Funding Opportunities

Apply for Funding

CERF provides funding to support high-quality research and study on all aspects of finance, financial institutions, and financial markets, and their relationship with the performance of the economy.

Eligibility
Assistant, Associate, and Full Professors employed by the University of Cambridge are eligible to apply. The applicant must serve as the Principal Investigator (PI), and will be responsible for completing the proposed research and complying with all grant terms and conditions.

Responsibilities of the Principal Investigator
The PI is required to:

• Submit biannual progress updates to CERF.

• Provide a final report at the conclusion of the grant period, detailing the outcomes of the research.

CERF provides funding to support high-quality research and study on all aspects of finance, financial institutions, and financial markets, and their relationship with the performance of the economy.

Eligibility
Assistant, Associate, and Full Professors employed by the University of Cambridge are eligible to apply. The applicant must serve as the Principal Investigator (PI), and will be responsible for completing the proposed research and complying with all grant terms and conditions.

Responsibilities of the Principal Investigator
The PI is required to:

• Submit biannual progress updates to CERF.

• Provide a final report at the conclusion of the grant period, detailing the outcomes of the research.

Application Process

• Applications must be submitted in full by the Principal Investigator using the application form provided below.

• There is no fixed deadline; applications are reviewed on a rolling basis.

• Applicants can typically expect a response within six weeks.

View Application Document

CERF provides funding to support high-quality research and study on all aspects of finance, financial institutions, and financial markets, and their relationship with the performance of the economy.

Eligibility
Assistant, Associate, and Full Professors employed by the University of Cambridge are eligible to apply. The applicant must serve as the Principal Investigator (PI), and will be responsible for completing the proposed research and complying with all grant terms and conditions.

Responsibilities of the Principal Investigator
The PI is required to:

• Submit biannual progress updates to CERF.

• Provide a final report at the conclusion of the grant period, detailing the outcomes of the research.

Application Process

• Applications must be submitted in full by the Principal Investigator using the application form provided below.

• The application deadlines are 1st March and 31st July. The complete applications will be considered by the CERF Managers who meet in May and October.

• No application will be considered by the Managers unless the application is completed correctly and two referee reports have been returned.

View Application Document

Requirements:

• A PhD in finance

• Research experience with sufficient knowledge in the discipline and of research methods and techniques

•  Demonstrate a strong commitment to research and publications in refereed academic journals

• Driven and committed, demonstrating initiative and self-motivation

• Good time management and planning skills with a commitment to delivery

• Proficiency in English is required

Main Responsibilities:

Research:

• Develop research objectives and proposals for own or joint research

• Conduct individual and collaborative research projects

• Write up research work for presentation and publication

• Continually update knowledge and understanding in field or specialism

• Translate knowledge of advances in the subject areas into research activity

• Manage own research and administrative activities

• Present the research to the Cambridge Finance research community, and at seminars or conferences outside the University of Cambridge

Liaising and Networking:

• Liaise with colleagues from the Cambridge Finance community and faculty from the Finance and Accounting group at Cambridge Judge Business School

• During term time the role holder will have the opportunity to attend the weekly meetings of the CERF fellows

• Attend the Cambridge Finance seminars and the seminars organised by the Finance and Accounting group at the Judge Business School. Information about these seminars can be found at  http://www.finance.group.cam.ac.uk/events/cambridge-finanace-workshop-series and  http://www.jbs.cam.ac.uk/faculty-research/subject-groups/finance-account...

• You will be expected to build internal and external contacts, participate in networks for the exchange of information, and form relationships for future collaboration

• The role holder may be asked to help organise seminars and conferences

Teaching and learning support:

• May assist in the supervision of student projects

• May assist in the development of student research skills

• May plan and deliver seminars relating to research area

• Plan the use of research resources, laboratories and workshops as appropriate

Planning and organising

• Plan and manage own research activity in collaboration with others

• Contribute to planning of joint research projects led by principle investigator

All vacancies and application forms with be published at this link

The Call for Applications is sent out annually (not in 2026) and application deadline is set each year.

PhD Funding is up to 3 years and includes fees and maintenance. 

The scheme is open to PhD students within the University of Cambridge, from any department, who do research into all aspects of finance, financial institutions, and financial markets, and their relationship with the performance of the economy.

Incoming doctoral students or students who are in the first year of their PhD can apply for funding. Funding is for a maximum of 3 years, and no money is given retrospectively for any time already spent on the PhD programme.

Applicants for a CERF scholarship have to be nominated by their PhD supervisor.

Reference letters must be sent to CERF by the deadline indicated on the advertisement for each competition. The applications will be considered by a selection committee. Applicants will be notified about the progress of their application and informed about the outcome by email.

Copies of applicants' GRADSAF / PhD application documents (including official transcripts and references) will be required.

Applicants are usually informed about the outcome by the end of February. Appointments are based on academic merit and the candidate’s research proposal. The selection committee reserves the right not to award any scholarships if applications do not meet the required standard or criteria.

The recipient of a CERF scholarship will be expected to report on his/her research progress and actively to engage with CERF by attending relevant seminars, and by giving the occasional research presentation. The CERF scholar may also be required to provide very occasional assistance, including providing support during events organized by CERF. The CERF scholar may be given office space in the CERF premises (subject to availability), and he/she will be given the opportunity to interact with other researchers linked to CERF.

