MRC International Funding Opportunities
Accelerating progress in international health research is a major part the MRC Strategic Plan 2009-2014. Strategic Aim 3: Going Global includes our aim to provide leadership in international partnerships and to support global health research.
International collaborations play an essential role in maintaining the high standards of research that the MRC funds and we strive to ensure that UK researchers have opportunities to engage and form partnerships with the best researchers in the world.
This page highlights funding opportunities for international partnerships and global health research.
For information on how we contribute to and engage with organisations providing other international funding opportunities, please see our International Subscriptions and EU funding pages.
- Overseas co-applicants and collaborators on MRC grants
- Working at an overseas research organisation as part of an MRC fellowship
- EuroHORCS ‘Money Follows Researcher’ Scheme
- Bilateral Agreements with overseas research funding agencies
- Open calls
- Future calls
- Recent initiatives
Overseas co-applicants and collaborators on MRC grants
Applications for MRC grant schemes can include overseas co-applicants and collaborators, where the nature of the research makes this necessary. If applicants wish to request funding for the overseas partners, they must first discuss their request with the relevant Research Board scientific contact. All funding for overseas partners is paid by MRC to the grant Host Institution (usually the Principal Investigator’s host organisation), who take responsibility for paying costs out to their overseas research partners.
For further information please see the Applicant Handbook and the Je-S System Help pages.
Working at an overseas research organisation as part of an MRC fellowship
The MRC will support the costs of up to one year of an MRC fellowship spent overseas for the purpose of research training (up to two years in the case of career development awards).
For further information about how to include an overseas period in your fellowship application, please contact the MRC Fellowships team:
E-mail: fellows@headoffice.mrc.ac.uk
Web: Open Medical Research Council Fellowships
EuroHORCS ‘Money Follows Researcher’ Scheme
The MRC recognises the importance of enabling UK researchers to increase their knowledge and experience by working overseas, and also the importance of promoting the UK as partner of choice for overseas researchers.
For this reason we have signed up to the European Heads of Research Councils (EuroHORCS) Money Follows Researcher Scheme. The scheme allows researchers funded by an MRC grant to continue their funded research upon moving to another participating European country. The grant can then be continued at the new research institution within the original terms and objectives.
Full information and terms and conditions are available on the EuroHORCS website with a full list of participating granting organisations.
If you wish to use the scheme to move your MRC grant overseas, please contact:
Contact: Kate Sheedy
Senior International Strategy Officer
Email: kate.sheedy@headoffice.mrc.ac.uk.
Bilateral Agreements with overseas research funding agencies
Research Councils UK and FAPESP (Open funding opportunity)
Research Councils UK signed a collaborative agreement with FAPESP (Sao Paulo Research Foundation) in 2009. The MoU enables Brazilian and UK researchers to apply for funding through a single application and peer review process. UK and Brazilian researchers may apply for funds from both countries primarily through the UK Research Councils ‘responsive mode’ schemes. The UK Research Councils will receive and assess collaborative proposals from eligible applicants in both countries on behalf of both organisations. FAPESP nominated experts will be involved with the peer review and decision making process throughout.
The agreement not only strengthens the existing valuable research links between the UK and Brazil but removes some of the barriers facing international research collaboration. The agreement was brokered by the Science and Innovation Network. For information on how to apply please see the RCUK webpage
Open calls
UK-China Stem cell partnership development initiative
The MRC and the National Natural Science Foundation of China invites proposals to the UK-China Stem Cell partnership development initiative from high quality research teams based in the UK and China. The initiative will provide funding for travel and consumables to help the development of collaborative links between stem cell scientists in the UK and China.
Please see the calls for proposals section for further details and information on how to apply.
Future calls
- DFID/MRC/ Wellcome Trust Joint Global Health Trials scheme
The third call for outline proposals for the Joint Global Health Trials scheme is due to be announced in May. The UK Department for International Development, the Medical Research Council and the Wellcome Trust scheme funds global health trials to generate new knowledge about interventions that will contribute to the improvement of health in low and middle income countries
Information on the second call can be found here. The third call will be announced on the MRC website in the Calls for Proposals section. To receive RSS feeds on MRC calls please visit the RSS webpage and subscribe to Calls.
Recent initiatives
Please note that all calls related to the initiatives listed below are now closed.
- Hypertension Prevention and Control in low and middle income countries (LMICs)
- MRC and the Indian Council of Medical Research – Chronic Non-communicable diseases research
- MRC and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine
- A*STAR/MRC joint initiative to fund infectious disease research
- MRC and the German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research
- Canada-UK partnership on antibiotic resistance
- MRC/DfID African Research Leader scheme