A regional consortium led by Cardiff University and comprising fellow GW4 universities of Bath, Bristol and Exeter, plus new programme partner, Swansea University, has secured an £11.4 million award from Wellcome, to deliver the next phase of the GW4 Doctoral Programme for Healthcare Professionals (GW4-HP2). This forms part of Wellcome’s £155 million investment in the next generation of healthcare professional researchers.
Building on the success of the current programme, the nine-year award will create a sustained clinical academic pathway for healthcare professionals. Through an integrated package of pre-doctoral, doctoral and postdoctoral support, it will enable participants to develop their research expertise while progressing their clinical careers, providing an integrated route into clinical academia.
Bath co-leads
Professor Prasad Nishtala, Department of Life Sciences, and Professor Sarah Halligan, Department of Psychology at the University of Bath, will co-lead the University of Bath’s partnership in the consortium. Professor Nishtala says:
As the University of Bath co-lead, my role is to help create a supportive, inclusive and collaborative research environment that enables healthcare professionals to pursue doctoral training alongside their professional development.
Building on our experience of supporting three fellows through the previous scheme, we will work closely with our GW4 partners to strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration, provide research mentorship and support the career progression of emerging clinical researchers.
Our ambition is to position the University of Bath as a preferred destination for healthcare professionals seeking outstanding doctoral training and opportunities to become future leaders in healthcare research.”
Professor Halligan says:
It is extremely positive that the University of Bath is supporting this scheme, which will provide a major enhancement of clinical research capacity across our region.
Open to healthcare professionals, physicians, dentists and veterinarians, the programme will support 25 doctoral fellows to undertake world-class research training across a broad range of biomedical discovery science disciplines, including infection and immunity, genetics and genomics, population health, artificial intelligence, big data and quantum technologies.
The award includes a significant investment in career development, with £1.2 million ringfenced to support fellows as they progress to the next stage of their academic careers. This will include dedicated support to help fellows develop competitive postdoctoral fellowship applications and secure external funding, alongside NHS-funded Accelerator Fellowships designed to strengthen, retain and nurture clinical research talent across the region.
Melanie Knetsch, Director of GW4, said: “We are proud to see the sustained investment in GW4-HP2 reflecting the strength of the collaborative and innovative approach to the doctoral training of our talented clinical academics across the South West of England and South Wales region. Building research capacity, accelerating the innovation and translation of research discoveries to improve health outcomes will enable us to address some of the most pressing health challenges and to help improve health and wellbeing for all.”