My winning proposal: British Academy is easy access

British Academy fellowships are prestigious, but applying is simpler than you might imagine

 Top tips

• Don’t be overawed by the scheme; the application is straightforward.
• Projects with strong general interest are likely to fare well.
• Reach out when working up your bid, both to previous fellows and to the British Academy.
• Lean on your research office, which is likely to be of particular help with budgeting.

The British Academy’s Postdoctoral Fellowships, something of a flagship scheme for early-career researchers in the social sciences, arts and humanities, allow grantees to lead their own research project with the goal of producing publishable findings.