• Applications closed 5th March 2023
  • Applications were open to PhD students in a psychology-related subject who are a Member of the British Psychological Society and in their penultimate or final year of study.
  • The Society will be awarding one Fellowship to take place in 2023/24

About the scheme

POST and the British Psychology Society (BPS) are offering a 13-week fellowship to PhD students in a psychology-related subject who are a Member of the British Psychological Society and in their penultimate or final year of study. There is one funded fellowship available.

Successful applicants will be based in UK Parliament, supporting its use of research evidence. Most fellows assist POST in providing briefing material for parliamentarians on emerging science topics. Work may include:

  • Producing a POSTnote or POSTbrief (briefing documents to help inform the work of MPs and Peers), or contributing to a longer briefing report.
  • Assisting a select committee in an ongoing inquiry.
  • Organising a seminar to inform or disseminate research.

PhD Fellows are encouraged to interact closely with people and activities in the two Houses of Parliament, including Select committees, MPs and Peers, their support services, ‘All-Party Parliamentary Group’ meetings and the very wide range of other activities at the Palace of Westminster.

The fellowship can be carried out full-time for three months or part-time over a longer period. Successful applicants will be expected to start their fellowship between September 2023 and April 2024. The exact start date is to be agreed between the applicant, POST, BPS and the applicant’s supervisor.

At the end of the placement, the Fellow will be asked to write a short end-of-project report for the Society’s Research Board and to prepare a paper on their experience and POST note for presentation at either a relevant Society conference or publication in The Psychologist.

Who is eligible to apply?

The British Psychological Society Fellowship is open to postgraduate students registered for a doctoral degree in a psychology-related subject e.g. PhD/MPhil or taught practitioner doctorates (DClinPsy etc.) at a UK Higher Education Institute. Applicants must be in their penultimate or final year of part- or full-time study at the time of the start of their placement at POST. Applicants must be at least a Graduate Member of the British Psychological Society. The full person specification can be found in the application guidance.

Successful candidates will be required to complete pre-employment checks. This includes security vetting to Counter Terrorist Check (CTC) level. All successful candidates are required to pass these checks before an offer can be confirmed.

How to apply

It is important that you download and read the application pack before applying, as it contains more details on the role, application process, and assessment criteria.

Full details can be obtained by contacting awardsandgrants@bps.org.uk

Applicants should submit:

  • An application form
  • An approval form, which has been completed by your PhD Supervisor and Head of Department.
  • A two-page briefing on a topic that you think would be of current interest to Parliamentarians. The briefing should be completed using the briefing template and should not contain your name or any other identifying details. We want you to use the briefing template and ensure your work is not identifiable in order to make the process as fair and unbiased as possible. Please see the application pack for the two-page briefing assessment and some tips for writing it.

Please email completed forms to awardsandgrants@bps.org.uk by Sunday 5th March 2023.

Applications will undergo an initial sift on the basis of the two-page briefing. Interviews will be held in April 2023.

Funding arrangements

The BPS will provide funding to cover the Fellow’s PhD stipend maintenance grant, travel, and relocation or care costs, up to a total of £6000. Self-funded PhD students will receive funding equivalent to the stipend maintenance grant rate set by the Economic, Social and Research Council. More details can be found in the application guidance.

About the British Psychological Society

The British Psychological Society is an inclusive organisation, with a diverse membership, who we support at every stage of their career. The BPS works to advance evidence-based psychological knowledge, pure and applied, through education, research, practice and innovation. The BPS aims to deliver influential, effective and impactful outcomes for psychologists, the people they support and wider society. (see: www.bps.org.uk)

For full details of the scheme or an application form, please contact awardsandgrants@bps.org.uk.

For questions about POST fellowships, please contact us at postfellowships@parliament.uk

Got questions?

We have a series of resources to help you understand how we produce policy briefings and to answer any questions you might have about our fellowships.

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