International Travel Award Scheme for the Biological Sciences

Full Job Description

Opportunity status: Open

Funders:

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)

Funding type: Grant

Maximum award: £3,000

Publication date: 21 October 2026

Opening date:

21 October 2026 9:00am UK time

Closing date:

Open - no closing date

Apply for funding to visit international partners, to initiate collaborations, prepare joint funding proposals, visit overseas facilities or attend European consortia-building events.

You must be an existing Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)-supported researcher to apply for funding.

You can apply for support if you are:

• a holder of a current BBSRC research grant

• a BBSRC-supported researcher employed at BBSRC institutes

Funding of up to £3,000 (100% FEC) is available and limited to travel and subsistence costs. Stays may be of up to one month in duration and you must submit your application at least eight weeks before you travel.

Eligibility

This opportunity is open to organisations with standard eligibility. Check if your organisation is eligible.

Who Is Eligible To Apply

You can apply for support if you are:

• a holder of a current BBSRC research grant

• a BBSRC-supported researcher employed at BBSRC institutes

The application must be made by a project lead, but the project lead does not have to be the one travelling.

You can only apply after your BBSRC grant has started, and there must be at least six months remaining on your project from the start of the international travel award.

Who Is Not Eligible To Apply

Students are not eligible to apply.

Resubmissions

We will not accept uninvited resubmissions of projects that have been submitted to UKRI. Find out more about UKRI’s resubmission policy.

Equality, Diversity And Inclusion

We are committed to achieving equality of opportunity for all funding applicants. We encourage applications from a diverse range of researchers.

We support people to work in a way that suits their personal circumstances. This includes:

• career breaks

• support for people with caring responsibilities

• flexible working

• alternative working patterns

UKRI can offer disability and accessibility support for UKRI applicants and grant holders during the application and assessment process.

Demand Management

Demand management is not being applied to this funding opportunity

Scope

Our international travel awards support:

• short-term travel for initial contact with international partners to discuss or prepare proposals for international programmes

• up to one month visiting specific facilities not available in the UK, undertaking a piece of work, or gaining access to techniques or materials of benefit to your BBSRC research project or team

• attendance at European consortia-building events to discuss a future role in it

Duration

Visits supported through international travel awards may take place for up to one month, but no longer.

Funding Available

The Full Economic Cost (FEC) of your project can be up to £3,000.

BBSRC will fund 100% of the FEC.

What We Will Fund

Funding is limited to travel and subsistence costs of up to £3,000.

What We Will Not Fund

Funding cannot be used for:

• salary costs

• consumables

• equipment

• research costs

Supporting Skills And Talent

We encourage you to follow the principles of the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers and the Technician Commitment.

Trusted Research And Innovation (Tr&I)

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has a long-standing and continuing commitment to supporting and enabling safe and effective collaboration in research and innovation. UKRI is equally committed to ensuring that this takes place with integrity and within strong ethical frameworks.

Our Principles and expectations set out the principles that UKRI applies to TR&I and our general expectations of the research organisations (including businesses, research institutes, and research technical organisations) that we support. Organisations supported by UKRI should be able to provide evidence that their internal controls and processes meet these expectations.

See further guidance and information about TR&I, including where applicants can find additional support.

How to apply

We are running this funding opportunity on the new UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Funding Service so please ensure that your organisation is registered. You cannot apply on the Joint Electronic Submissions (Je-S) system.

The project lead is responsible for completing the application process on the Funding Service, but we expect all team members and project partners to contribute to the application.

Only the lead research organisation can submit an application to UKRI.

To Apply

Select ‘Start application’ near the beginning of this Funding finder page.

• Confirm you are the project lead.

• Sign in or create a Funding Service account. To create an account, select your organisation, verify your email address, and set a password.

• Answer questions directly in the text boxes. You can save your answers and come back to complete them or work offline and return to copy and paste your answers. If we need you to upload a document, follow the upload instructions in the Funding Service. All questions and assessment criteria are listed in the How to apply section on this Funding finder page.

• Allow enough time to check your application in ‘read-only’ view before sending to your research office.

• Send the completed application to your research office for checking. They will return it to you if it needs editing.

• Your research office will submit the completed and checked application to UKRI.

Please be aware that research office and finance teams undertake checks on hosting arrangements and financial eligibility. The ultimate responsibility for ensuring compliance with all opportunity requirements lies with the applicant.

Where indicated, you can also demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant.

When including images, you must:

• provide a descriptive caption or legend for each image immediately underneath it in the text box (this must be outside the image and counts towards your word limit)

• insert each new image on a new line

• use files smaller than 5MB and in JPEG, JPG, JPE, JFI, JIF, JFIF, PNG, GIF, BMP or WEBP format

Images should only be used to convey important visual information that cannot easily be put into words. The following are not permitted, and your application will be rejected if you include:

• sentences or paragraphs of text

• tables

• excessive quantities of images

A few words are permitted where the image would lack clarity without the contextual words, such as a diagram, where text labels are required for an axis or graph column.

For more guidance on the Funding Service, see:

• how applicants use the Funding Service

• how research offices use the Funding Service

• how reviewers use the Funding Service

References

References should be included within the word count of the appropriate question section. You should use your discretion when including references and prioritise those most pertinent to the application.

Hyperlinks can be used in reference information. When including references, you should consider how your references will be viewed and used by the assessors, ensuring that:

• references are easily identifiable by the assessors

• references are formatted as appropriate to your research

• persistent identifiers are used where possible

General Use Of Hyperlinks

Applications should be self-contained. You should only use hyperlinks to link directly to reference information. You must not include links to web resources to extend your application. Assessors are not required to access links to conduct assessment or recommend a funding decision.

