In 2016–2017 34% of proposals were granted funding worth £533 million

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) has published its research proposal funding rates for the year from April 2016 to April 2017.

Overall, the EPSRC funded 806 out of 2375 proposals it considered during this time, an overall funding rate of 34%. By value, the proposals funded were worth a combined total of £533 million.

The overall rate is a slight increase on the previous year’s rate of 32% – in 2015–16 the council considered 2425 proposals and funded 784. In 2014–15, however, the rate was 38% and EPSRC funded 914 proposals worth £713 million. Rates have hovered around the 30-35% mark for the past five years.

The 2016–17 funding rate within the ‘physical sciences’ category, which includes chemistry, was higher than the overall rate at 38% of proposals. This was up on the 2015–16 figure of 29%.