The
Croucher Foundation is a private endowment set up in 1979 and
permanently domiciled in Hong Kong, with the objective of promoting
excellence in natural science, technology and medicine in Hong Kong.
One of the Foundation’s regular funding initiatives is to
provide financial support for promising young people in Hong Kong to
pursue scientific research at postdoctoral and doctoral levels.
The
awards offered by the Croucher Foundation Limited ("the
Foundation") are intended to enable applicants who are permanent
residents of Hong Kong to devote themselves to a period of full-time
research in natural science, medicine or technology in approved academic
institutions outside Hong Kong.
FELLOWSHIPS
are educational awards for graduates who obtained their doctoral degrees
after July 2008, and not primarily meant as grants for enabling a
university or institution to employ research personnel for research
projects. Some
Fellowships are also available for fully qualified medical doctors who
wish to pursue research under a speciality.
Applicants who propose to continue their postdoctoral research in the same
institution where they do their doctoral degrees will normally not be
favoured. A Fellowship
comprises an annual maintenance allowance with assistance towards
airfare. The
Foundation also offers a partial research contribution to a Fellow's
host institution as a token of appreciation. The amount to be approved
by the Foundation is normally based on an estimate provided by an
authorised person of the host institution.
The maximum period for a Fellowship is two years.
The
length of the award will be explicitly stated in the grant letter when
the offer is made. If the
award is for more than one year, the candidate will in the first
instance be “on probation” for one year, and the award for the
remaining period is entirely at the Foundation’s discretion subject to
confirmation upon evidence of satisfactory progress in the first year.
As
an ex gratia benefit but not as part of the scholastic award, married
Fellows will be offered a spouse allowance and airfare for the spouse,
but only if he or she is dependant and accompanying the holder
throughout the period of the award.
In addition, a child allowance will be provided but only if the
child is residing with the candidate during the entire period of the
award. Successful
applicants on any form of paid leave during the tenure of the award are
not entitled to any maintenance or family allowances.
To become eligible for this benefit, recipients are requested to
sign a Declaration, and legally bound to report to the Foundation in the
event of change of circumstances which have a bearing on the terms of
the award. The Foundation
reserves the right to request return of the allowance awarded, and in
serious instances may take other appropriate action against a recipient
who fails to comply with the terms of the declaration.
A
one-off grant for books and clothing will be given during the first year
of tenure.
Assistance
towards airfare to return to Hong Kong not claimed within a period of
twelve months from the expiry date of the Fellowship award shall be
automatically forfeited. Fellows who terminate their awards before the
expiry date are not entitled to such assistance.
Fellows
must be full-time
research workers.
All
applicants must disclose offers of financial support received, or likely
to be received from other sources. Applicants and Fellowship
holders must keep the Foundation informed of the progress of
applications for support from other sources. Croucher Fellowships
are on occasion, and at the discretion of the Foundation as an
exception, allowed to be held concurrently with other awards.
The
Foundation occasionally gives approval for Fellows to be remunerated for
a limited amount of teaching or research responsibilities but such
Fellows must seek approval in advance from the Foundation which may in
its absolute discretion modify the terms of the Fellowship.
Fellows
who finish their research prior to the expiry date of the awards must
report to the Foundation, and they are liable to return on a pro-rata
basis any excess maintenance allowance and other allowances to the Foundation within
one month upon the completion of research.
Fellows
who have to terminate their research for whatever reason must first seek
approval from
the Foundation at least three months in advance, and return
the whole or part of the award at an amount at the discretion of the
Foundation. Failure to do
so will have legal consequences.
All awards will
be subject to:
- a satisfactory
medical examination by a medical practitioner, and
- the
candidate's acceptance by the institution in which he/she proposes
to work.
Every application
must comprise:
- three completed copies of the Croucher Foundation Application Forms;
- three copies of a
document, fewer than 6 pages in length, including:
- a
proposal describing the research to be undertaken which should
include the names of potential supervisors and their research
groups (to ensure fairness in competition to all applicants, a
proposal once submitted cannot be amended);
- a
description of the candidate's research experience, and a list
of publications;
- three copies each of reprints of the applicant's 3 most significant publications;
- one
original and two copies of the applicant's transcript of his/her university record;
- a copy each of the applicant's
certificates (HKCEE and above);
- two
PDF files on a disc, one for (a) and (b), and the other for
supporting documents (c) to (e) only;
- letters
of references from two referees in confidence in sealed envelopes;
and
- one
set of relevant
documentation to provide proof of identity in respect of the applicant's
status as a permanent resident of Hong Kong which is pre-requisite
to the award. (For applicants who choose to use their ID card copies,
please make sure that both sides of the ID card must be photocopied.
The
Foundation is not prepared to take an application any further if there
is doubt of the residential status of an applicant upon incomplete
documentation.)