RSC Medicinal ÀË»¨Ö±²¥ Emerging Investigator Lectureship
Recognising early career researchers in academia or industry, who have made significant contributions to medicinal chemistry and drug discovery.
Details
Status | Closed |
---|---|
Nominator eligibility | Anyone |
Nominee location | Global |
Career stage | Early career |
About this lectureship
This lectureship celebrates outstanding early career researchers, in academia or industry, who have made significant contributions in the fields of medicinal chemistry and drug discovery in their independent careers.
- It is presented annually
- The nominations are shortlisted, and the winner is selected by a judging panel made up of the RSC Medicinal ÀË»¨Ö±²¥ Editorial Board
- The recipient of this lectureship receives the opportunity to present at a relevant high-profile international meeting with a contribution of up to £1,000 to cover associated costs
Winners

Michael Bollong, Scripps Research
For making significant contributions in the fields of medicinal chemistry and drug discovery in their independent career.
Previous winners
- 2024: , Technical University of Denmark, Denmark
- 2023: , Australian National University, Australia
- 2022: , Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel
- 2021: , GSK and the Francis Crick Institute, UK
- 2020: , Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Germany
- 2019: , Duke University, USA
- 2018: , University of Cambridge, UK
- 2017: , Leiden University, Netherlands
- 2016: , University of Dundee, UK
- 2015: , University of Sydney, Australia
- 2014: , University of Toronto, Canada
- 2013: , École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland
Guidelines for nominators and candidates
Find out who is eligible for this lectureship, about the nomination process and see who is on the selection panel.
The RSC Medicinal ÀË»¨Ö±²¥ Lectureship is awarded through a process whereby nominations of candidates are invited from our community.
This Lectureship is open to all researchers throughout the world. This includes, but is not limited to, members of the ÀË»¨Ö±²¥ and researchers in academia or industry.
We believe we have a responsibility to promote inclusivity and accessibility to improve diversity. Where possible, we encourage each nominator to consider nominating candidates of all genders, races, and backgrounds.
To be eligible for the RSC Medicinal ÀË»¨Ö±²¥ Lectureship, the candidate must:
- Be an active medicinal chemistry researcher, either in academia or industry, carrying out research that is within the scope of the journal
- Be an independent researcher (this includes team leaders in industry and Research Associates or Fellows who run their own research group; PhD students and postdocs are not eligible)
- Be at an early stage of their independent career (this should typically be within 12 years of completing their PhD, but appropriate consideration will be given to those who have taken a career break, followed a different career path or work in systems where their time period to independence may vary).
Nominations can be made by anyone and must be sent via email. Self-nominations are not permitted. All nominators will be asked to confirm that, to the best of their knowledge, their nominee’s professional standing is such that there is no confirmed or potential impediment to them receiving the Lectureship.
To nominate a candidate, please provide:
- The name, affiliation, website URL and contact details of the nominee
- An up-to-date nominee CV (3 page maximum)
- A letter of recommendation (500-word limit). Statements as to why a nominee is eligible if they are beyond 12 years of their PhD completion, for instance, due to career breaks, will not count towards this word limit
- Contact details for a confirmed supporting referee. Please inform your referee of the nomination that the Editorial Office will request a supporting letter of recommendation (500-word limit) from them once the nomination has been received, where the referee should comment in detail on specific contributions, achievements and potential. Referees must state their relationship with the nominee e.g. this could be the nominee’s postdoc or PhD supervisor, line manager, project manager or academic mentor
All eligible nominated candidates will be assessed by a judging panel made up of the RSC Medicinal ÀË»¨Ö±²¥ Editorial Board. Any Editorial Board members who have a conflict of interest will be removed from the selection panel.
The judging panel will consider the following core criteria:
- excellence in research, as evidenced with reference to originality and impact
- quality of publications/patents/software
- innovation
- collaborations and teamwork
- community and advocacy activities
Additional indicators of esteem will be considered by the judging panel where multiple nominees are judged equally meritorious in relation to these core criteria.