Discover Funding Opportunities

Henrietta Hutton Research Grant

The Henrietta Hutton Research Grant offers up to three grants of £500 annually to undergraduate or Masters students undertaking overseas field research as an individual or as part of a team. The fund was established in 1964 in memory of Henrietta Hutton, a University of Oxford student who was a keen ornithologist and founding member of the Oxford Women's Exploration Club. Preference is given to support field research with a significant geographical, social and/or environmental science, or natural history element. Applicants should be undertaking an independent field research project that lasts longer than four weeks. The field research does not have to be related to the student's academic studies, but applicants must be registered at a UK Higher Education Institution. Where the applicant is part of a larger expedition, it should be made clear how their research is distinct from the wider project. Applicants should show strong evidence of host country participation in their research projects.

Neville Shulman Challenge Award

The Neville Shulman Challenge Award aims to further the understanding and exploration of the planet - its cultures, peoples and environments - while promoting personal development through the challenges involved in undertaking a research project or expedition. Established in 2001 by Neville Shulman CBE for the Royal Geographical Society, each year two awards of up to £10,000 are given to challenging research projects or expeditions. Applicants must demonstrate how the project is challenging – both physically and in terms of the issue being studied and the new insights that will be generated. Projects should have elements of both local and global interest, a clear purpose to advance geographical knowledge through well outlined methods of data collection, and with opportunities to share findings widely. Applications are invited from both individuals and groups. Project proposals directly relating to PhD or MSc research will not be accepted. It is expected that the grant will provide the majority of funding needed to undertake the project.

RGS Explore Grants

The RGS Explore Grants offer £500 to £5,000 to support teams undertaking overseas expeditions. As the successor to the Geographical Fieldwork Grants, the Society's longest running grant scheme, these awards are designed to support and enable the next generation of explorers and field researchers, especially those undertaking their first overseas projects. Awards will be made to teams undertaking original, challenging journeys with meaningful local collaborations at their core, aiming to advance geographical knowledge and deepen understanding of the world's environments, people and places. The expedition is expected to take place outside of the UK with a minimum of four weeks in the field, ideally undertaken between April and October.