Grants and Bursaries

• Travel
• Local travel costs
• Specimen shipping costs
• Laboratory expenses (please provide justification for the rates)
• Costs of training programmes, if the research grant panel feels it is essential to the candidate being able to carry out the proposed project

• Grants to BSc/MSci/MSc/PhD students EXCEPT if the project proposed is separate or in addition to their degree – see further details below to check if you are eligible
• Attendance at committee meetings of IUGS and similar international bodies
• Conference attendance
• Tuition fees
• Funding for taught Masters programmes
• Costs associated with open access publishing
• Undergraduate field mapping projects
• Subsistence: please note that food is not an eligible cost except for in situations in which, (1) no salary/stipend to cover such costs is available to the applicant, and/or (2) food costs will be particularly high during the field period of the project. If you wish to request food costs, please ensure that your case is clear

• Applications should have a clear scientific focus. It is not the practice of the Society to fund general proposals such as student expeditions.
• Applicants are required to provide one supporting statement from a suitable person familiar with their work and with whom they must discuss their project prior to application. A supporting statement from someone suitably qualified and familiar with the details of the candidate's topic of study is strongly recommended as the supporting statement will be used for confirmation of ability of the applicant to carry out the proposed research (i.e. it will be used as a letter of reference) and for verification of the need for research grant funding. The Supporting Statement Form can be emailed directly to grants@geolsoc.org.uk or it can accompany the application form.
• Applicants in receipt of NERC (or other UKRI) funding will need to make a strong case for funding although new, innovative opportunities will be considered.
• A grant to a BSc/MSci/MSc/PhD student will only be considered if the project proposed is separate/additional to the degree. The Society will not consider applications for grants to compensate for insufficient funding of studentships or where there has been a failure by the research supervisor to seek the full cost of associated field or laboratory work.
• Applications which the Committee considers to be premature, e.g. too early in the applicant's career path, will be ruled out.
• All applications are judged on the scientific excellence of the project. In deciding between those of equal merit, preference will be given to those who make the strongest case for financial support.
• All applicants will receive a brief statement of feedback. This statement is intended to be constructive and to aid the applicant with future funding applications. No further feedback will be provided. However, feedback can be clarified if any comments are unclear to the applicant.

• All applications must be submitted on the downloadable form.
• Please note that applications will be reviewed anonymously. Therefore, please avoid providing any personal details except for on the grants cover page.
• Please complete all sections. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
• The project must have a clear title and, in the case of a PhD project, please include the title of that project and the names of the supervisors.
• The project description may not exceed the specified word limits and must be in a font size of 11 or larger. Applications exceeding word limits will not be considered. Please note that in-text citations do not count towards the word limits. Up to two visuals/diagrams can be included.
• Describe clearly the work to be done and its timeliness.
• The role of the applicant must be stated if the application is part of a broader project. For example, explain your role within the team and set out what it is that you will do.
• State (1) that all necessary permissions have been obtained, (2) the ownership of any specimens collected in the course of the work, and (3) what will happen to any specimens collected at the end of the project (e.g. lodged with a museum, disposed of).
• As appropriate, confirm that an institutional risk assessment has been, or will be, carried out and that the fieldwork will only proceed once it has been approved by the institution. This is particularly important when an application is for funding to work in a remote area.
• Please do not exceed 10 references to support the project abstract and methods and materials sections. You may include up to two additional references to your own work. You may use your preferred reference style in this section.

Download the guidelines for applicants as a PDF.

