Your Research Support Hubs

The College Hubs are the first fully comprehensive research support teams in the Russell Group, bringing together expertise across Research Strategy, Research Development, Research Grants, Research Contracts and Research Finance, underpinned by cross college services.

Each College has School-facing teams, partnering with academics and working symbiotically, as trusted experts across the research project life-cycle, to support the delivery of the Birmingham 2030 ambitions. 

There are three teams within each College Hub: Research Strategy and Development, Research Support and Post-Award. Alongside these teams, there are also the EU and International team and cross-institutional support for Interdisciplinary Research delivered through the Institute of Global Innovation (IGI). 

Research Strategy & Development

The Research Strategy & Development team support the development of research strategies at School/Institute and College level and support researchers to apply for and win competitive large-scale research funding, regularly working across all five Colleges to support complex, interdisciplinary research applications.

The Research Strategy & Development team play a critical role in the development of longer-term, ambitious research strategies and projects working in partnership with senior academic and professional services staff to facilitate and support excellence in research, encompassing competitive bids to funders, the development and nurturing of key funder relationships, and the development of research funding and partnership strategies at the level of a defined College and for thematic research areas.

The Research Strategy & Development team are key to the overall research culture of a College and the wider University, providing valuable support and guidance to researchers and to research leaders to ensure a positive environment for the development of ambitious research proposals, often with multiple external partners. The team work closely with Business Engagement colleagues to attract industry investment in major projects and work alongside senior academic leads on the development of strategic institutional funder relationships.

Research Support

The Research Support teams provide support to researchers in defined Schools/Institutes across all elements of pre-award research support including proactive research development and partnership building in support of research proposals. 

The Research Support team assists researchers in developing and securing external research funding and collaborations via the provision of specialist practitioner support at every stage of the pre-award and contracting process. Working closely with colleagues from across the RSSD, the Research Support teams comprise the key contact points for researchers in a defined School/Institute, providing specialist advice on research funder terms and conditions, undertaking costing and pricing of research, due diligence of external partners, negotiation of research agreements, submissions to funders, the setting up of the research projects and effective pre-to-post award handover. 

Important notice: UKRI Funding Service (TFS) rolls out for 2023: TFS is a new online system for finding, applying for and managing research funding, offering an improved experience to replace the JeS system - find out how this will affect your funding opportunities and applications here. 

Find our more on our dedicated TFS information page

Post-Award

The Post award teams are customer-focussed teams of Research Post Award Finance professionals, providing financial control, management and development oversight, project finance reporting and forecasting, associated with the academic areas that they support. The teams work closely with colleagues across the wider RSSD, other Professional Services including College administration to develop, share and deliver best practice for post-award financial support with regard to inter-disciplinary and major strategic projects and key funders.  

Visit your College Research Hub for more guidance and resources


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European and International Research Support

The European and International Research Support team are responsible for providing specialist support for applying (pre-award) and delivering (post-award) European and International funded projects.

Through one-to-one meetings, workshops, and targetted communication, the team raise awareness of relevant EU and international calls and match these opportunities with academic interests. The team can also help to identify new funder or collaboration opportunities early, assist with proposal development, and provide hands-on support with grant preparation and project setup. 

Find out more about EU & International research support

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Interdisciplinary Research

The Research Strategy and Services Division is proud to support research that breaks down barriers and crosses traditional disciplinary boundaries. Our Institute for Global Innovation and Advanced Studies offers a dedicated suite of resources to support interdisciplinary research including training, networking events, online signposting and funded workshops and fellowships. You can find more details about these opportunities, and some case studies covering interdisciplinary projects we are particularly proud of on our website celebrating a decade of delivering interdisciplinary research support.

More about how we can support interdisciplinary research

A decade inspiring interdiciplinarity

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