Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK
The Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the United Kingdom recognize the country’s most promising faculty-rank (academic staff) researchers in Life Sciences, Physical Sciences & Engineering, and Chemical Sciences. One Blavatnik Laureate in each disciplinary category will receive £100,000 in unrestricted funds, with two Finalists receiving £30,000 each. The Blavatnik Awards are generously supported by the Blavatnik Family Foundation and independently administered by the New York Academy of Sciences.
Please see our Important Dates page for key deadlines for the 2025 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK.
PROGRAM GUIDELINES
For a summary of nomination policies, please see the 2025 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK Nominations Flyer
ELIGIBILITY
Main eligibility criteria
The nominee must:
Have been born in or after 1983.
Hold a doctorate degree (PhD, DPhil, MD, DDS, DVM, etc.).
Currently hold an academic appointment at an invited institution in the UK.
Currently conduct research as a principal investigator in one of the disciplinary categories in Life Sciences, Physical Sciences & Engineering, or Chemical Sciences.
Nomination of underrepresented populations in STEM
In spite of tremendous advancements in scientific research, information, and education, opportunities are still not equally available to all. Women, persons with disabilities, and individuals identifying as members of ethnic minority groups continue to be underrepresented in STEM fields1.
The Blavatnik Awards strongly encourages all those submitting nominations to the Awards—including institutional nominators, Scientific Advisory Council members, and past Blavatnik Awards Laureates—to diversify the population of candidates nominated for this Award.
The Blavatnik Awards are proud to have honored over 85 female scientists since the Awards’ inception in 2007—30% of all Blavatnik Awards are given to women. Blavatnik Awards honorees hail from 47 countries on six continents, and 61% of all Blavatnik Awards honorees are immigrants to the country in which they were honored.
A more diverse scientific workforce will accelerate discovery and innovation, and the Blavatnik Awards are committed to honoring the most talented young scientists—regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, or field of study.
1 Diversity Results for UKRI Funding Data. https://www.ukri.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/UKRI-020920-DiversityResultsForUKRIFundingData2014-19.pdf
Age limit exceptions
Age limit exceptions will be considered by the Blavatnik Family Foundation in exceptional circumstances upon a detailed written submission from the nominating institution received by the New York Academy of Sciences by Wednesday, 8 May, 2024. For more information, please contact us at BlavatnikAwardsUK@nyas.org. We strongly encourage institutions considering nominating candidates born prior to 1983 to contact us as early as possible during the nomination period.
Dual or Joint Appointments
For nominees holding a dual or joint appointment at more than one institution, the nominee must be employed by the nominating institution at least 50% full-time effort.
Returning Nominees
Non-winning nominees from prior Blavatnik Awards nomination cycles are eligible to be re-nominated by their institutions as one of their three nominees, provided they still meet all eligibility requirements.
Re-Nomination of Past Finalists
Nominees previously recognized as Finalists of the Blavatnik Awards in the UK are eligible for re-nomination by their institution for the 2025 Blavatnik Awards in the UK, provided they meet the following requirements:
- Returning Finalists must still meet the eligibility requirements for the 2025 Blavatnik Awards in the UK. For returning Finalists born prior to 1983, age limit exception requests must be submitted and approved by the Blavatnik Family Foundation, as described above.
- Nomination of returning Finalists must be pre-approved by the New York Academy of Sciences. A letter outlining the nominee’s significant new achievements since their latest recognition by the Blavatnik Awards in the UK must be submitted, along with an updated CV as described on the Nomination Materials & Instructions page.
Please note that returning Finalists will now count towards an institution’s limit of three nominees.
All relevant materials listed above must be submitted to BlavatnikAwardsUK@nyas.org by the institution’s official nominator by Wednesday, May 8, 2024, and must approved by the New York Academy of Sciences before submission of nomination materials.
We strongly encourage institutions considering nominating a returning Finalist to contact us as early as possible during the nomination period.
limited submission
Each institution may submit up to three nominations, one in each disciplinary category of Life Sciences, Physical Sciences & Engineering, and Chemical Sciences.
Nominating institutions are encouraged to consider candidates across the institution, focusing on the scope of the candidate's work and its relevance within a given scientific category. For example, an institution can nominate a Chemical Sciences nominee who is not based in the Chemistry Department, but is leading a research program in one of the disciplinary categories covered by the Chemical Sciences section of the Blavatnik Awards. Nominating institutions seeking more guidance may contact the Academy at BlavatnikAwardsUK@nyas.org.
Institutional nominations must be submitted by the institution's official nominator—the institution's Vice Chancellor, President, Pro-Vice Chancellor, or equivalent (or their official designee). The Blavatnik Awards team must be informed of the identity of an institution's official nominator. Please see our Nomination Materials & Instructions page for more details.
Self-nominations are not allowed. Nominees do not submit their own nomination materials and should direct all questions to their institution. Please see our Invited Institutions page for a list of institutional contacts, or contact us at BlavatnikAwardsUK@nyas.org.
Scientific Advisory Council and Past Laureate Nominations
Members of the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK Scientific Advisory Council (SAC) and previous Blavatnik Awards in the UK Laureates may also submit nominations for the 2025 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK. These nominations do not count towards an institution's limit of three nominees.
SAC members and past Laureates may submit unlimited nominees, but may only nominate one candidate from any given institution.
EValuation criteria
Nominees and their work as independent investigators will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
Quality: The extent to which the work is reliable, valid, credible, and scientifically rigorous.
Impact: The extent to which the work addresses an important problem, advances scientific progress, and is influential in the nominee’s field, related fields, or beyond, and/or has the potential to benefit society.
Novelty: The extent to which the work challenges existing paradigms, establishes a new field or considerably expands on an existing field, employs original methodologies or concepts, and/or pursues an original question.
Promise: The nominee has potential for further significant contributions to science, and the research program will generate further impactful and novel discoveries.
Blavatnik Awards in the UK Laureate and Finalist Responsibilities
2025 Award Laureates and Finalists are expected to:
- Attend the Blavatnik Awards in the UK Ceremony in London, UK in Spring 2025.
- Laureates are required to deliver a short presentation on their work at the ceremony. Blavatnik Awards staff will work closely with the Laureates to craft this presentation, which must be accessible to a general audience.
- All Laureates and Finalists may be expected to present their research at a symposium to be held in London in Spring 2025.
- Participate in all rehearsals, briefings, and other events related to the ceremony and symposium. Your presence will be required in London, UK for these events.
- Participate in Blavatnik Awards related media activities and inquiries (e.g., video filming, video interviews, magazine profile interviews, eBriefings, etc.)
- Laureates have the option to prepare and submit an original article about their research to Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences within one-year of receiving the Award.
- Laureates and selected Finalists may be invited to deliver a short presentation on their research to their fellow Blavatnik Awards honorees and representatives of the Blavatnik Family Foundation at a Blavatnik Science Symposium in New York City.
- Respond to all requests and provide deliverables in a timely manner to facilitate compliance with the above expectations.
Costs of round-trip travel to London for the ceremony and symposium will be covered through the Blavatnik Awards program.
The New York Academy of Sciences asks that nominees consider potential scheduling conflicts should they be selected as an honoree in advance of submitting their nomination materials. Awards-related media and publication activities are scheduled to begin prior to the Awards ceremony when Blavatnik Awards in the UK Laureates and Finalists are notified of their status.
Questions
For general questions about the rules and eligibility requirements, please consult the Frequently Asked Questions page.
For all other inquiries, please contact the Blavatnik Awards team at BlavatnikAwardsUK@nyas.org or +1-856-399-2700.