Background: The National Graduate Academy for Mathematical and Statistical Sciences (NGA(MaSS)) has secured a grant from the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust to support early career academics in the mathematical sciences (mathematics, statistics and data sciences). The grant will be deployed, together with matching funding from the Department of Higher Education and Training’s University Capacity Development Programme grant managed by the University of Pretoria, to implement activities within the Pathways to a Successful Career Programme of the NGA(MaSS) that was launched in January 2020. The Fellowships will be for 12 months and will support three cohorts of participants, the first in 2021, the second in 2022 and the third in 2023.

Eligibility: In order to qualify for the fellowship, an applicant has to be

• A South African citizen or permanent resident of South Africa;
• A full-time academic employee (or someone on a fixed term full-time contract continuous for at least 3 years) at any of the universities that have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the University of Pretoria (UP) which is the Lead Institution for the University Capacity Development Programme Grant (UCDP-MSS) awarded by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET);
• Anyone satisfying the conditions above and at least one of the following:
  • Academics within five years after completion of PhD (not earlier than 1 July 2018) which will exclude any periods away from academia interrupted by, for example, employment outside academic sector, family and other career responsibilities or prolonged ill-health, etc.
  • Academics less than 35 years old who have completed their PhDs;
  • Academics who will complete their PhDs within twelve months of receiving the fellowship.

Objectives: The main objective of the Fellowship is to help early career academics in the mathematical sciences to develop a short-to-medium term Academic Career Development Plan; and to support them in meeting the requirements for career progression, especially promotion through the different academic levels: for example lecturer to senior lecturer or senior lecturer to associate professor. In particular the Fellowship are targeted at

• those that are in their final year of a PhD to complete and submit by the end of the 2023 academic year;
• those that have completed their PhDs and supporting them to submit competitive applications for existing grants like the Black Academics Advancement Programme (BAAP) jointly funded by the National Research Foundation and the First Rand Foundation, or Thuthuka Programme (post-PhD track) or the DHET-funded Future Professors Programme (FPP).

Requirements: Applicants receiving the Fellowship will be required to participate in all the activities organized under the auspices of the Pathways to a Successful Academic Career Programme (PSACP). They will have an input on the themes to be covered for the workshops as well as the timetable for the various activities. Those that have already had exposure or experience in any of the topics can serve as facilitators or advisors to other participants. Each applicant will be required to ensure that they familiarise themselves with the promotion requirements at their home institutions and that their Academic Career Development Plan responds to these requirements. It will be expected that they discuss their Academic Career Development Plan with the Head of Department. Cooperation of Heads of Departments will be critical to the success of implementing the PSACP, especially creating space for the applicant to take time off for the international placement component of the PSACP. Applicants will be expected to identify major centres of research activity in their area of research interest where they would prefer to spend time on a research visit.

Financial support

1. Applicants will be fully funded for all the activities that are organised within the PSACP and no matching funding will be expected from their home institution;
2. Each applicant will receive a once off personal grant of up to R50 000.00 - an initial R20 000 discretionary grant; and subsequently will be funded for items that should be fully motivated in a personal budget that they will be expected to submit which will be approved by the Head of Department or Dean of Faculty at their institution. Items to be funded could include, but not restricted to, data supplementation; IT upgrades; students assistant; contribution towards hosting a collaborator or mentor;
3. Each applicant can apply for up to R50 000.00 for local research visits of at least one week in duration and,
4. A Fellow may submit a well-motivated request for an overseas research visit of at least two months at a reputable research institution overseas. They would be funded for up to R150 000 to cover travel and a contribution to living costs (accommodation and subsistence);
5. Alternatively, a group of participants (at least three) can apply for up to R200 000 (depending on the number of potential beneficiaries as well as duration of the research visit) to host international research visitor(s) and/or senior local mentor(s). The main objective will be to assist in the establishment of, and designing a research programme for, a local research group consisting of the host early career academics and their postgraduate students

Expected outcomes: Early career academics who are recipients of the fellowship who have already completed their PhDs will