Your application will be sent to a minimum of two members from AHRC’s peer review college. We may include reviewers from outside the college if suitable college members are not available, or where input is required as part of agreements with other funding bodies. We may also seek reviews from specialists if college members lack the necessary knowledge and expertise.
The sifting process for the applications goes through two stages, and panel comments are sent to the principal investigator for response through the Je-S system.
At the point of submission, each proposal will be assessed on the following criteria:
- all applicants and named staff must be eligible under the scheme requirements
- the proposal must meet the aims and criteria of the funding scheme
- all application documents must be eligible under the scheme requirements.
Proposals which do not meet these criteria will be rejected with feedback on why it could not proceed.
For the peer review we will consider the following criteria:
- research quality and importance (whether the project meets the aims of the scheme, contribution to knowledge, definition of research questions and issues, feasibility of methods)
- people (the quality of your work, demonstrated ability to manage the project, balance of team staff, co-investigator’s experience
- proposed leadership activities
- management of the project
- data management
- value for money
- outputs, dissemination and impact.
The assessment process usually takes around 30 weeks. We will contact you if it’s going to take any longer than this. The proposed start date of your project must be at least nine months after the date of your application.