Summer Studentships

The BMSS Summer Studentship Programme

The British Mass Spectrometry Society (BMSS), in partnership with the Chromatographic Society (ChromSoc) accept applications annually for their Summer Studentships scheme. The scheme funds summer research projects for students, providing them with opportunities to directly experience mass spectrometry and chromatography, going beyond what they will learn in lectures.

The studentships are typically of 6-8 weeks duration, and focus on involving the student in scientific research, resulting in the opportunity to present their work in both a scientific report and a conference presentation.

Please click here to read about the experience of one previous awardee.

Benefits of the scheme

  • The BMSS and ChromSoc will cover research project costs up to a maximum value of £3,500 per studentship, to cover 6-8 weeks at the national living wage and up to £300 in consumable costs.
  • The student receives complimentary 5-Year BMSS Membership (or choice of ChromSoc Membership instead for joint BMSS/ChromSoc-funded students).*
  • Complimentary registration for the student for one BMSS Annual Meeting (or choice of one ChromSoc meeting instead for joint BMSS/ChromSoc-funded students).*
  • The student will receive complimentary registration for one BMSS Introduction to Mass Spectrometry course (applicable for BMSS only, or joint BMSS/ChromSoc funded students).*
  • A travel grant to facilitate student attendance at one BMSS Annual Meeting/Course.*
  • Beneficiaries are encouraged to make a scientific contribution to the next BMSS Annual Meeting (may be deferred by one year).

* Funded by the relevant society


Eligibility

In order to qualify for consideration of funding:

  • The application must be submitted by the project supervisor.
  • The supervisor must be a BMSS member of at least 3 months standing, or a ChromSoc member.
  • The supervisor must be a bona-fide employee of the institution/company in which the project will be conducted, to which the funds will be paid (not to named individuals).
  • Only a single application per supervisor per round will be considered by this scheme.
  • Funding should typically be used to provide direct financial support to the student e.g. as stipend to cover living expenses and a wage and is not to be used for conference attendance or travel (BMSS or ChromSoc travel grants are available for this purpose) or continuation of PhD studies/projects. Grants must be used solely for the purposes set out in the application.
  • Funding is open to academics who are in full-time employment at a British university or research institution and who will be fully employed for the duration of the project and report deadline, or where in part-time employment, name a full-time collaborator who is able to provide suitable cover.
  • Successful candidates may recruit undergraduates who are UK or EU nationals, or who have UK residence qualifications, and to overseas students who are attending a British university or research institution for full time education with valid student visa for the period of the Summer Studentship. 
  • Some degree of matched funding will be looked upon favourably. As such, the involvement of industrial bodies (as co-sponsor or collaborator) is acceptable, but the studentship application should be made solely by the academic where the student is based, and that the institution and student both fulfil the aforementioned criteria, otherwise such applications will not be considered.
  • The application may be submitted before a suitable student has been identified.

Applications

  • Applications must be submitted by the project supervisor. It is the supervisor’s responsibility to have full consent of all co-applicants prior to submitting this proposal.
  • Applications should not exceed 3 A4 pages and should be structured according to the format below:
    1. Proposed sponsor (you can select one or more relevant groups)
      1. BMSS (must have a mass spectrometry element);
      2. ChromSoc (must have a separations element);
    2. Project title (20 words or less)
    3. Name and email addresses of any co-applicants
    4. Background information (250 words or less)
    5. Project objectives (300 words or less)
    6. Experimental plan, detailing student involvement
    7. Proposed outcome and impact of the research
    8. Ensuring a positive student experience of mass spectrometry
    9. Level of funding required for student stipend, including information to demonstrate alignment with the national living wage: As part of the application, the BMSS require the applicants to demonstrate that their combined budget and timeframes are compliant with the National Living Wage (https://www.gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-rates).
    10. Level of consumables funding requested (up to £300) and outline of what the funding will be used for (500 words or less)
    11. Anticipated start and end dates
    12. Institutional signoff complied with (yes/no – if no, supervisor letter of support to be provided)
    13. Project supervisor signature (accepting the terms and conditions of the BMSS and the award)
    14. Applications should be emailed to the BMSS Administrator: admin@bmss.org.uk.
  • The 2024 deadline (Friday 16th February) has now passed.

Terms and Conditions

  • The available funding. The BMSS will fund approximately four projects, to a maximum value of £3,500 per studentship to cover 6-8 week student stipend at up to £300 consumables. In addition, ChromSoc will fund up to a further two projects to a maximum value of £3,500 per studentship, provided that they contain a strong focus on separation science. Some degree of matched funding will be looked upon favourably.
  • The decision-making process. The BMSS Advisory Board and ChromSoc representatives will rank and select the projects that will receive funding based on criteria including their mass spectrometry and/or chromatography content, relevance to current topics, novelty of the project, deliverables, development of the student, and student experience.
  • The project report. The student/supervisor team must produce a project report of 2-3 pages (1600-2400 words, excluding references) describing the results of their project, once completed, for inclusion in the BMSS newsletter (MassMatters), ChromComm, LCGC's The Column, on the BMSS and/or ChromSoc web site, across BMSS and/or Chromsoc social media platforms, or in other material relevant to either society. 
  • Project reports must be returned to the BMSS Administrator: admin@bmss.org.uk, within 6 weeks of project end date. Delayed publication (so as not to prejudice journal submission) can be negotiated, but report submission must be on time. Late reports may negatively affect the chances of future applications for any future BMSS funding.
  • Acknowledging financial support. All sponsoring societies (BMSS and ChromSoc) must be specifically acknowledged in all presentations/publications and grants resulting from the student’s work.
  • We would not normally expect to award more than one grant to the same PI in any twelve-month period. 
  • Complimentary student benefits may not be transferred to another person. The complimentary registration for the Introduction to Mass Spectrometry Course and to attend the BMSS Annual Conference, plus the travel grant to support attendance, may be deferred by up to one year. The student attending the conference would be expected to present the results of their research project in poster form.

If you have any questions about the Summer Studentship programme, please do not hesitate to contact the BMSS Education Officer, Hannah Britt: hannah.britt@chem.ox.ac.ukcopying in the BMSS Vice Chair, Andy Ray: vicechair@bmss.org.uk.