every applicant in this field must be an active researcher in an academic, industry or government research institution. Active means a sustained track record of research production, judged from your whole application. For peer review you also need a PhD or equivalent research experience: at least three years of consolidated research in which you were the intellectual drive behind a project, with strong outputs. A policy researcher at a think tank with a strong publication record could meet this without a PhD.

Talent or Promise

Exceptional Promise has no minimum number of years

Exceptional Talent is for leaders in their field and Exceptional Promise is for potential leaders. Promise applicants must be at an early stage of their career and are typically on a steep trajectory, but the category sets no minimum number of years of research experience. Assessors look for strong evidence of originality, creativity, independence and intellectual leadership, and a clear, credible plan for your work in the UK.

• Your track record and international standing, including publications, prizes and funding
• The strength of your letter or letters
• The expected benefit of your presence to UK research and to wider society
• For Talent: prestigious prizes, significant funding in the past 10 years, and being seen as a leader
• For Promise: your contribution relative to your career stage, and any early-career prizes or fellowship funding

Letters

One letter for Promise, two for Talent

The letter of personal recommendation must come from an eminent person resident in the UK, with internationally recognised expertise in your field, who knows your work. Exceptional Talent also needs a second letter from a different person: a senior member of a reputable UK organisation in your field, such as a Professor, Head of Department or Vice-Chancellor, who gives an objective assessment of your reputation. Both must be written specifically for this application.

• Up to three sides of A4, excluding the author's credentials and contact details
• Signed, dated and on headed paper, with an email address and telephone number
• Sent with the author's CV
• The first letter covers how the author knows you, your achievements, why you show Talent or Promise, how you would benefit from living in the UK, your likely contribution to UK research or innovation and wider society, and what plans you have for work in the future

Documents

Give full references, not copies, and do not pad the application

For peer review, send the application form with your personal statement, a CV of no more than three sides of A4, and your letter or letters, each with the author's CV. For your most significant publications, give the full bibliographic reference, the publisher and a URL where available. Peer review is based only on the required evidence, so extra material does not strengthen your case.

Timing and review

Timing, refusal reviews, and why no one checks your documents in advance

Peer review can take up to eight weeks from when the Home Office receives your application, and the endorsing body usually decides within five weeks. Fast-track decisions usually come within 14 working days. The British Academy does not review documents before submission, does not advise individual applicants, and cannot say how likely endorsement is.

• If refused, you can ask for a free review within 28 days of the decision
• The review checks whether evidence was properly considered and the process followed
• You cannot add new evidence at review
• If refused again for the same reasons, there is no further review, and a new application means paying the endorsement fee again