Making Progress
Making Progress 2027 – Registration open!
Register now to reserve your free place at Making Progress. Places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis, with a final registration deadline of 15 January 2027, or earlier if the event becomes fully subscribed.
What is Making Progress?
At Prostate Cancer UK, we're all about supporting and inspiring Early Career Researchers. We want to help you become the next leaders in prostate cancer research. Our free event, Making Progress, is designed to give you the essential skills for a thriving career in prostate cancer research. Plus, it's a fantastic chance to share your research and connect with peers.
To make sure you don’t miss any updates on our upcoming research events, subscribe to the research newsletter and follow us on LinkedIn.
I highly recommend Making Progress as it's amongst peers, unlike other more scientific focussed conferences, it induces and allows you to network in a less pressurised environment. The event not only showcases the science but also has a focus on professional development.
A meeting for researchers designed by researchers
Making Progress is co-designed with our Scientific Organising Committee to help ensure the event reflects the needs of the research community.
Read more about the impact of the Making Progress skills training sessions and keynotes in our Early Career Researchers' reflections.
Frequently asked questions
Who can attend Making Progress?
Any researcher in the early stages of their career can attend. If you're a Technician, PhD Student, Post-Doctoral Research Associate, or Research Fellow, you're more than welcome to join us at Making Progress.
I'm not funded by Prostate Cancer UK, can I still attend?
Yes! If you don't work on a Prostate Cancer UK-funded project but do work on prostate cancer research, please use the option in the registration form to tell us how you'll benefit from attending Making Progress. We'll confirm your registration via email.
Can I present my work?
If we receive more abstracts that there are spaces available, we'll prioritise Prostate Cancer UK funded researchers, but all abstracts are welcome.
If you would like to present please provide your grant reference number and group leaders name, then submit an abstract for consideration (maximum 250 words). Our Scientific Organising Committee will shortlist abstracts, and we'll invite speakers/presenters in early 2027.
Is there a registration fee?
No. Making Progress is a free event.
Will you cover travel costs for presenters?
We're able to cover reasonable travel costs for researchers whose abstracts are accepted for an oral or poster presentation. We'll give you more information on booking travel with the invite to present in early 2027.
Will you cover travel costs for attendees?
We aren't able to cover travel costs for all attendees. Please register early and book any travel and accommodation as soon as possible to take advantage of lower prices.
If the cost of travel is preventing you from attending Making Progress, you can apply for our travel bursary.
Travel bursary
At Prostate Cancer UK, we want to support Early Career Researchers from all over the UK and from a wide range of institutions. Information about our travel bursary, including how to apply, is available below.
The bursary is open to all Early Career Researchers, but if we receive more applications than we can fund, priority will be given to researchers working on a Prostate Cancer UK funded grant.
Researchers must seek funding for travel costs from their own institution and should only apply for the bursary if they have exhausted all other funding options. We’ll require proof that funds are not available elsewhere as part of the application e.g. an email from your supervisor / principal investigator.
If you’re employed on a grant that is funded by Prostate Cancer UK, you may be able to cover travel costs from the grant budget. Check with the grant holder if conference costs were included in the award and confirm with them if there is money available in the conference budget for your 'Making Progress' travel costs. Please then email [email protected], copying in the grant holder and quoting the grant reference, and we’ll confirm whether the costs can be charged. We’re sorry, but you won't be able to claim the travel costs of team members who are not directly employed on the grant.
If a travel bursary is awarded, Prostate Cancer UK will book suitable travel in liaison with the researcher. There will be no transfer of money to the researcher.
So that we can support as many researchers as possible, we’ll book the most economic form and times of travel e.g. making bookings as soon as train tickets become available and avoiding rush hour prices. We won’t be able to reimburse driving costs.
It’s unlikely that we’ll be able to fund applicants who are travelling from the London area, and priority will be given to applicants who will be travelling for more than an hour.
We’re not expecting to be able to cover accommodation costs, but applications may be considered if funds are available.
Applications received before 15 January 2027 will be considered equally, with the aim of supporting as many applications as funds allow.
After 15 January 2027, applications will be considered on a first come first served basis. We have limited funds available and once these funds are allocated, the bursary will close for applications.
If a bursary applicant is subsequently selected for a presentation, their travel costs will be covered automatically. Travel costs will not be paid twice.
To be considered for a travel bursary, please submit the application form and we’ll let you know the outcome shortly after 15 January 2027, or within a week of your application if it’s submitted after this date.
If you have any questions, please contact [email protected]
