Undergraduate Research Bursaries 2026 by Royal Society of Chemistry

This prestigious award provides real research experience to undergraduates students to encourage them to consider a career in scientific research.

Table of Content

• Summary
• Benefits
• Requirements
• Interview Process
• Application Deadline
• How To Apply

Summary

• Application DeadlineFebruary 9, 2026
• Study LevelUndergraduate
• SponsorRoyal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
• Eligible CountryUnited Kingdom

Benefits

• The bursary provides a contribution to the student's wages equivalent to 35 hours per week at the UK National Living Wage (£12.71 per hour from April 2026) for a total workload equivalent to 6 to 8 weeks. The work can be completed on a full-time, part-time, or flexible basis.
• RSC welcome applications for both lab-based and remote projects.

Requirements

In order to be eligible, the student must meet all of the following criteria:

• They are in the middle years of their first undergraduate degree at time of application
• Mature  students  are  eligible  to  apply,  but  must  not  have  a  previous  degree  in  any  subject.
• They are members of the RSC. Student membership is free and it is very quick and easy to join.
• They must be registered at a UK or Republic of Ireland Institution (whether full-time  or  part-time)  for  the  majority  of  their  undergraduate  degree  in  the  chemical  sciences.
• They must  not  be  in  receipt  of  financial  support  from  other  sources  for  the  project that is the subject of application.

Selection Process

All applications will be checked by RSC staff. Your application will not proceed to peer review if:

• You do not meet our eligibility criteria (see above)
• Your application is incomplete
• Your application does not adhere to the length limits instructed in the application system

All remaining eligible applications will undergo peer review by members of our Researcher Grants Peer Review Group and final funding decisions will then be overseen by:

• Dr Andrew Logsdail, Cardiff University 
• Dr Caroline Pollard, National Physical Laboratory 

• Dr Joëlle Prunet, University of Glasgow 

• Dr Jóhannes Reynisson, Keele University 

They will assess applications on the following criteria. No more than four applications from an individual institution will be funded. We request that institutions are thoughtful about the number of applications they submit (if submitting more than 4) and are considerate about the time given by our volunteer reviewers to ensure the scheme runs smoothly for our applicants.

Where a student applies to undertake their project at a different UK/ROI university to the one they are enrolled in, the application will not count towards the allocation of either university.

• Merit of the student: reviewers will assess the student’s aptitude and interest in practical work; their academic abilities; career ambitions and how much this project is likely to benefit them.
• Suitability of the project: in addition to high-quality science achievable in the time available, the project must be suitable for the student’s skill level, whilst providing an appropriate level of challenge. It should give the student experience in a range of techniques and concepts.
• Supervisor support: the application should demonstrate how the student will be given the support they need to make the most of their time in the lab. The application should also take into account provision of adequate resources to train and supervise the student.

Check also:
African Graduate Scholarship at University College London 2026
International undergraduate tuition fee waiver at University of Leicester 2026

Application Deadline

February 9, 2026

How To Apply

Are you qualified and interested in this opportunity? Kindly go to Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) on roysocchem.smapply.io to apply

For more details, kindly visit Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) webpage.