Funding Instruments
Various funding instruments are available on an annual basis, and are generally quite supportive of pharmacological research. The list compiled below are broad funding instruments with varying focus areas for early career researchers, senior researchers, or students. The applications windows are historical, so ensure you confirm the deadline with the funder via their website, and confirm the institutional deadline your various organisations may have.
Funding opportunities
| Funding body | Instrument | Broad focus areas | General deadline/window |
| National Research Foundation (NRF), South Africa | Thuthuka Programme | Early-career researcher development; capacity building; research support across disciplines (including health sciences) | Generally February to April |
| DSTI-NRF Postgraduate Student Funding | Honours, Master’s, Doctoral scholarships at South African public universities (including biomedical/pharmacology) | Generally March to May | |
| South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) | Self-Initiated Research (SIR) Grants Programme | Investigator-initiated health research; supports early- and mid/established researchers; suitable for pharmacology/therapeutics/translation | Generally October to December |
| Research Capacity Development scholarships/programmes (multiple) | Postgraduate & clinician-researcher development; vaccinology; researcher development (programme-dependent) | Varies by programme or research focuse area | |
| Wellcome Trust | Wellcome Early-Career Awards | Early-career research across health and wellbeing (broad discipline remit) | Generally Jul & Nov rounds |
| Wellcome Career Development Awards | Support to develop independent research programmes in health-related fields | Generally Jul & Nov rounds | |
| Wellcome Discovery Awards | Bold, creative, health-related research; methods/tools/frameworks | Multiple rounds per year | |
| The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) | TWAS Fellowships for Research and Advanced Training | Short-term research/advanced training (South–South); natural sciences (broad) | Beginning of October each year |
| TWAS-DFG Cooperation Visits Programme (Sub-Saharan Africa) | Three-month postdoctoral cooperation visits in Germany for sub-Saharan Africa-based researchers | Generally April | |
| United States National Institutes of Health (NIH), Fogarty International Center | Global Infectious Disease Research Training Program (D43) | Global health/infectious disease research training | Generally August |
| Emerging Global Leader Award (K43) | Career development for early-career researchers in LMICs leading global health research | Generally December | |
| Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the United Kingdom | Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships | Taught Master’s study in the UK for candidates from eligible Commonwealth countries (incl. South Africa) | Annual cycle (timing varies); nominators may have earlier internal deadlines |
| Commonwealth Professional Fellowships | Short professional development fellowships in the UK | Generally August | |
| Feenix (South Africa) | Student crowdfunding (fundraising profiles) | Crowdfunding for outstanding university fees; donations paid to university account | Rolling (no fixed annual deadline) |
| Bursaries.co.za (South Africa) | Bursary listing portal | Directory of bursary opportunities across fields; used for discovery and deadlines | Rolling (depends on each bursary listed) |
| StudyTrust (South Africa) | Bursary & scholarship administration (multiple funds) | Manages multiple bursaries and scholarships for trusts, foundations, and donors | Applications open 1 May; most close 30 Sep |
| BackaBuddy (South Africa) | Fund a student (education crowdfunding campaigns) | General crowdfunding platform that students can use to raise money for study costs | Rolling (no fixed annual deadline) |