Academic staff employed by the University of Cambridge within the area of finance are eligible to apply for funding to organize a conference on some topic within CERF’s research scope. 

CERF grants support research and study into all aspects of finance, financial institutions, and financial markets, and their relationship with the performance of the economy. If you would like to apply for CERF Conference Grants, please fill in the application form below

Please note that:
•    Applications up to £20,000 are considered throughout the year.
•    Applications over £20,000 are considered twice a year.
•   Deadline for submitting applications for consideration at the board's bi-annual meetings are 1st March and 31 July.

To apply, please fill in the CERF Conference Grants Application Form

CERF Fellows may apply for up to £2000 per year to be used towards travel. Typically to a conference or to work with a co-author.

 Applications will be considered on a case by case basis while funds are available. 

For more information, please contact cerf@jbs.cam.ac.uk 

CERF invites applications from recently graduated students at the University of Cambridge who are seeking funding for a concentrated research project for up to 8 months in any area of finance.

The Rationale

The Short term CERF Researchers Scheme is a programme designed to support newly graduated PhD scholars at the University of Cambridge in all aspects of finance, financial institutions and financial markets, and their relationship with economic behaviour and performance. The scheme will give newly qualified scholars the opportunity to carry out a new concentrated piece of research or to bring an existing piece of research to the publication stage, as they prepare for the job market.

CERF grants support research and study into all aspects of finance, financial institutions, and financial markets, and their relationship with the performance of the economy.

The scheme offers a productive bridge between the submission of the PhD dissertation and the start of a job.

There is no specific application deadline as the scheme is on-going and open for applications at any time. The scheme may be unavailable depending on current appointments with related funds.

Eligibility Criteria

The scheme is designed to support newly graduated PhDs at the University of Cambridge in any area of finance, before they secure other employment. The applicants must demonstrate they meet the following criteria:

• I am awaiting a viva or have recently been awarded (within the last 8 months) a doctoral degree at the University of Cambridge.

• The applicant has visa eligibility from the UK Border Agency for the entire period of their proposed postdoctoral research (the scheme is not able to sponsor visa applications)

• The applicant has identified, contacted and secured the support of mentor of the project. The mentor must hold a faculty or college position at any academic level.

• The applicant can show that a particular area of finance is central to the research project.

• The applicant must have prior training in Finance or closely related subject.

Duration of Award

The scheme will support researchers to carry out their proposed research for a minimum of one month and a maximum of eigh

Application Process

Applicants must have submitted the PhD dissertation. Applicants must have the support from a staff member of the University of Cambridge or one of its colleges.  Applicants must prepare a research proposal, and complete an application form. Applications will be processed on a continuous basis. We hope to turn around applications within a few weeks, depending on referee schedules.

The role of the mentor

No application can be processed without support from a mentor. A mentor will hold a faculty or college post at any level at the University of Cambridge. The mentor will nominate and provide support and guidance to the Postdoctoral Scholar for the duration of the project. We expect the mentor to clearly state their input into any final outputs (for example the creation of data sets, papers or new areas of research). Finally the mentor will commit to providing a brief report to the CERF Board Managers at the end of the support period.

Implementation of the Scheme

Successful applicants will be paid by the University Payment System (UPS) and paid on a monthly basis. While a member of the CERF scheme, they will be allocated office space (subject to availability), and fully integrated into the activities of CERF. UPS will provide the necessary employment infrastructure to support the candidates.

We cannot offer visa sponsorship as part of the scheme and therefore can only select candidates who propose the research in the time period given by the UK Border Agency.

Expectations of the scheme

Successful candidates will be expected to participate in ongoing CERF activities including attending the Cambridge Finance Seminar series and participate in conferences or events organised by CERF.

View Application Document

CERF launched a new scheme that aims to fund travel and accommodation expenses for academic visitors who will advance or promote research in finance within the University of Cambridge. The scheme was approved by the CERF managers at its May 2022 meeting.  

What is the Scheme?

In 2022, CERF launched this scheme that aims to fund travel and accommodation expenses for academic visitors who will advance or promote research in finance within the University of Cambridge. Applications for funding under the scheme are approved by an ad hoc committee of CERF managers.  

The CERF visitor scheme covers finance researchers at all levels of seniority. These include visiting doctoral students, co-authors, or visiting professors, among others. 

Reimbursement of expenses must follow University rules, and various restrictions apply as to which expenses and how much can be reimbursed. 

Due to space constraints, the scheme does not include office space, and we expect that most visitors work from a hosting faculty or department. All visitors must independently acquire visitor status at a department or faculty to gain access to the University IT network, library, and other facilities.  

Who is eligible to apply?

Visitors can be nominated and hosted by any of the following faculty members employed by the University of Cambridge: 

• A current or former CERF

• A Cambridge Finance manager,

• A current or former CERF Fellow. 

The local sponsor commits to look after the visitor and is the key contact for CERF regarding various aspects of the visit.  

How can I Apply?

Please email cerf@jbs.cam.ac.uk to apply