Frequently Asked Questions

The INSIGHT masters courses are aimed at health and care professionals, social workers and public health practitioners who have recently graduated. We have defined this to be no more than five years post registration. This can be calculated pro-rata for those who have had leave.

INSIGHT is available for registered, regulated health and care professionals, not including doctors and dentists.

The full list of eligible professions is included on our Masters opportunities page. The scheme is also available for social workers and public health practitioners.

Psychology practitioners who are registered with a regulatory body are eligible. Unfortunately, Psychology Well-Being Practitioners do not currently meet our criteria.

The Yorkshire and Humber INSIGHT MRes places are for those who live and work in the Y&H Region, or close to the boundaries. Every region across England has a similar scheme and your nearest scheme can be accessed via the NIHR website. You do not have to have graduated from the region.

It is generally expected that you would apply in the region that you are living and working in, as the programme is built around the regional workforce. If, however, you are living on the border of one of the INSIGHT regions, you could apply to another region, particularly if travel to one of our HEIs would be a challenge.  Please contact the INSIGHT team to discuss.  

You can choose to undertake your Masters either part-time or full-time.

Unfortunately, not at this time.

You do not need to work for the NHS to apply for the Masters.

The five-year post registration will be pro-rata. You will need to provide details of any career breaks or part-time working.

If you need an additional week to get managerial approval because of annual leave, then please submit and let the INSIGHT Team (yh.insight.nihr@leeds.ac.uk) that your manager’s approval will follow by the 31st July 2024.  If you manager is unable to support due to rotas and other clinical commitments due to the short turn around, then please contact the team to see if you there is some flexibility in applying in the next round.  Confirmation of this from your manager will be required.

If you are outside of the 5-year remit, but you are interested in pursuing a PhD, the NIHR Pre-doctoral scheme is for you.

If you are interested in research delivery, then the NIHR will be offering bursaries for Masters-level Clinical Research Delivery Leadership qualifications. Other opportunities can be found on the CRN Y&H Learning Directory.

If you are unsure and would like to explore what further opportunities are available to you, then the Pre-Application Support Fund from NIHR is also available.

You can check which Universities offer which courses on our Masters Opportunities page.

You can choose from one of the programmes that are listed on our website.

Yes, you are eligible.

The Masters degree will focus your development on initial research skills. It will depend on the individual as to how the programme fits in with other opportunities.

Pleas complete the online form and ask your line manager to email their support to us before the midnight on the 31st July 2024. The Programme Team will review your application for eligibility and contact you as soon as possible after the deadline to inform successful applicants of next steps, including information on how to apply to their chosen masters programme. We will also signpost any unsuccessful applicants to further information and offers.

The funding is for a 12-month research-focused Masters. This can be part time or full time, keeping in mind that full-time students are encouraged to work up to 15 hours per week. Funding for the INSIGHT scheme is from 2024 to 2027.

For those employed, the aim of the stipend is to provide contribution to your back-fill for your salary and this will be paid to the employer. For those who are not employed, this will be paid to the individual as a tax-free stipend. If you are working clinically, it is worth keeping in mind that full-time students are generally allowed to work for up to 15 hours per week. So if you are employed, we would expect you to be undertaking some clinical work if you are undertaking this full-time (eg one and a half to two days a week). If you were undertaking the masters degree part-time, it is likely that you would continue your clinical work three and a half days a week to four days a week

For each studentship, we have a stipend of £19,237 for the duration of the fellowship.  If you study part-time, the stipend will be spread over the two years. 

We have a stipend which is capped for each place: this is of UKRI stipend which has been calculated to contribute to support a Band 6 place, given that this is targeted to early graduates. Where this is a discrepancy, we will need to work with applicants and their line managers for local solutions.

The aim of the programme is for you to undertake the masters while you continue your clinical role, and then return to your role. Please see information about the stipend above. Your line manager’s support is critical. Your contractual arrangements will not be affected if you have the support of your manager to take this opportunity.

The INSIGHT programme has been designed to act as an entry qualification into research. It will be relevant to those who are interested in getting more involved in research, either by undertaking their own research and getting a PhD, or delivering strategic, impactful research. If you clearly want to undertake a PhD, then the NIHR Pre-Doctoral award is more relevant, as it supports the development of a doctoral application. If you are not sure, then the INSIGHT programme is your best option. If you undertake the INSIGHT masters, then you would be eligible for the PCAF Bridge, which is a shorter version that focusses on developing a competitive PhD application.

This would be a personal choice and one which you would have to negotiate with your line manager. If you are not working, then the stipend can be paid to the individual.

Information will be provided on the website. We will have webinars, the details of which are on our Events page, including recordings of previous sessions.

The Masters programme will contain taught modules and a dissertation. For the dissertation, the INSIGHT team will work with your nominated University to get a supervisory and mentor team together. We will aim to get you both discipline and profession specific mentors, relevant to your dissertation project.

You will need to approach your line manager to support your application. You need to do this as soon as you can. We would strongly urge that you do this in a respectful manner, understanding the difficulties of service provision within the NHS at the moment. As such, we would suggest that you approach you manager with this opportunity as a request rather than a demand. You should also consider potential solutions for how your backfill may be covered, and not just expect your line manager to do this alone.

If your manager refuses to support your application, then please contact the INSIGHT Team (YH.INSIGHT.NIHR@leeds.ac.uk) who will try to provide advocacy on your behalf.

You will need to approach your line manager to support your application: you need to do this as soon as you can. If you are nervous or concerned about approaching your line manager, please contact the INSIGHT team (YH.INSIGHT.NIHR@leeds.ac.uk) who will provide guidance and assistance.

We are exploring this as an option but cannot guarantee this. We would suggest that if you do not intend to study in the next year, you wait and apply for the following year. We will have 30 places available for 2025/26.

You can apply as many times as you would like while you are eligible in terms of your professional registration and within the 5 year remit. If you are past the five year remit, then unfortunately, not. However, if there are extenuating circumstances, then this may be considered. Please contact the INSIGHT team to discuss.

Each of the courses will have their own regulations on taking time off while you are studying. You will need to contact the course co-ordinator directly. If you are thinking that you may need a break when you are applying, you may wish to consider either part-time options or delaying your application.

Please feel free to email the INSIGHT team at YH.INSIGHT.NIHR@leeds.ac.uk.