First awardees of the new Springboard scheme announced

 Dr Samantha Terry in the Division of Imaging Sciences & Biomedical Engineering is among the first awardees of the Academy of Medical Sciences Springboard scheme, set up to support researchers on their path to research independence.

The awardees will receive a research grant of up to £100,000 for two years plus mentoring from Academy Fellows and access to leadership and career development activities.

Forming a research group and establishing an independent research project is one of the most crucial, but difficult steps in the career of a scientist. It is at this time that the right support can make all the difference between a researcher continuing on the academic path or abandoning it.

Springboard has been designed to fill a gap in the funding and training currently offered to non-clinical researchers at this delicate career stage and to support talented researchers developing into the research leaders of the future.

Dr Terry’s research focuses on determining how radionuclides used for therapy affect either the cells they are targeting or off-target cells in order to determine how these radionuclides can be best used.

Professor Robert Lechler PMedSci, President of the Academy of Medical Sciences said:

"Biomedical researchers within the early years of starting a lecturer post are at a key stage of their career, where the right support can make a great difference. Establishing an independent research programme as an early stage researcher is challenging, and failure to acquire start up funds can result in loss of talented staff.

"To date, the Academy of Medical Sciences has supported clinician scientists and clinical lecturers as they start their independent research careers. I am delighted that we can now extend this support to biomedical scientists through the Springboard scheme."

You can find out more about the Springboard scheme on the Academy of Medical Sciences website.