Fleming Prize Lecture
Awarded annually to an early career researcher who has achieved an outstanding research record within 12 years of being awarded their PhD
Established in 1976 and named after Sir Alexander Fleming, co-founder of the Society of General Microbiology (SGM), member and its first President (1945-1947), the Fleming Prize Lecture has recognised the work of numerous early career microbiologists, many of whom have gone on to achieve distinguished careers and honours and, in one case (Sir Paul Nurse FRS), a Nobel Prize.
Nominations for the 2027 Prize will open on Tuesday April 7 2026. The deadline for submissions is 14 June 2026. Details of the nomination process and award criteria can be found below.
Award criteria and guidance
The Fleming Prize recognises individuals who have made a distinct contribution to microbiology early in their career. We welcome nominations for early career researchers who have achieved an outstanding research record within 12 years of being awarded their PhD. Years may be added to this total in respect to substantive reasons, which could include maternity/paternity leave, long-term sickness, or similar reasons. If you have any questions about eligibility, please contact [email protected].
Nominations should include:
- Evidence of the individual’s achievements since they became an independent researcher.
- Evidence of a significant research programme.
- Clear context if the individual you wish to nominate has taken a career break(s).
- Clear evidence of the individual’s contribution where they are known to be a highly collaborative researcher in order to aid the award panel’s understanding of the level of independence the individual has reached.
- Evidence of mentoring and training others.
The form will ask you to:
- Outline the distinction of the candidate’s work and contribution to microbiology.
This section should include significant discoveries in the candidate’s field, invention or development of new tools and technologies, or evidence of great originality or foresight.
- Describe the impact or potential impact of the candidate’s work.
This section should include how the nominee’s work has or could in the future influence their field. Include every area of where the nominee’s work could have an impact, such as research in academia and/or industry, any translational applications, or any policy or wider societal aspects.
- Provide evidence demonstrating the candidate’s independence in research.
This section should include examples such as grant funding as the principal investigator or papers produced from the candidate's own funding.
- Please provide examples of academic and professional citizenship and any additional information relevant to the nomination.
This section could include public engagement work, teaching and mentoring. Please include links to projects and work where appropriate.
- Fleming nominations must also include a CV using the CV Proforma below.
Fleming Prize Lecture CV pro forma 2026
Nomination information
Nominations for the Prize are welcome from any member of the Microbiology Society, regardless of membership period or category. Nominees do not have to be members of the Society.
Please click the 'Nominate now' button below and log in to your MiSociety account to submit a nomination. You will need to enter some text into all mandatory fields before being able to save a draft of your nomination. Once saved, you will be able to return to edit it; however, once a nomination is submitted, it cannot be amended. You may therefore prefer to collaborate via an offline version and copy it across when ready for submission for ease.
The recipient of the Fleming Prize Lecture will receive £1,000 and be expected to give a lecture based on their research at the Microbiology Society's Annual Conference. They will also be strongly encouraged to publish the lecture in one of the Society’s journals, whichever is the most suitable. This decision will be at the discretion of the Editors of the journals.
Unsuccessful nominations will be reconsidered for the entire duration of the candidate’s eligibility, pending confirmation/update of the nomination by the nominators each year.
The Microbiology Society is committed to ensuring equal access to opportunities to participate in our activities, and therefore we are asking members who nominate our Prize Lectures to ensure their Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Questionnaire answers are up to date. While it is voluntary to disclose information about yourself, your responses will be instrumental in supporting us to make the Society more inclusive. All of your responses to this questionnaire will be treated as confidential, in line with our privacy policy and data protection laws. Any reporting of the data will be anonymised and will be used to monitor and review the diversity and inclusivity of the Society and its activities.
Previous winners of the Fleming Prize Lecture
Visit our Youtube channel playlist to watch previous Prize Lectures.
