Dr Emiko Dupont, a research associate at the University of Bath, has been shortlisted by L’Oréal-UNESCO for their ‘For Women in Science’ UK and Ireland Rising Talents Awards.

Dr Dupont, who has PhDs in pure maths from Stony Brook University, NY, and statistics from the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Statistical Applied Mathematics at Bath (SAMBa), is among 10 early-career scientists competing for five grants in the L’Oréal-UNESCO competition. Her research focuses on the development and improvement of statistical methodology and also involves using maths and statistics to improve machine learning algorithms.

The post-doctoral period is widely seen as a challenging time for women scientists as they work to establish themselves and forge paths towards a permanent research career.

“I’m really excited to be shortlisted,” says Dr Dupont. “Life can be challenging for an early-career researcher, and I’ve had a particularly demanding few years with a long period of ill health, so getting this far with the competition has given me a much-needed boost.”

The UK and Ireland Rising Talents Programme is the national chapter of For Women in Science and is designed to provide flexible and practical financial support, alongside tools and support, for early career women scientists to pursue their research.

Shortlisted candidates for the award must all work in the fields of Physical Science, Engineering, Mathematics and Computing, Life Science, and Sustainable Development. Each grant is worth £15,000 and is intended to support a 12-month period of research in any UK or Irish university.

The L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science partnership was established in 1998 to pay homage to women scientists who are leading ground-breaking research across the world. The programme was founded with the simple belief that the world needs science and science needs women. Despite this, women only represent one-third of researchers globally, and their work rarely gains the recognition it deserves.

Through its various editions across the world, the award programme aims to help empower more women scientists to achieve scientific excellence and participate equally in solving the great challenges facing humanity.

Winners of this year’s five Rising Talents awards will be announced on May 24 at a reception at the House of Commons.