• All applicants are required to be Fellows at the time of receipt of the grant money. If you are not yet a Fellow, you must complete an application in order to receive your grant.
• The grant may be used only for the purposes described in your application as approved by the Society's Research Grants Committee. If you are unable to use the grant for the specific purpose for which it was intended, please contact the Society before spending any portion of the grant.
• If any significant changes are likely to be made to the project's scope or scale, before or during implementation, or if the project's timetable is delayed, it is important to inform us immediately and to obtain approval for any variations. If changes are made without our agreement, we may consider reclaiming any funds not used for the intended purpose.
• Successful applicants must produce a report, either interim or full, 12 months from receipt of grant payment.
• There is no a specified format, but example reports are available on request to help provide a guide.
• The preferred style is more a piece of geoscientific journalism than a learned paper.
• It must be no more than three pages clearly identifying the purpose of the research and what has been achieved.
• It should outline the results/findings and any next steps, rather than accounting in a financial sense on how the money was spent.
• It must state whether the recipient has had articles published or about to be published. Failure to produce a report will make future applications ineligible and your referee may be contacted and requested to chase the missing report.
• Separate to the project report, successful applicants should provide an account of how the money was spent and receipts where possible e.g. flights, laboratory costs, accommodation, equipment, fuel etc.
• Recipients must ensure acknowledgement of funding from the Society in all publications relating to the funded project.
• Successful applicants may be asked to write a piece for the Society's magazine, Geoscientist, and blog.
• Reports may be published on the Society's website.
• Payments will generally be made by BACS. If your application is successful, we will require BACS details to make payment.

For fieldwork in structural geology as applied to regional tectonics.

For the encouragement of research in stratigraphy, with palaeontology, and in physical geology. Preference will be given to mid-career applicants.

For outdoor research preferentially of a palaeontological or stratigraphical character, and preferentially within the limits of the British Commonwealth.

For detailed geological mapping.

For members of the Society, for geological field-based research anywhere in the world. Preference will be given to early career applicants.

To assist geologists of Great Britain and Ireland to travel to and in Canada; or to assist in the publication of meritorious papers by geologists of Great Britain and Ireland upon the geology of Canada; or to assist such geologists in any other way best adapted to further this object.

CASP (formerly known as the Cambridge Arctic Shelf Programme) has generously bequeathed an endowment in memory of Robert Scott, one of their senior geologists, who died suddenly in 2012 of leukaemia. The interest earned will be used to support a single research award of £2,200 each year.

To be eligible for the award, applicants must be UK-based and either (a) registered postgraduate students; (b) university postdoctoral researchers; or (c) university lecturers. Postdoctoral researchers and university lecturers should preferably apply within seven years of their first appointment to an academic position.

Awards shall be made to support research under the following terms:

• At least 50% of the award should be spent directly on research fieldwork (transport, accommodation and field logistical support).
• Preference will be given to applications that are in regard of fieldwork in Arctic regions (field areas within the Arctic Circle).
• Preference will also be given to projects that focus on basin analysis studies including tectonics, structural geology, sedimentology, stratigraphy and provenance analysis.

An annual award of up to £2,000 will be made for the encouragement of research into engineering geology with preference being given to the study of construction materials and/or research incorporating the use of petrological techniques.

This bursary aims to assist early career geologists, particularly those in industry, with professional development by contributing to travel costs or gaining experience. This fund has a separate application process but the closing date is the same 23:59 on Monday 6 February 2023. Please see the DGMT page for more information and to apply.

The Geological Society and the Mineralogical Society of Great Britain & Ireland are pleased to announce the Hazel Prichard student bursary. The bursary, funded by her family, honours the achievements of Professor Hazel Prichard (1954–2017) in the mineral sciences. 

The bursary provides up to £3,000 in support to an undergraduate or taught MSc student in undertaking a research project.

Introduced in 2024, the Fermor Seed Corn Fund honours Sir Lewis Leigh Fermor OBE FRS, and provides seed funding to those unable to apply for traditional research funding, including:

• Early Career Researchers, technical staff, or research assistants who are ineligible as lead investigators on standard UKRI grant applications
• Researchers returning to work following a career break or long-term illness
• Early-career researchers working in India, or with plans to collaborate with Indian research organisations

The Jeremy Willson Charitable Trust, and the Willson family, generously supports the Geological Society grants programme in memory of their son and brother, Jeremy.

Jeremy was a great athlete, geologist and adventurer. He sadly died of new variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) in March 2006. In the spirit of Jeremy's interests, the Jeremy Willson Award supports field-based projects with a distinct focus on the physical environment.