Generative Artificial Intelligence (Ai)

Use of generative AI tools to prepare funding applications is permitted, however, caution should be applied.

For more information see our policy on the use of generative AI in application and assessment.

Deadline

You must submit your application at least eight weeks before you intend to travel.

Make sure you are aware of and follow any internal institutional deadlines.

Following the submission of your application to this funding opportunity, your application cannot be changed, and submitted applications will not be amended. If your application does not follow the guidance, it may be rejected.

Processing Personal Data

BBSRC, as part of UKRI, will need to collect some personal information to manage your Funding Service account and the registration of your funding applications.

We will handle personal data in line with UK data protection legislation and manage it securely. For more information, including how to exercise your rights, read our privacy notice.

Sensitive Information

If you or a core team member need to tell us something you wish to remain confidential, email bbsrc.iru@bbsrc.ukri.org

Include in the subject line: [the funding opportunity title; sensitive information; your Funding Service application number].

Typical examples of confidential information include:

• individual is unavailable until a certain date (for example due to parental leave)

• declaration of interest

• additional information about eligibility to apply

• conflict of interest for UKRI to consider in reviewer or panel participant selection

• the application is an invited resubmission

For information about how UKRI handles personal data, read UKRI’s privacy notice.

Publication Of Outcomes

If your application is successful, we will publish some personal information on the UKRI Gateway to Research.

Summary

Word limit: 550

In plain English, provide a summary we can use to identify the most suitable experts to assess your application.

We usually make this summary publicly available on external-facing websites, therefore do not include any confidential or sensitive information. Make it suitable for a variety of readers, for example:

• opinion-formers

• policymakers

• the public

• the wider research community

Guidance For Writing A Summary

Clearly describe your proposed work in terms of:

• context

• aims and objectives of the project

• the benefits likely to be gained from the collaboration

• how the collaboration will be taken forward after the funding has ended

Core Team

List the key members of your team and assign them roles from the following:

• project lead (PL)

• project co-lead (UK) (PcL)

• specialist

• technician

• researcher co-lead (RcL)

Only list one individual as project lead.

The project lead should be the named individual on an existing BBSRC research grant. This individual does not need to be the one travelling.

UKRI has introduced a new addition to the ‘Specialist’ role type. Public contributors such as people with lived experience can now be added to an application.

Find out more about UKRI’s core team roles in funding applications.

Purpose

Word limit: 2,500

Why is the travel needed?

Explain why the proposed travel is necessary, including reference to:

• the value added to current or future UK bioscience by developing international contacts

• the benefits likely to be gained from the collaboration

• why travel needs to happen at this time

• why the place you are travelling to is the best place to go to, in terms of people, skills and resources

• why you or a team member are the best person to carry out this visit

• a plan for how the collaboration will be taken forward after the funding has ended

• the strategic relevance and reach of the collaboration – to what extent will it benefit more than one group

Resources And Cost Justification

Word limit: 500

What will you need to deliver your proposed work and how much will it cost?

Justify the application’s more costly resources, in particular:

• travel costs

• subsistence costs

• contributions from the international partner in cash or kind

Please note, this award cannot be used to fund salary, consumables, equipment or other research costs.

You can request costs associated with reasonable adjustments where they increase as a direct result of working on the project. For further information see Disability and accessibility support for UKRI applicants and grant holders. Where a funding limit is imposed on the opportunity, requested costs for reasonable adjustments may exceed the maximum funding amount.

Assessors are not looking for detailed costs or a line-by-line breakdown of all project resources. Overall, they want you to demonstrate how the resources you anticipate needing for your proposed work:

• are comprehensive, appropriate, and justified

• represent the optimal use of resources to achieve the intended outcomes

• maximise potential outcomes and impacts

Ethics And Responsible Research And Innovation (Rri)

Word limit: 500

What are the ethical and RRI considerations, implications and issues relating to the proposed work? If you do not think that the proposed work raises any ethical or RRI issues, explain why.

Demonstrate that you have identified and evaluated:

• the relevant ethical and RRI considerations, including both the research or topic area itself and the design and delivery of the project

• the wider implications of the proposed work, and how you will maximise the positive societal, environmental, and economic benefits arising from the project, whilst minimising unintended negative impacts, such as research misuse or accidental harm

• how you will manage these considerations throughout the lifecycle of the project

You may demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. Further details are provided in the Funding Service.

Please refer to the UKRI position statement on funding ethical research and Responsible innovation for more information around our expectations on ethical and responsible research and innovation.

Animal Involvement And “3Rs”

You must complete this section about how your proposed project will involve or impact animals.

If your project does not involve or impact animals, you must confirm this on the next page.

You may be asked about:

• what animals you are involving

• the severity of the procedures you are using

• where the procedures will take place

• welfare standards you aim to meet

• the relevance of your project to the development, validation or dissemination of the 3Rs

You may also need to download, complete, and upload at least one set of additional questions. You will be told how to do this towards the end of this section.

To complete this section and check whether your project is in the scope of the questions, refer to the UKRI policy for research and innovation involving animals.

UKRI policy relates to all animals in the Kingdom Animalia, including vertebrates and invertebrates.

This opportunity is open to organisations with standard eligibility. Check if your organisation is eligible.

You can apply for support if you are:

• a holder of a current BBSRC research grant

• a BBSRC-supported researcher employed at BBSRC institutes

The application must be made by a project lead, but the project lead does not have to be the one travelling.

You can only apply after your BBSRC grant has started, and there must be at least six months remaining on your project from the start of the international travel award.

Students are not eligible to apply.