Submission Guidance 2026

The Panmure House Prize Panel is calling for submissions for the Panmure House Prize.

Panmure House is the final remaining home of Adam Smith and is now a 21st century centre for social and economic debate, managed under the stewardship of Edinburgh Business School and Heriot-Watt University. 

You can read more about our esteemed Judging Panel on the Panmure House webpage.

KEY DATES

A research presentation by the winner will take place at Panmure House within eighteen months of the award.

SUBMISSION CRITERIA  

The Prize is open to academics from all disciplines, at any career stage, whose research aligns with the Prize focus.

We particularly encourage applications from:

• Early-career researchers (defined as 3–15 years post-PhD)
• Researchers exploring long-term funding models for innovation
• Interdisciplinary scholars

Eligibility requirements

• Applicants must be affiliated with an academic institution
• Applications must be institutionally endorsed
• Researchers affiliated with Heriot-Watt University are not eligible

INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT & APPROVALS 

All applications must be endorsed by a relevant institutional authority, such as:

• Head of Department
• Head of School
• Dean
• Head of Research (or equivalent)

A written reference of support from this authority is required at submission.

IF SHORTLISTED

• Your institution must agree to the Prize Award Terms & Conditions and Communications Appendix
• Delays in institutional approval may prevent progression to the shortlist

Applicants must provide contact details for:

• One senior university administrator authorised to agree to legal terms
• One alternate administrator of similar seniority
• One senior communications colleague

We strongly recommend sharing the Terms & Conditions with your institution before applying. 

WHAT TO SUBMIT

All applications must be submitted via the Panmure House Prize online submission form on the Panmure House website.

A submission checklist is available here. 
 
You will need:

• To complete the online submission form
• PDF CV (narrative CVs encouraged, e.g. R4RI format)
• PDF of at least one but up to three key publications
• PDF written reference from an institutional authority

You will be asked to provide:

• Personal and institutional details
• Confirmation of academic affiliation
• Details of up to three key peer-reviewed publications
• Institutional contact information
• Responses to questions on originality, impact, interdisciplinarity, and innovation
• Confirmation of institutional approval
• Consent for data storage in line with the Privacy Policy

Please note:

• Submissions must be in English
• Only PDF files are accepted (no Word, JPEG, etc.)
• Applications cannot be edited after submission
• Late or incomplete submissions cannot be accepted
• Depending on your institution the submission form may not save progress, so you may need to be prepared to submit in one sitting

SCORING CRITERIA  

Submissions will be scored on the following criteria:

1. Originality of the research and relevance to long-term thinking and innovation 
2. Practical application and societal impact 
3. Interdisciplinary influence 
4. Potential for ongoing research 

IMPORTANT INFORMATION BEFORE YOU BEGIN

The submission form for the Panmure House Prize is submitted in MS Forms, with document upload to Dropbox, and ideally should be completed and submitted in one session. If you are not signed into a Microsoft account, or your institution has restrictions on MS Forms, closing the form will cause loss of data. We strongly recommend preparing all long‑answer responses in a separate document and then pasting them into the form.

Single Submission Only

Only one application is allowed per researcher. Applicants should submit the form once. This must be completed before the submission deadline.

Information You Will be Asked to Provide

Applicant Details

• Title, name, institution, job title
• Email address
• Country of residence
• Confirmation of academic affiliation
• ORCID iD / professional profile link

Institutional Support

• Confirmation you are affiliated with an institution, and you have discussed and have approval for your submission.
• Contact details for three senior institutional representatives:
  • Senior university administrator who can agree legal terms
  • Alternate senior administrator
  • Senior communications colleague

Criteria Specific Questions

Responses to specific criteria questions are limited to approximately 300 words (max 2,000 characters). The form will prevent entries that exceed the character limit.

• Why do you think that your research qualifies for the Panmure House Prize? How original do you believe your research contribution to be?
• What do you believe to be the practical application of your research?
• The Prize is given in the spirit of Adam Smith and his interdisciplinary approach. How influential is this research both in your field and across other fields?
• How do you aim to provide an innovative contribution to ongoing research?

Career & Research Document Submission- Via Dropbox Link

After completing the MS Forms submission, you should then proceed to the secure, confidential Dropbox file‑upload area. You may upload multiple files, in PDF format only. All uploaded files must have unique filenames. We recommend Firstname_Lastname_{file} for example CV, Reference, Research1, Research2, Research3. Dropbox may block duplicate filenames.

• Your Curriculum Vitae (narrative CVs such as Research and Innovation (R4RI) template are strongly encouraged)
• A written reference of support from a relevant authority in your institution.
• Up to three, but at least one key publication including title, DOI, publisher, year and link

AFTER SUBMISSION

You will receive an automated on-screen acknowledgement upon submitting your application. 
If you do not receive confirmation, or are unsure your application has been received, please contact us via email: panmurehouse@hw.ac.uk

Shortlisted applicants will be notified in or before September 2026.