Oral and Dental Research

Since 2008 the Faculty of Dental Surgery has been committed to promoting oral and dental surgery research.

This year, the Faculty will be offering several pump-priming grants and a fellowship.

This is in partnership with:

• the British Orthodontic Society
• the Association of British Academic Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
• the British and Irish Society for Oral Medicine
• the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry
• the British Society of Periodontology and Implant Dentistry
• the British Society for Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology
• the British Association of Oral Surgeons, and
• the Society for the Advancement of Anaesthesia in Dentistry.

For further information or questions, please email the Faculty office.  

Pump-priming grants 2026

Applications for the 2026 awards are now open. Applications close at 5pm on Monday 10 November.

Apply for pump-priming grants stage 1

We will let you know the outcome of stage 1 by late November - early December 2025. If successful, you will be invited to submit a more detailed stage 2 application. Stage 2 applications will close at 5pm on Monday 9 February 2026.

Before you apply

You can apply for:

• an award funded by the Faculty of Dental Surgery, and/or
• a co-funded award funded by the Faculty of Dental Surgery and one of the specialty associations.

Eligibility details may vary slightly between co-funders. Please check the relevant information below.

What is not covered by the grants

The pump-priming grants scheme does not cover:

• personal salaries and staffing costs
• travel or living expenses not related to the research itself (e.g. conference travel)
• IT equipment which is not directly related to the research project (e.g. personal laptops), or
• fees for courses, higher degrees or open-access publication costs.

Grants available for application this year

FDS (Faculty of Dental Surgery)

The FDS grant is worth a maximum of £10,000.

The grant aims to support clinicians/researchers at the early stages of their career (e.g. pre-doctoral). 

You must be a fellow or member of FDS at the time of the second stage application (unless you are a dental care professional, who is not eligible).

All fellows and members are required to pay an annual subscription to RCS England.

FDS-ABAOMS (Association of British Academic Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons)

The FDS RCSEng-ABAOMS pump-priming grants are worth up to £10,000.

The grants intend to support research that supports oral and maxillofacial surgery.

To apply, you should be in the early stages of a research career (e.g. pre-doctoral). You may be working in any field of dentistry, but must be a member of ABAOMS. 

You do not need to be a fellow or member of FDS RCS England at the time of the stage 1 application. However, if you are invited to apply for stage 2, you will be required to:

• apply to the Awards Committee for the award of fellow or member ad eundem (if eligible), and
• take up FDS RCS England membership.

If fellowship or membership is offered, you will be expected to pay an annual subscription to RCS England for the duration of the grant. If you are not eligible for membership (e.g. DCPs), you can hold the grant without FDS RCS England membership.

FDS-BISOM (British and Irish Society for Oral Medicine)

The FDS RCSEng-BISOM pump-priming grants are worth up to £10,000.

The grants intend to support research to benefit community or population oral health, and should be related to the field of oral medicine.

To apply, you should be in the early stages of a research career (e.g. pre-doctoral) and not in receipt of a previous FDS RCSEng - British and Irish Society for Oral Medicine Pump-Priming Grant.

You may be working in any field of dentistry, but must be a member in good standing of BISOM. Additionally, you must be a member or fellow of RCS England (see further information below), unless you are dental care professionals who are not eligible for FDS membership. 

Further information

You do not need to be a fellow or member of FDS RCS England at the time of the stage 1 application. However, if invited to apply for stage 2, you will be required to:

• apply to the Awards Committee for the award of fellow or member ad eundem (if eligible), and
• take up FDS RCS England membership.

If fellowship or membership is offered, you will need to pay an annual subscription to RCS England for the duration of the grant.

When your research project is complete, you will be expected to present your research at a BISOM conference. 

FDS-BSPD (British Society for Paediatric Dentistry)

The FDS-BSPD Pump-Priming grants will be worth up to £10,000.

The grants intend to support research into the oral health of children in the broadest sense.

To apply, you should be in the early stages of a research career (e.g. pre-doctoral). You may be working in any field of dentistry, but must be a member of BSPD.

Successful applicants are expected to remain members of BSPD for three years following the award of the grant.

Once your research project is complete, you will be expected to present your research at a BSPD or other relevant conference within two years.  

You do not need to be a fellow or member of FDS RCS England at the time of the stage 1 application. However, if invited to apply for stage 2, you will be required to:

• apply to the Awards Committee for the award of fellow or member ad eundem (if eligible), and
• take up FDS RCS England membership.

