How I Developed My PCAF Research Idea

How I Developed My PCAF Research Idea

Coming up with a research idea for the NIHR Pre-doctoral Clinical and Practitioner Academic Fellowship (PCAF) can feel like the biggest barrier. If you’re anything like me, you might start with a broad area of interest, some clinical hunches, or a personal frustration with gaps in practice. But turning that into a viable, fundable research question takes a bit of time.

Here’s how I approached it, what helped, and some thoughts for anyone shaping an early idea of their own.

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Starting point: An MSc and a scoping review

I was a trainee Advanced Practitioner when I completed my MSc in Physiotherapy at Cardiff University. I was interested in psychosocial care within MSK practice, and I used my dissertation to explore that; a scoping review on how physiotherapists identify psychosocial factors in patients with MSK pain.

It gave me a structure to work within, introduced me to the relevant literature, and made me realise how much variability there was in clinical practice and confidence when it came to psychosocial assessment. That review was published and helped shape my longer-term interest.

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Refining the focus

Once I decided to apply for a PCAF, I knew I needed to refine the research idea a bit. PCAF isn’t about funding a full research project, but you do need a research direction; something meaningful, achievable, and relevant to patients and services.

I kept coming back to the gap between the importance of psychosocial factors in MSK care and the lack of tools, guidance, or consistent training in how we assess for them. So I began shaping a plan to explore how we currently assess psychosocial factors in MSK physiotherapy, and how we might do this better.

That led to three strands I included in the PCAF:

• A national survey to explore current practice
• Possibly qualitative work with physiotherapists (if time allows!)
• Further development work toward a doctoral (DCAF) proposal

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Getting supervisor input early

My Trust doesn’t have a long history of NIHR fellowships, so I benefitted from our therapy research lead helping me identify academic supervisors. They helped me sharpen the focus, understand what was feasible at pre-doc level, and sense-check where the gaps in evidence really were.

That early input helped the idea become a realistic research trajectory and not just a vague interest area.

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What made it a PCAF-appropriate idea

• Feasible at pre-doctoral stage: no large-scale intervention or trial
• Clear route into a PhD
• Aligned with clinical practice and priorities
• Meaningful for patients and services (and emphasised that PPIE would be crucial throughout my PCAF and in writing the DCAF application)
• Could be done within the time and funding allowed

PCAF isn’t about testing a treatment but more about preparing for doctoral-level research. That distinction is important when shaping your idea.

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Tips for others

• Relate your idea back to clinical practice. Start with something that frustrates or interests you in your day-to-day role.
• Use a previous project as a springboard. If you’ve done an MSc or QI project, there might be something worth developing further.
• Talk to supervisors early. They’ll help you refine the question and make sure it’s viable.
• Plan for how you will involve patients from the start of your PCAF. It keeps your project grounded and adds credibility to your application.
• Avoid overcomplicating it. Reviewers value clarity, being realistic, and direction over complexity.