The Blavatnik Regional Awards for Young Scientists celebrate the excellence of outstanding postdoctoral scientists from institutions in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut working in Life Sciences, Physical Sciences & Engineering, and Chemical Sciences. Three Laureates will each receive $30,000 in unrestricted funds and six finalists will each receive $10,000 in unrestricted funds.
Please see our Important Dates page for key deadlines for the 2025 Blavatnik Regional Awards.
PROGRAM GUIDELINES
For a summary of nomination policies, please see the 2025 Blavatnik Regional Awards Nominations Flyer.
Eligibility
Main Eligibility Criteria
The nominee must:
- Have been born in or after 1983*.
- Hold a doctoral degree (PhD, DPhil, MD, DDS, DVM, etc.).
- Currently hold a postdoctoral position at an invited institution in New York, New Jersey, or Connecticut.
- Currently conduct research 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 Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC) continue to be underrepresented in STEM fields1,2.
The Blavatnik Awards strongly encourages institutional nominators to diversify the population of candidates nominated for this Award.
The Blavatnik Awards are proud to have honored 158 women scientists since the Awards’ inception in 2007—approximately 30% of all Blavatnik Awards recognize women. Blavatnik Awards honorees hail from 53 countries on six continents, and approximately 60% 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, disability status, gender, or field of study.
1Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation: America's Science and Technology Talent at the Crossroads. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/12984
2Pew Research Center, January 2018. “Women and Men in STEM Often at Odds Over Workplace Equity”
*Age Limit Exceptions
Age limit exceptions will be considered in exceptional circumstances upon a detailed written submission from the nominating institution received by the Academy no later than November 13, 2024. For more information, please contact us at blavatnikregionalawards@nyas.org. We strongly encourage institutions considering nominating candidates born prior to 1983 to contact us as early as possible during the nomination period.
LIMITED SUBMISSION
Candidates for the Blavatnik Regional Awards must be nominated by their institutions—self nominations are not allowed.
Each institution may nominate up to 15 nominations, distributed as they wish across the disciplinary categories 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 working in one of the disciplinary categories covered by the Chemical Sciences section of the Blavatnik Regional Awards. Nominating institutions seeking more guidance may contact the Academy at blavatnikregionalawards@nyas.org.
Institutional nominations must be submitted by the institution's President, Provost, 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 further 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 blavatnikregionalawards@nyas.org.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
Nominees and their work as postdoctoral researchers 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 new methodologies or concepts, and/or pursues an original question
Promise: Nominee’s potential for an independent career and further significant contributions to science or science-related fields
BLAVATNIK REGIONAL AWARDS Laureate AND FINALIST RESPONSIBILITIES
2025 Blavatnik Regional Awards Laureates and Finalists are expected to:
- Attend the Awards Ceremony in New York City in the fall of 2025.
- Participate in Blavatnik Awards related media activities and inquiries (e.g., video interviews, magazine profile interviews, eBriefings, etc.), as requested.
- Respond to all requests and provide deliverables in a timely manner to facilitate compliance with the above expectations.
- Laureates will be filmed on-location at their institution to discuss their work and highlight the impact their work is having on their field and broader society.
- Laureates are invited to prepare and submit an original article about their research to the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences within 1-year of receiving the Award. Note: this is an option, but not required.
- Laureates and 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.
Costs of round-trip travel to New York City for the Ceremony will be covered by the Blavatnik Regional 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 the Blavatnik Regional Awards Laureates and Finalists are notified of their status.
QUESTIONS
For general questions about rules and eligibility requirements, please consult the Frequently Asked Questions page.
For all other inquiries, please contact the Blavatnik Awards team at blavatnikregionalawards@nyas.org or 212.298.8633.