Call for Expressions of Interest in Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowships

Teesside University welcomes expressions of interest from individuals wishing to apply for a Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowship with Teesside University as their host organisation.

The final deadline for Expressions of Interest is 5pm on Monday 1^st December 2025.

About the scheme

The aim of the Early Career Fellowships scheme is to enable early-career researchers with a research record – but who have not yet held a full-time permanent academic post – to undertake a significant piece of publishable work.

Applicants must either hold a degree (any degree) from a UK higher education institution at the time of taking up the Fellowship or at the time of the application deadline must hold an academic position in the UK (e.g. fixed-term lectureship, fellowship) which commenced no less than 4 months prior to the closing date. Hence, those who do not hold a UK degree and whose UK academic position commenced after October 2025 are not eligible.

All candidates must have submitted their doctoral thesis for viva voce examination not more than four years prior to the application closing date (19^th February 2026). Hence those who formally submitted their doctoral thesis for viva voce examination before 19^th February 2022 are not eligible unless they have since had a career break.

Please check the eligibility and person specification guidance in the scheme notes to establish suitability for the scheme (www.leverhulme.ac.uk/early-career-fellowships).

Successful applicants will receive a salary for three years (or longer in the case of part-time Fellows) and a budget for research expenses.

We welcome Expressions of Interest in the following areas:

School of Computing, Engineering & Digital Technologies

• Dynamics of human behaviours
• Cooperation in hybrid human-AI systems
• Large language models and human behaviours
• AI governance modelling
• AI race dynamics
• Interpretable and beneficial AI
• Gaming and Game Theory 
• Intelligent, secure and reliable systems

Contact point for inquiries: Professor The Anh Han (T.Han@tees.ac.uk) 

• Smart Energy (smart grids, microgrids, digitalisation and analytics)
• Smart Energy (PEMD and battery manufacturing, supply chain and recycling/second life) 

• Smart Construction (smart contracts, DLT, blockchain and digital twin integration for low carbon construction)
• Smart Construction (machine vision, AI, immersive technologies and data analytics for integrated construction project delivery) 

• Hydrogen and Decarbonisation (hydrogen production, transportation, storage and applications)
• Hydrogen and Decarbonisation (industrial carbon capture, storage and utilisation, greenhouse gas removal) 

• Circular Economy and Recycling (non-mechanical recycling, material recovery, purification)
• Circular Economy and Recycling (life-cycle assessment of circular processes and embodied carbon calculation)

Contact point for inquiries: Professor Michael Short (M.Short@tees.ac.uk)

Immersive and interactive computing (applications of XR across different industries, immersive storytelling, XR for heritage preservation, digital twins, virtual production)

Visual arts and games research (animation, VFX, AI for games, crowd simulation in games, serious games, game narratives, eco-conscious games, game culture)

Contact point for inquiries: Professor Olugbenga Akinade (O.Akinade@tees.ac.uk)

Teesside University International Business School

• Remote working
• Building a workforce during environments of change
• Inclusive leadership
• The impacts of digitisation and AI – especially on human health and business ethics
• Well-being and ageing
• Net zero, climate change and business resilience/adaptation
• Climate finance
• Contact point for inquiries: Dr Xiaoxian Zhu (X.Zhu@tees.ac.uk)

School of Health & Life Sciences

• Physical and Life sciences
• Cell Biology
• Biological Complexity and Adaptation
• Systems Biology
• Molecular Design and Discovery

Contact point for inquiries: Professor John Young (J.Young@tees.ac.uk)

• Archaeological advances in preservation and outreach
• Aquatic disease ecology
• Wildlife conservation genetics and management
• Rewilding for ecological recovery
• Nature-based solutions
• Sustainable food supply chain and environmental impact
• Microbial biotechnology and bioremediation
• Food waste valorisation
• Eco-friendly solutions in water treatment

Contact point for inquiries: Dr Ambroise Baker (A.Baker@tees.ac.uk)

School of Social Sciences, Humanities & Law

• Vulnerability and communication in the Criminal Justice System
• Health and well-being
• Living with long-term conditions
• Cognition and decision Making

Contact point for inquiries: Professor Judith Eberhardt (J.Eberhardt@tees.ac.uk)

• Crime, Social Exclusion and Extremism
• Communities, Education and Health
• Social Justice, Inclusion and Place
• Environmental Justice and Energy Transitions
• Histories and cultures of social and political conflict
• Consensus / dissensus in the public sphere

Contact point for inquiries: Professor Matthew Cotton (M.Cotton@tees.ac.uk)

School of Arts & Creative Industries

• Creative economies and cultural policy
• Arts, health, and social prescribing
• Heritage, memory, and material culture
• Digital curation and cultural innovation
• Participation, access, and cultural democracy
• Art, migration, and transnational belongings
• Creative ecologies and regenerative design
• Historical and literary voices from the margins

Contact point for inquiries: Professor Azadeh Fatehrad (A.Fatehrad@tees.ac.uk)

Expressions of interest

The significant support of the host institution is a critical component of these fellowships. As such, Teesside University has an internal review process for identifying potential applicants to this scheme. Those interested in applying should email researchfunding@tees.ac.uk with the following details:

• Your full name
• Your current research status and affiliation
• Expected host (School)
• A CV (2 pages max)
• A Case for Support describing the proposed area of interest; the proposed research project; an outline workplan; and reasons for choosing Teesside as your host institution, including areas of research and individuals whose work complements your proposed project (2 pages)

Expressions of Interest will be responded to within 5 days of submission and considered up until 5pm on Monday 1^st December 2025.

Note that we welcome conversations with interested parties regarding the content of their EOIs (see contact details above).

More general enquiries can be directed to Dr Oliver Moss (o.moss@tees.ac.uk) (Head of Research & Impact, Research & Enterprise Office).