Call for Submissions: EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowships

Benefits

• EMBO provides grants for host institutions in EMBC Member States to issue employment contracts to EMBO Fellows. Fellows working in other countries than EMBC Member States will receive a stipend.
• Contract
  • EMBO provides grants to the host institution with the sole intention to cover the cost of an employment contract to be issued by the host institution to the awardee.
• Child daycare allowance (for non-EMBC fellows only)
  • For children under the age of six, fellows can claim support for incurred child daycare costs up to the amount of 2,500 euros per fellowship year and per child. The corresponding amount is prorated according to the fraction of the year in which child daycare expenses were incurred.
• Travel and relocation allowance
  • Fellows eligible for the travel and relocation support will receive this as a lump sum, ideally before the start date of their fellowship.
• EMBO Fellows’ Network
  • Every year, fellows awarded three and four years earlier are invited to the EMBO Fellows’ Meeting. These events bring fellows together in a friendly atmosphere to learn, share experiences, and establish new collaborations and contacts. It is also an opportunity to meet the EMBO staff and give feedback and suggestions on the programme.
• EMBO Laboratory Leadership courses
  • EMBO Postdoctoral Fellows are offered to attend a Laboratory Leaders Course for postdocs free of charge during or at the end of their fellowship.
• Dependent child allowance (for non-EMBC fellows only)
  • EMBO Fellows based in non-EMBC Member States are entitled to receive an additional allowance for dependent children under the age of 18. The value of the allowance depends on the country being visited.
• Parental leave
  • Fellows based in EMBC Member States whose children are born during their fellowship are entitled to request an extension of their fellowship at no cost for EMBO in the case that they take parental leave whose costs are covered by the country welfare system and/or by the Hosting Institute. Part of the funds transferred to the Hosting Institute is used to cover the social contribution of the fellow, therefore the fellow has access to the welfare system of the hosting country to get parental benefits. The extension needs to be requested by the host supervisor to the EMBO Fellowship office before the end of the fellowship.
  • Fellows based in  non-EMBC Member States whose children are born during their fellowship are entitled to three months paid parental leave. Fellows who take parental leave during the fellowship are entitled to an extension of their fellowship for an equivalent period. This extension must be requested by the host supervisor at the end of the fellowship. Parental leave must begin within six months of the birth of a child.
• Part-time work
  • Fellows based in EMBC member states can request to  work part-time (50% or 75% of full time) during the fellowship at no cost for EMBO. The request shall be discussed with the Host Institute and Host Supervisor, and the EMBO Fellowship Office shall be notified. The maximum fellowship duration (full-time plus part-time) must not exceed 36 months.
• Fellowships in EMBC/EMBO global partners (Chile, India, Singapore, Taiwan) and non-member states.
• Fellows outside EMBC Member States receive a stipend for two years unless a shorter time is requested (minimum of one year) and have access to child care allowance, relocation allowance, EMBO Fellows’ network activities and Laboratory Leadership courses, similar to fellows in EMBC Member States.
• The stipend is solely intended to cover the cost of living in the host country. The EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowship does not cover bench fees, overheads, funds for consumables or any other financial benefits to the host supervisor or the receiving institute. The stipend rate depends on the country being visited and might be subject to taxation.
• EMBO cannot advise on national tax regulations and they recommend fellows to contact the relevant authorities in the host country.

Duration

• EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowships are awarded for a period of two years although shorter durations can be requested. The minimum fellowship duration that can be requested is one year. Fellowships must be started within one calendar year from the relevant evaluation cut-off.

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants must hold a PhD degree or equivalent at the start of the fellowship, but not necessarily at the time the application is submitted.
• Applicants who already hold a PhD degree are eligible if they obtained their PhD degree within the two years preceding the application submission date.
• Exceptions to this rule are made for applicants with career breaks during the relevant period due to:
  • Parental leave: female scientists are given an extended cut-off date (one year per child), and male scientists are given an extension to account for paternal leave (three months per child or the total amount of paternal leave taken, whichever is greater).
  • Mandatory military/civil service in which case the applicant needs to provide documentation proving the service.
• Additional exceptions might be made on a case-by-case basis for extraordinary personal circumstances, such as demonstrable severe illness or full-time care of an ill family member. The Fellowship office reserves the right to request the appropriate documentation. No exceptions will be made for other types of voluntary career breaks. The applicant must contact the Fellowship office prior to the submission of the application to obtain an exception, no matter what type. Applications submitted without prior approval of an exception will be deemed ineligible.
• Candidates with a medical degree (M.D.) may be eligible to apply for an EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowship provided they hold a PhD (MD-PhD programme), in which case, the rules explained above apply. Candidates that don’t have a PhD but have equivalent research experience to a PhD and meet all other eligibility criteria, should enquire with the EMBO Fellowship office prior to submission.

Selection Criteria

• The primary selection criteria applied by the EMBO Fellowship Committee are scientific excellence of the candidate, the project and the host laboratory.
• Aspects considered are:
  • Scientific achievements of the applicant
    • Scientific contributions and CV
    • Performance of the applicant based on reference letters
  • Project proposal
    • Quality, scope, novelty and biological significance of the proposed research
    • Coherent and logical presentation of the research project
  • Host laboratory
    • Suitability of the host laboratory for the proposed research project and training of the applicant
    • Scientific achievements of the host laboratory
• Applications to work with host laboratories with which the candidate has collaborated in the past generally receive lower priority for funding. Likewise, projects that are a continuation of an applicant’s PhD research will not be considered.

Application Requirements

• During the pre-screening, the committee reviews a condensed application form, which consists of:
  • The summary of the applicant’s main scientific achievements along with the list of publications
  • The summary and biological significance of the proposed work
  • Justification for choice of the host lab
  • Reference and acceptance letters

For more information, visit EMBO.