Outreach and Engagement Grant
Eligible members can apply for up to £1000 to support relevant science outreach or public engagement initiatives that engage new audiences in the art and science in any aspect of microbiology. Activities should inspire and educate people about the importance of microbiology and its advances.
Eligible membership categories: Full, Full Concessionary and Postgraduate Student Members
Minimum membership: One year membership and two consecutive membership subscription payments required.
Enquiries about this scheme should be made by email to [email protected]
Please read all information on this page carefully and ensure you have read and agreed to the grants terms and conditions before submitting an application.
- Eligibility requirements
- What is covered by the grant?
- Application process
- Award criteria
- Publishing for the community
Eligibility requirements
Membership categories eligible to apply:
- Full member
- Full Concessionary Member
- Postgraduate Student Members
Minimum membership period required:
A minimum membership period of one year and two consecutive membership payments is required.
We welcome applications for activities which involve international members and/or include participants from industry or infection science as part of the activity.
Applicants must not have received a grant from this scheme in the previous calendar year.
Applicants cannot apply for funding for an event that was also funded in the previous calendar year by another applicant.
Deadlines:
There are two rounds of applications per year.
Round 1 applications will open on 01 March 2025 and close on 01 May 2025
Round 2 applications will open on 01 Aug 2025 and close on 01 Oct 2025
What is covered by the grant
The Society wishes to encourage innovative activities to promote any aspect of microbiology in interactive and engaging ways. This grant should not be used to subsidise normal departmental teaching expenses. A variety of activities will be considered for support. These might include:
- Activities that take place as part of a national science and engineering week, science/art/music fairs or festivals.
- Activities, talks or workshops to share scientific concepts and current research with thought-provoking ideas and topics to engage audiences in discussion of the impact of microbiology on society.
- Supporting microbiology activities in a school or college-based science week activity. This could include a class visit to a microbiology laboratory to carry out activities, or engaging talks from Microbiologists working in different fields.
- Developing an activity/resource for students with the capacity to roll out at a national/international level.
Payments to volunteers, such as undergraduates who are giving up their free time to develop or deliver the activity, may be included in the costings in the application.
Funds may be used for the purchase of consumable materials, but not capital equipment.
Application process
Applications should be made online via Mi Society. All required supplementary material should be provided at the point of application. A full breakdown of expected costs should be given in the appropriate part of the application.
Applicants must provide a detailed description of the proposed initiative, together with information of any collaborations or other sponsorship.
Online application section: Project details - Code of conduct and Safety and Insurance details:
- Applicants must confirm that they have a code of conduct in place (you can view the Society’s Code of Conduct as an example).
- Each application should also include a safety risk assessment and evidence of, or costing for, appropriate public liability insurance cover if the activity is to be held at a public venue. This should be submitted at the point of applying.
Award criteria
Awards are made by competition. Applications are reviewed by at least two referees and funding decisions are made by an Award Panel.
Applications are reviewed against the following criteria:
- The activity has clear aims that are technically feasible and realistically achievable in the proposed time frame.
- The activity is innovative and/or timely with clear benefit to the target audience, demonstrating how the activity will engage the audience in dialogue with the topic and the wider implications of microbiology in society.
- Evaluation methods are adequately described with information on how impact will be measured.
- Full costings are given with a realistic budget providing good value for money.
Publishing for the community
We are a membership charity and a not-for-profit publisher. Submissions to our titles support the community, ensuring that we continue to provide grants, events and professional development for microbiologists at all career stages.
Please consider publishing with us so that we can support more members to benefit from the experience. Just one article published with us generates the revenue to give grants to four early career members to attend Annual Conference or seven early career members to attend a Focused Meeting.
If you are new to publishing and would like to find out more, visit our Publishing Fundamentals resources.
Administration of awards
Applicants should expect to receive notification of the outcome of their application within two months of the closing date.
You will be notified of an awarded grant via email with details of how to submit your claim and receipts via your Mi Society account under ‘Grant History’.
Please note that in the event of a successful application, all claims must be substantiated by appropriate receipts/evidence of expenditure.
Awarded funds will be paid to the applicant’s nominated account by bank transfer within one month of an award claim being made.
Enquiries about this scheme should be made by email to [email protected]