If fellowship or membership is offered, you will be expected to pay an annual subscription to RCS England for the duration of the grant. If you are not eligible for membership (e.g. DCPs), you can hold the grant without FDS RCS England membership.

FDS-BSP (British Society for Periodontology and Implant Dentistry)

The FDS-BSP Pump-Priming grant will be worth up to £10,000.

The grant intends to support research into periodontal disease in the broadest sense.

To apply, you should be in the early stages of a research career (e.g. pre-doctoral). You may be working in any field of dentistry, but must be a member of BSP.

Successful applicants may be expected to present their research at a BSP conference.

Before you submit a stage 2 application, if you are not already a fellow or member of FDS RCS England, you should apply to the Awards Committee for the award of fellow or member ad eundem (if eligible).

If fellowship or membership is offered, you will be expected to pay an annual subscription to RCS England for the duration of the grant. If you are not eligible (e.g. DCPs), you can hold the grant without FDS RCS England membership.

The funding should be spent within 24 months of the grant being awarded to ensure that research is completed in a timely and accountable manner. Any underspend of the grant at the end of the 24-month period must be returned to the funder, unless there are extenuating circumstances.

You must provide a report detailing the project outcomes and expenditure at the end of the 12-month funding period.

FDS-BOS (British Orthodontic Society)

The FDS-BOS Pump-Priming grants will be worth up to £10,000.

The grants intend to support research into orthodontics.

To apply, you should be in the early stages of a research career (e.g. pre-doctoral). You may be working in any field of dentistry, but must be a member of BOS.

Successful applicants are expected to remain members of BOS for three years following the award of the grant.

Once your research project is complete, you will be expected to present your research at a BOS conference within two years. 

You do not need to be a fellow or member of FDS RCS England at the time of the stage 1 application. However, if invited to apply for stage 2, you will need to:

• apply to the Awards Committee for the award of fellow or member ad eundem (if eligible), and
• take up FDS RCS England membership.

If fellowship or membership is offered, you will be expected to pay an annual subscription to RCS England for the duration of the grant. If you are not eligible for membership (e.g. DCPs), you can hold the grant without FDS RCS England membership.

FDS-BSOMP (British Society for Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology)

The FDS RCSEng-BSOMP pump-priming grants are worth up to £10,000.

The grants intend to support research in oral and maxillofacial pathology.

To apply, you should be in the early stages of a research career (e.g. pre-doctoral). You may be working in any field of dentistry, but must be a member of BSOMP. 

You do not need to be a fellow or member of FDS RCS England at the time of the stage 1 application. However, if you are invited to apply for stage 2, you will be required to:

• apply to the Awards Committee for the award of fellow or member ad eundem (if eligible), and
• take up FDS RCS England membership.

If fellowship or membership is offered, you will be expected to pay an annual subscription to RCS England for the duration of the grant. If you are not eligible for membership (e.g. DCPs), you can hold the grant without FDS RCS England membership.

You need to:

• be a trainee member of the BSOMP based in the UK and/or Ireland, and
• undertaking training in diagnostic oral and maxillofacial pathology.

OMFP trainees who are out of programme and currently undertaking a PhD (not completed), are also eligible to apply.

FDS-BAOS (British Association of Oral Surgeons)

The FDS-BAOS Pump-Priming grants will be worth up to £10,000.

The grants intend to support research into oral surgery in the broadest sense.

To apply, you should be in the early stages of a research career (e.g. pre-doctoral). You may be working in any field of dentistry, but must be a member of BAOS.

Successful applicants are expected to remain members of BAOS for three years following the award of the grant.

Once your research project is complete, you will be expected to present your research at a BAOS conference within two years. 

You do not need to be a fellow or member of FDS RCS England at the time of the stage 1 application. However, if invited to apply for stage 2, you will be required to:

• apply to the Awards Committee for the award of fellow or member ad eundem (if eligible), and
• take up FDS RCS England membership before submitting a stage 2 application.

If fellowship or membership is offered, you will be expected to pay an annual subscription to RCS England for the duration of the grant.

If you are not eligible for membership (e.g. DCPs), you can hold the grant without FDS RCS England membership.

Useful links

The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges have published a statement and recommendations about mitigating the impact of COVID-19 on research and clinical academia.