Bell Burnell Graduate Scholarship Fund hits £1m

This substantial funding comes from the Bell Burnell Graduate Scholarship Fund, established by renowned astrophysicist and former IOP President Professor Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell. 

Five years ago, Dame Jocelyn donated her entire £2.3 million Breakthrough Prize to create this fund, aimed at encouraging greater diversity in physics. Her generous gesture was inspired by her own experience as a PhD student at Cambridge, where her discovery of pulsars—a previously unidentified type of star—led to a Nobel Prize in Physics being awarded to her male supervisor. She believes bringing people from a wider range of backgrounds into physics will improve research. 

“I was delighted that the IOP was prepared to receive and supplement the funding to advance the position of women students and other minorities in physics. It is wonderful to see how many have received awards but sobering to see how many have had other issues besides gender to contend with. I am grateful to the IOP for taking this up, and particularly grateful to those who have served on the selection panel. I hope all the recipients find their PhD work rewarding,” said Dame Jocelyn. 

This year, the Fund has awarded scholarships to eight deserving recipients across the UK, marking a significant step towards a more inclusive future in physics.