Tom and Mary Cross Prize 2023

17 Aug 2022

The Tom and Mary Cross Prize was initiated by Professor Tom Cross to celebrate the wonderful memories that he and his late wife, Mary, shared of their time at UCC, working in what has now become the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences (BEES). 

Mary worked as a Research Scientist in Fish Diseases and Genetics, whereas Tom was a member of faculty, retiring as Head of ZEPS in 2011. He remains active in the fish genetics group in the School of BEES, led by Dr Tom Reed and Professor Phil McGinnity, and participates in several papers each year.

Professor Cross aims to promote the importance of research publications through the awarding of this prize. The prize is valued at €500 and targets Postdoctoral Fellows (PDFs) to encourage them to publish, as they are undertaking a large proportion of the School’s research. It is hoped that this prize will assist postdoctoral fellows in their journey towards becoming independent scientists and help them in securing future employment in the global science community.

The competition is open to all papers submitted and accepted for publication between 2020 and 2023 with applicants as first author and with the School of BEES as their address (PDFs who have already left BEES will have a different current address). This should encompass work conducted by PDFs in BEES, but also prior work submitted while employed as PDFs in UCC. The only exclusion is those who have won the prize in previous years.

Application is simple, involving the submission of the paper, a brief description of motivation and a CV. All short-listed applicants will be invited to attend a brief on-line interview with the Selection Committee (incorporating all School of BEES disciplines) in February 2023. Applications should be emailed to bees@ucc.ie.

Closing Date for the 2023 competition is Tuesday, 31st January 2023, 5.00pm.

For more on this story contact:

School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Science, UCC.

Email: bees@ucc.ie