(For CUHK and UCL faculty)

Deadline: 11:59pm (UK time) 19 June 2026 / 06:59am (HK Time) 20 June 2026

University College London (UCL) and The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) have identified each other as strategic partners to foster deep collaborations in research and education. The Office of the Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation and Global Engagement) at UCL and the Office of Academic Links at CUHK have established the UCL-CUHK Strategic Partner Funds to support collaborative research initiatives through a joint call for proposals.

This call invites research proposals in areas of mutual interest and complementary strength that will strengthen the partnership between UCL and CUHK.  The initiative seeks to build on existing links and stimulate new ones between UCL and CUHK. Successful applicants should clearly outline in their proposal a specific project or joint research activity that they would like to explore with their counterparts.

Proposals from all fields are welcome but those related to the following fields are particularly encouraged:

• Clinical and translational medicine (e.g. oncology, cardiology, ophthalmology, medicine, and gene and cell therapy)
• Health and healthcare (e.g. computational healthcare, global population health)
• Life sciences (e.g. neuroscience, brain science and biology)

Proposals should be co-led by a Lead Applicant at each institution and can involve a wider team of participants from each institution, as appropriate to the activities proposed.

Up to three joint projects will be selected for funding. Proposals will be assessed by a committee composed of members from both institutions.

Eligibility

Applications are open to UCL and CUHK staff members in the following roles:

UCL: 

• Professor or equivalent
• Associate Professor / Reader or equivalent
• Senior Lecturer / Principal Researcher / Principal Research Associate or equivalent
• Lecturer / Senior Research Associate or equivalent
• Post Doc / Researcher / Research Associate or equivalent

CUHK:

• Faculty members ranked at Research Assistant Professors or above holding full-time employment from all disciplines are welcome to apply. Award holders are required to remain in university service for not less than a year upon completion of the activities in the proposal.

Applicants from UCL must have an open-ended UCL contract or a fixed-term contract which lasts until at least July 2026.

Proposals are to be prepared jointly but only one joint proposal should be submitted by the UCL Lead Applicant by midnight (GMT) 19 June 2026 through the submission link.

Programme Guidelines and Forms

Applicants can access the programme guidelines, application form, endorsement form and completion report form from the following links:

• Programme Guidelines
• Online Application
• Endorsement Form
• Amendment Request Form
• Completion Report

List of Awardees

2025

Enquiries

All queries related to this call for joint research proposals should be directed to:

University College London

Zhou Kuang, Global Engagement Manager

E: zhou.kuang@ucl.ac.uk

The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Ms. Olivia Kwok, Programmer Manager (Global), Office of Academic Links

E: oliviakwok@cuhk.edu.hk