The assessment process of each funding opportunity will vary. Specific details can be found on the funding opportunity guidance pages.
More information on the peer review process, and the guidelines provided for reviewers, can be found in our guidance on how we make decisions.
Video credit: Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Video transcript and on-screen captions are available by watching on YouTube.
Examining and remit checking
All submitted applications are checked to ensure they are:
- eligible for the scheme and adhere to Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) guidelines
- within BBSRC’s remit and scope of the funding opportunity
If an application does not meet the criteria or scope of the scheme, it will be rejected.
External peer review
If the funding opportunity includes external peer review, we will invite experts sourced by BBSRC staff to provide independent reviews of your project. before panel assessment we usually aim to have a minimum of two external peer reviews per application. This is designed to safeguard the robustness of our decision-making process.
Reviewers will assess your application against the assessment criteria listed on the funding opportunity guidance page.
BBSRC is not able to accept reviewer suggestions from applicants.
Find out more about our peer review process.
Applicant response
If your application went through external peer review, we will provide applicants with an opportunity respond to reviewer comments. You will receive details through your UKRI Funding Service account. You should respond to reviewers’ comments within 14 calendar days.
You usually have 500 words to respond to each review. Any responses you submit will be taken to the panel assessment together with the reviewer comments and full application documentation.
Panel assessment
Applications will be assessed by a bespoke panel, which include members of our pool of experts, matching the expertise of the applications submitted to that funding opportunity.
For most opportunities, your application will be assigned to three panel members, who will independently assess your application against the assessment criteria given on the opportunity guidance page. The three assigned panel members will discuss your application, reviews, and applicant response (if applicable) and come to agreement on the strengths and weakness, and any issues relating to animal use, ethics, data management and requested resources.
The panel will agree a consensus score for your application, which is moderated by the whole panel and chairs to ensure all applications have been assessed fairly, objectively and consistently. The panel then will produce a rank-ordered list of the applications to recommend the order that they should be funded, based on the evidence presented to the panel during the assessment discussions.
Specific details about how applications will be assessed can be found in the opportunity guidance.
Outcomes and feedback
Due to the large number of high-quality applications submitted to each funding opportunity, not all applications that are deemed high quality are guaranteed funding.
Panel feedback is based on a summary of the combined discussions that took place during the panel assessment process and does not include reasons why an application is or is not funded.
Last updated: 10 July 2025