MRC expert reviewer selectors are responsible for identifying the most relevant experts that could review applications for funding submitted through MRC funding opportunities.
We will send you applications and you will make your selections following our policies, processes and timeline for assessment. After you send us details of your selected reviewers MRC staff will invite reviewers and manage the peer review process through to a funding decision.
This is a flexible role and time commitment is dependent on your availability, the number of applications for funding we receive and how these applications match your expertise. You can choose which MRC funding opportunities you work on and how many applications you are sent at any time, usually between two and 30 applications.
You will be asked to provide a certain number of reviewer selections in the first instance and be available to provide additional reviewer selections as required, to obtain our target number of useable reviews for the application.
You will be asked to select a balance of expert reviewers to collectively assess all aspects of the application. This is particularly important for interdisciplinary applications. Considerations include selecting reviewers that can assess:
- all research areas or disciplines in the proposed work
- quality and importance of research vision
- technical aspects of the application approach and project plan
- capability of the applicant team to deliver
- health impact and user need for the proposed work
UKRI is committed to embedding equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in everything that we do. Expert reviewer selectors have considerable influence on the assessment process by identifying a diverse range of suitable reviewers, especially from groups currently under-represented in the assessment process. Within your selections, we expect you to consider:
- geographical diversity: international experts and experts from across the UK nations and institutions
- organisational diversity: experts from a range of organisations and types of organisation
- gender diversity: working towards MRC’s target for proportion of female reviewers invited
- ethnicity: suggesting reviewers from under-represented groups
We will ask you to check that the reviewers you select do not have a conflict of interest with the application.
If your application to be an expert reviewer selector is successful you will be given training and guidance and have an initial paid trial period of three months. If you pass the trial, you will then be offered a contract for a year, renewable on an annual basis subject to satisfactory performance.
Expert reviewer selectors are not MRC employees.
This role is usually done remotely. You must have your own equipment, broadband access to the internet and be readily contactable.
Reviewer selectors will be paid for each application they are given responsibility for that is successfully reviewed:
- £110 for a standard application
- £145 for a more complex application
We pay you once sufficient reviews have been received to allow MRC to make a funding decision on the application.
