The department has a strong record of hosting successful postdoctoral researchers and welcomes applications from prospective candidates.
All postdoctoral fellows are expected to undertake some teaching in the department to support their career development, and to ensure they are ingratiated into our research environment.
How to apply
If you are interested in applying for a fellowship hosted at the department, you should review our Academic Staff profiles to see if there is a suitable departmental mentor for your fellowship and approach them to support your application. You will need to submit an application to the department's Research Committee for approval. The application should contain:
A research proposal
Your academic CV
Approval from a departmental mentor
Details of the funding scheme you intend to apply to including a clear confirmation of your eligibility for this scheme, as well as any deadlines (please note that the process to apply to be hosted at LSE can take some time so to be considered you must apply to the department well in advance of any funding deadlines).
If you application is approved by the department, our Research Office will support you through the application process for the fellowship award.
Funding schemes
The department does not fund postdoctoral fellowships. All postdoctoral fellows hosted in the department are funded by external grants. You can see a list of organisations that fund postdoctoral fellowships below.
Applications for ESRC funded postdoctoral fellowships commencing October 2025 are now closed. The next call, for October 2026 fellows, is due to reopen for applications in December 2025.
This funding opportunity supports outstanding early career researchers in the humanities or social sciences with a full-time, three-year award towards the completion of a significant piece of publishable research and integration into the community of established scholars within their field.
The department typically sets its internal deadline for late August or early September.
Due to the requirement of match funding, the department is not currently participating in the Leverhulme scheme. See the Leverhulme Trust website for more information on their fellowships.
European Fellowships are for researchers relocating within or to Europe for 1-2 years; all nationalities can apply.
Global Fellowships fund 2-3 years research outside Europe, with a mandatory 1-year return phase; only EU nationals or long-term residents can apply.
This scheme provides funding for early-career researchers from any discipline who are ready to develop their research identity. Through innovative projects, they will deliver shifts in understanding that could improve human life, health and wellbeing.
By the end of the award, they will be ready to lead their own independent research programme. The award usually lasts for 5 years, but may be less for some disciplines, such as humanities and social science.
This grant scheme supports new researchers at the start of their careers to become independent researchers through gaining experience of managing and leading research projects and teams.
Grants range from £100,000 to £300,000 for a period of up to five years. Funding is based on the full economic costs of the research, with ESRC providing 80% of the cost and the research organisation covering the balance.
Proposals can cover any research area, but the social sciences must represent more than 50% of the research focus and effort.
Researchers of any nationality with 2-7 years of experience since completion of PhD, a scientific track record showing great promise and an excellent research proposal can apply for this scheme.
ERC grant applications can only be submitted in response to a Call for Proposals. Calls are published on the European Commission’s Funding and Tenders Portal and in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Awards to support researchers without prior experience of leading a significant research project to accelerate their trajectory as independent researchers, to unlock their potential and build leadership and convenor experience.
Awards are available for projects between £100,000 and £300,000 (full economic cost) and AHRC will fund 80% of this. Funding is available for projects up to five years in duration.
The BA/Leverhulme Small Research Grants are available to support primary research in the humanities and social sciences. These awards, up to £10,000 in value and tenable for up to 24 months, are provided to cover the cost of the expenses arising from a defined research project.
This programme provides UK-based early career researchers, active in any discipline within the humanities or the social sciences, with the opportunity to develop and lead international and interdisciplinary research projects.
It aims to support projects which engage with questions concerning the relationship between expertise, public understanding and policy delivery internationally, and highlight the importance of collaboration between communities of practice, disciplines, capacities and borders.
The call supports international collaborations between early career researchers in the UK and elsewhere on internationally focused research projects of an interdisciplinary nature involving the humanities and social sciences.
This programme provides support for UK-based early career researchers working with international partners wishing to develop ODA-eligible interdisciplinary projects involving both the humanities and the social sciences.
The scheme is focused on enabling UK-based early career researchers to work with early career researchers in Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Malaysia, Philippines, South Africa, Turkey, Thailand, Vietnam and/or Least Developed Countries. In the context of this call, funding from the International Science Partnerships Fund is funded by Official Development Assistance (ODA), therefore applications for this funding must be ODA-eligible.
