Fellowships For Women In Science open for applications

The 2009 L'Oréal-UNESCO UK and Ireland Fellowships For Women In Science is open for applications. This year, four fellowships each worth £15,000 will be awarded to outstanding female post-doctoral scientists, adjudicated by a panel chaired by Baroness Susan Greenfield, Director of the Royal Institution.

The fellowships were launched in 2007 and are designed to provide practical help for the winners to continue in their chosen fields. Winners may choose to spend their fellowships in whichever way is most helpful to them in continuing their research, for example, buying scientific equipment, hiring an assistant or paying for childcare costs.

Lecturer Dr Sarah Bridle (UCL Physics & Astronomy) was awarded a fellowship in 2008.  The nature of her work necessitates international teleconferencing, particularly regarding the satellite observatory EUCLID, a European Space Agency mission to map the geometry of the dark universe.  She decided to spend her Fellowship on video conferencing equipment.

Dr Bridle said: "We are all travelling around an awful lot, probably too much, and this impacts a lot more women than men but it is generally a bad thing for the environment. We are all in these international consortia and we need to be talking to each other, so video conferencing is the solution."

Panel Chair, Baroness Greenfield said: "There is still a misconception that science is for men. The L'Oréal-UNESCO awards not only help support and encourage our best female scientists, but they also serve to create visible role models, who are crucial in inspiring the next generation of women in science."

The closing date for applications is 8 April 2009.  For further information and to apply, use the link at the top of this article.