IMI Small Grants Scheme for Mathematical Sciences

Rolling Submission

Please notify imi@bath.ac.uk after submission, as we don't receive automatic notifications.

Eligibility, who can apply:

• This scheme is open to the whole university (not necessarily IMI fellows)
• Any applicant for a grant under this scheme must include an academic from the department of Mathematical Sciences.
• We anticipate receiving proposals from mathematicians at all career stages.

Value of award:

The IMI expects many grants to be at the level of £5,000 or less, but we will accept applications up to £10,000 in very exceptional cases when an extremely strong case is presented. The case must be made on the basis of the added value to mathematical research the award will bring to Bath.

Scope of the scheme:

The funding can be used to support any form of activity involving mathematical research that adds value to the research excellence of the university. The IMI particularly welcomes applications for, but not limited to, the following purposes.

• Partial or full support towards organising workshops, small conferences, symposia, colloquia.
• Travel and local expenses for visiting professors/academics, PhD students or special speakers to Bath.
• Support for collaborative research programmes or activities.
• Support for activity that is not eligible for funding from other sources or where funding is limited.

Please note, unless there are exceptional circumstances where added value can be clearly made, this scheme is not intended as a mechanism to fund conference attendance.

Additional information:

• Applicants are asked to apply to other sources for partial funding, where appropriate, and to provide summary details of such applications. See note below on the several Heilbronn, ICMS and LMS opportunities¹
• For event or collaboration funding, the IMI encourages proposals for groups that have a balance of overseas and UK participation, experienced and junior researchers (e.g. post-docs, postgraduate students), and that promote Equality Diversity and Inclusion.
• Applicants may additionally request administrative support for an activity subject to availability.
• In order to capture the added value of the award, a one page report (including finances), no later than six months after the funded activity, must be provided.
• There will be a sequence of deadlines, approximately every six months, see the IMI webpages for the forthcoming dates.
• The application process has been designed to be simple and the small grants scheme panel² aim to offer a quick response to proposals, usually within a couple of weeks of the nearest deadline.

Your proposal:

On the next page you will be asked to complete your proposal in a single box which will allow up to 3000 characters. Your proposal should include:

1. An explanation of the activity, the expected outcomes and the expected added value of the award to both your research objectives and the IMI portfolio.
2. For events, visitors and collaborations, the names of participants and their commitment to the programme, with an explanation of why the team is appropriate.
3. A clear outline of the budget, with details of other funding applications.
4. How much funding is requested from the IMI, and how will it be used?

Contact details: If you have any questions or queries regarding your proposal, please contact the IMI coordinators imi@bath.ac.uk

¹ It is worthy of note that the Heilbronn Institute runs four schemes, which resonate with the IMI scheme and which would be a good for synchronised applications. See Heilbronn Small Grants, Heilbronn Focused Research Grants, Heilbronn Sponsorship of Events, Heilbronn Research Visitor Funding. Similarly ICMS runs funding schemes as well as the London Mathematical Society grants scheme which may resonate.

² Then panel is made up of a small group of members from the Department of Mathematical Sciences