Current Fellows

Academic Fund for Governing Body and Research and Junior Research Fellows at Wolfson College

The purpose of the Fund is to provide funding to Fellows in pursuit of their academic work for which there are no other resources available.  Any application must be supported by the appropriate evidence.  Guidelines for applying to the Fund are set out below, but please note that this is not a comprehensive listing and Fellows should consider carefully the guidelines before submitting an application. 

Applications may be submitted twice termly for consideration by the Academic Fund Panel (comprising five Governing Body Fellows) which meets in Weeks 3 and 8.  The deadlines for applications are Wednesdays of weeks 2 and 7 and applications should be submitted by completing the form below. 

Wolfson uses a competitive gathered field system for awarding bids and this Fund is not an entitlement for an individual.  A Fellow can apply for up to a total of £818.00 per financial year (1 August – 31 July) from a fixed annual budget, and therefore individual awards/full allocation cannot be guaranteed.  There may be numerous applications in any one round and the total amount applied for by a Fellow cannot always be granted. 

GUIDELINES FOR APPLYING TO THE ACADEMIC FUND

• Matched funding

Applicants should seek parallel funding from departments and others in conjunction with any application to the Wolfson Academic Fund.

• Conferences and workshops

Applicants should be presenting at a conference or workshop, or participating in a key role

• Travel and your carbon footprint*

We ask that each Fellow consider carefully the environmental impact of any travel to be undertaken.

For some disciplines, attending an international conference is vital to the field of study and in this situation, we ask that you think carefully about your method of travel and follow the University’s “Travel Hierarchy”* at the end of this note.

For domestic travel, Fellows should normally use the train or coach although it is recognised that this might occasionally mean a higher cost.

Online conferences are eligible with the same guidelines as in person attendance.

• Purchase of books

Please ensure that books are not available in either the College or departmental libraries before applying to the Fund for costs towards purchase.  Also, please note that any books purchased with an award from the Academic Fund, must be left with the Wolfson library once a Fellow leaves the College, otherwise the Fellow concerned assumes a tax liability.

• Professional development courses

Departmental funding should be sought in the first instance but if no such funds are available, the Panel may consider funding training, especially if directly linked to research work.

• Purchase of images and copyright costs

Departmental funding should be sought in the first instance but if no such funds are available, applications will be considered for access to images and other copyright material for research purposes only and up to the point of publication.  Applications for purchasing images for the purposes of publication will not be considered. 

• Research released as open access

Applications may be considered where other University sources of funding have been exhausted. The Panel have very occasionally agreed to fund software, and editorial  assistance where other sources are not available.  The funding of research assistants is not covered by this fund.  

• Retrospective claims

           All claims should be for future purchases with the exception of:

• Purchase of books.
• When an event over the summer period coincides with a gap in the Panel meeting retrospective applications relating to the previous summer may be considered in the first Panel meeting of the new Academic Year, i.e. Michaelmas Term, 3^rd Week.  Any award granted would be set against the Fellow’s total for the current year.

The Fund will not normally cover the purchase of equipment or publication costs.  Membership fees for learned societies and equivalents are also normally not covered, although where membership is either a requirement of attending certain key conferences, or would permit a significant discount, the Panel are open to considering an application. 

The Oxford University Travel Hierarchy *

All employees travelling on University business must follow this Travel Hierarchy when considering travel to reduce the environmental impact of travel. Based on the University’s 2018/19 EMR submission, an estimated 30,000 tCO2 e was emitted from University business travel and 21,000 tCO2 e was emitted from international students travelling to and from Oxford.

Avoid travel - consider whether travel is essential

· Consider alternatives such as video calls or video conferencing

· Request virtual participation at conferences

 · Avoid travel, save time and money.

Reduce your travel - reduce your emissions by reducing the number of trips

 · Avoid multiple trips to the same region by combining into longer trips

 · Minimise the size of your group travelling to the same event.

 · Take fewer, longer trips

 · Consider combining business trips with family and leisure trips.

Travel without flying – within the UK or Europe these are the alternatives to flying

 · Rail should be used for all domestic travel

 · Eurostar should be used for travel to Paris, Belgium and Amsterdam

 · Rail should be considered for other European cities with high-speed rail connections

 · Rail can be combined with other modes for destinations not on a direct rail link

· Sleeper trains, booked in advance, could be used for overnight travel

· Coach

 · Ferries

· Car

Fly when there are no alternatives, and consider the:

 · Class of flight - economy class has the lowest emissions per passenger due to less space being taken up on the aircraft

 · Route - fly direct is usually less carbon intensive. Indirect flights usually have longer distances, and multiple take-off and landing manoeuvres increase emissions

 · Carrier – select the most carbon efficient carrier. Use this decision tool when considering local, national and international travel.

Closing dates for applications to the Academic Fund: 

The online application form is now available near the bottom of this page. 

NB: There is a separate Academic Conference and Seminar Account to support workshops, conferences, colloquia, lectures and seminars organised by Fellows and Students of the College, which will be held for the most part at Wolfson College.

Fellows Allowances

Please see Allowances for Governing Body Fellows, Honorary Fellows, Emeritus Fellows, Supernumerary Fellows, Supernumerary Fellows (A) and Research/Junior Research Fellows.