Deadline: 1 February, 1 June, 1 October each year
Open to: outstanding young PhD students of biomedicine
Fellowship: competitive monthly stipend
The Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds (B.I.F.) awards PhD Fellowships to outstanding young scientists (max. age: 27 years) who wish to pursue an ambitious PhD project of approximately 3 years in basic biomedical research in an internationally leading laboratory.
Purpose
To promote basic research in biomedicine by providing the best young, up-and-coming scientists with comprehensive support during their PhD phase.
Eligibility
European citizens working in Europe or overseas, and non-European citizens pursuing their PhD project in Europe.
Applicants should not be older than 27 years on the respective deadline (1 February, 1 June, 1 October). The PhD project must be experimental, in the field of basic biomedical research and aimed at elucidating basic biological phenomena of human life and acquiring new scientific knowledge. For a survey on the range of topics, please refer to B.I.F. FUTURA, the scientific journal of the Foundation.
Natural scientists should have been awarded their diploma or equivalent degree; physicians, veterinary surgeons and pharmacists should have passed their state examinations. At the deadline, the applicant should not have been working on his/her project for more than 6 months. The beginning of the PhD project is considered by B.I.F to be:
* the date of the final examination (e.g. BSc, MSc, Diploma, DEA, Licenciatura, Laurea) on the official certificate if the applicant continues to work in the same research group; or
* the month of arrival at the laboratory in which the PhD project is pursued if the applicant changes his/her research project and research group.
In other cases, i.e. when participating in MSc/PhD programmes or graduate schools without an official final examination prior to the PhD project, please contact us.
The Foundation gives preference to applicants who are about to begin their PhD work when they apply for the fellowship; preliminary results are not expected.
Fellowship
…comprises a competitive monthly stipend which is initially granted for 2 years and which can be extended for up to another 12 months. Participation at international scientific conferences is also supported. In addition, fellowship holders are offered personal support, seminars to discuss their projects, communication training and alumni meetings, and thus can become part of a worldwide network. Read more under personal support and conditions.
Timing and selection
Deadlines of application: 1 February, 1 June, 1 October of each year. Pre-selection takes place about 4 weeks after the respective deadline and the final selection round approximately 5 months after the respective deadline. Read more about the selection process and its criteria here.
Application Process
The application for a PhD fellowship of the Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds consists of two parts:
* the online application sent by internet and
* two paper copies of the application including one CD to be sent by surface mail.
Both must be submitted by one of the respective deadlines of each year (date as per postmark for the paper version):
1 February, 1 June, 1 October
The entire application – including the project proposal – must be written in English and by the applicants themselves. However, we recommend consultation with the scientific supervisor. The form of the presentation should be adequate but simple; please do not staple, tack or bind documents.
The two paper copies should contain all the data and documents listed under (1) – (9).
The CD, clearly labelled with applicant’s first name and family name should contain documents (1) – (7) preferably in one PDF or *.doc file.
Applicants can facilitate the selection process by adhering to the following sequence:
(1) Title and summary of PhD project (should not exceed one page);
(2) detailed presentation of PhD project (not less than 5 pages): formulation of the problem, current status of research, applicant’s own groundwork, objectives, experimental strategy including methods of investigation, work schedule showing the anticipated duration of the entire project and the individual steps;
(3) reasons for wishing to work with a particular group;
(4) summary of diploma or equivalent thesis which should not exceed one page;
(5) list of applicant’s publications (if applicable);
(6) certificates of all academic and public examinations and appointments (including grades);
(7) photocopies (Xerox) of university entrance qualification or high school-leaving exam certificate, (e.g. Abitur, A-levels, Baccalaureat);
(8) letter of recommendation from the supervisor of the PhD thesis;
(9) letter of recommendation from the supervisor of the diploma or equivalent thesis (only if changing research group for the PhD project)
Address
Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds
Ingrid Lee
Schlossmühle
Grabenstrasse 46
55262 Heidesheim
Germany
secretariat(at)bifonds.de
Open to: young PhD students in the field of basic biomedical research
Fellowship: competitive monthly stipend