These prizes celebrate the achievements of biological physicists in the UK and reflect our commitment to nurturing talent at various career stages and promoting the impact of Biological Physics in academia and society. They were awarded for the first time in 2025. These prizes are in addition to the IoP Rosalind Franklin Medal and Prize awarded annual for distinguished contributions to physics applied to the life sciences including biological physics.
Nominations for our 2026 Biological Physics Prizes are now open! The deadline for nominations is: Monday 30 March 2026.
All applications and nominations should be sent to the Secretary of the Biological Physics Group, Dr Andrew Wollman at adam.wollman@ncl.ac.uk
Tom McLeish Prize - Honouring outstanding contributions to raising the public profile and vitality of Biological Physics.
Frequency of award: Annually
Value of the Prize: £100
Criteria and eligibility: No eligibility constraints
Nominations: Both self-nomination and nomination by others accepted
Selection process: Winner selected by a sub-set of the group committee after review of all submitted nominations
Application submission: All applications should be sent to the Secretary of the Biological Physics Group
Biological Physics Group Early Career Prize - Celebrating achievements of those who have completed their PhD within the last 10 years.
Frequency of award: Annually
Value of the Prize: £100
Criteria and eligibility: Recipient must have completed their PhD within 10 years of 1st January of the year in which the award is made (excluding career breaks)
Nominations: Both self-nomination and nomination by others accepted. The CV of the nominee (6 sides of A4, maximum) and letter of recommendation from the nominator are required.
Selection process: Winner selected by a sub-set of the group committee after review of all submitted nominations
Application submission: All applications should be sent to the Secretary of the Biological Physics Group
Biological Physics Thesis Prize - Recognizing outstanding postgraduate work by a UK student who has completed their thesis in the last two years.
Frequency of award: Annually
Value of the Prize: £250
Criteria and eligibility: Any student from the UK having completed their thesis in the last two years
Nominations: A nomination and summary of the work by the student’s supervisor or another established academic in the UK
Selection process: Winner selected by a sub-set of the group committee after review of all submitted nominations
Application submission: All applications should be sent to the Secretary of the Biological Physics Group
Biological Physics Communications Prize 2025 - Awarding the best contribution to communicating biological physics to the wider public.
Frequency of award: Annually
Value of the Prize: £100
Criteria and eligibility: No eligibility constraints
Nominations: Both self-nomination and nomination by others accepted
Selection process: Winner selected by a sub-set of the group committee after review of all submitted nominations
Application submission: All applications should be sent to the Secretary of the Biological Physics Group
2025
Tom McLeish Biological Physics Outreach Prize - Prof Lorna Dougan (University of Leeds)
Biological Physics Group Early Career Prize - Dr Jaime Agudo-Canalejo (University College London)
Biological Physics Thesis Prize - Dr Laura Wiggins (University of Sheffield)
Biological Physics Communications Prize - Prof Paul Beales (University of Leeds)