About the award
The John Kendrew Young Scientist Award (JKA) was launched in 2007 as an initiative from the EMBL Pensioner’s Association to honour EMBL’s first Director General, Sir John Kendrew (1975-1982), and to support scientists in the early stages of their career. It has been sponsored by Roland Specker since 2011.
The Award recognises excellence in science and/or science communication. It is open to all pre- and postdocs two to seven years AFTER leaving EMBL. The award consists of a gold-plated medal, a cash prize of €10,000 (this was increased from €1,000 to €2,000 in 2013, from €5,000 to €7,500 in 2014, and from €7,500 in 2020) and the logistical costs of bringing the winner to EMBL Heidelberg to present a talk at the Award Ceremony on EMBL Lab Day.
How to nominate
Self-nomination is permitted.
To nominate someone, please send their name to Fenia Fotiadou. It is not necessary to submit any documentation. Nominees will then be contacted by Fenia regarding next steps.
How to apply
Applicants should complete and submit an application form together with
1. A summary of their scientific research accomplishments since leaving EMBL (no more than 300 words).
2. A summary of their efforts since leaving EMBL in the area of science communication, technology development, general community or extracurricular activities (no more than 300 words).
3. A CV.
EMBL supports fair and responsible research assessment, which includes its alumni awards processes. We recognise a range of research outputs including publications, open data sets, databases, code, software, pre-prints, patents, commercial products, instruments, clinical practice developments, educational products, policy publications, and any other relevant outputs. We discourage inappropriate use of proxies such as journal impact factors, and value research outputs based on their intrinsic merit. EMBL is a signatory of the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA).
Criteria for applicants:
To qualify, candidates should:
- Be former members of the EMBL International PhD Programme (EIPP) or postdoctoral fellows,
- Be registered members of the EMBL Alumni Association (EAA), and
- Have left EMBL two to seven years before the application deadline. The 2023 award is open to former members of the EMBL International PhD Programme (EIPP) or postdoctoral fellows who left EMBL between 2015 and 2020. (The eligibility period can be extended beyond seven years in specific cases – for example for parental leave or sickness).
Please note that we do not encourage joint applications, but outstanding collaborative achievements may be considered.
If your application is unsuccessful in a given year, it can be resubmitted in subsequent years.
Contact
Contact
If you would like to nominate, apply or find out more about the John Kendrew Award, please contact Alumni Relations Officer Fenia Fotiadou.
