Applications can only be submitted via online portal once the call is open.
Please use the “apply now” button at the bottom of this page to start your application once the call is open.
Opening date of this fellowship: 15 December 2023
Closing date of this fellowship: 19 March 2024
Applicants are encouraged to apply for the preliminary acceptance letter as early as possible, even before the opening date of the call. Keeping in mind that only Acceptance letters dated the same year as the year of application are eligible.
Programme Details
- TWAS-DBT Postdoctoral Fellowships are tenable at key biotechnology research institutions in India for a minimum period of 12 months to a maximum period of 18 months.
- Note regarding eligible fields: if choosing Biological Sciences or Chemical Sciences only Biotech Aspects are eligible.
- To help candidates in their choice of a suitable host institution a list of biotechnology institutes in India is available is available below (under Application Documents). However, candidates are free to choose an Indian biotechnology institution that does not appear on the list.
- DBT will provide a monthly stipend of Rs. 61,000/- + HRA and health insurance of Rs. 600/- per month. The fellowship holder will receive a contingency amount of Rs. 50,000/- per annum and shall be eligible to receive House Rent Allowance as per Government of India HRA rules. The fellowship will not be convertible into foreign currency.
- TWAS will provide a lump sum to cover partial travel and initial visa costs.
- The language of instruction is English.
Eligibility
Applicants for these fellowships must meet the following criteria:
- be a maximum age of 45 years within the year of application (31 December)
- be nationals of a developing country (other than India).
- must not hold any visa for temporary or permanent residency in India or any developed country.
- hold a PhD degree in bioscience or biotechnology.
- be regularly employed in a developing country and hold a research assignment there.
- be accepted at a biotechnology institution in India (see sample Acceptance Letter that can be downloaded below or included in the application form). N.B. Requests for acceptance must be directed to the chosen host institution(s), and NOT to DBT.
- provide a research proposal outline based on the format of the sample that can be downloaded below.
- provide evidence of proficiency in English, if medium of education was not English;
- provide evidence that s/he will return to her/his home country on completion of the fellowship;
- not take up other assignments during the period of her/his fellowship;
- be financially responsible for any accompanying family members.
Submitting your application
- The opening date of the call is 15 December 2023.
- The deadline for receipt of applications is 19 March 2024.
- Applicants should submit the Acceptance Letter from an Indian biotechnology institution to TWAS when applying or by the deadline at the latest. Applicants will have until the deadline to submit the Acceptance Letter to TWAS. Without preliminary acceptance, the application will not be considered for selection.
- Should you have applied to or availed any Indian fellowships (especially INSA JRD TATA and JNCASR-CICS) in the current or previous year this must be clearly specified in the application form.
- Applications for the TWAS-DBT Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme can ONLY be submitted to TWAS via the online portal. A tutorial on how to use the online application form is available below for download.
- Applicants should be aware that they can apply for only one fellowship per year. With the exception of the Visiting Scientists programme, all other fellowship programmes offered by TWAS and OWSD are mutually exclusive.
Results of the fellowship selection should be available toward mid or the end of 2024, and selected candidates will be able to start their fellowship NO earlier than beginning of 2025.
Award details:
A total of 10 awards will be considered in the DBT-TWAS Postdoctoral Fellowship programme.
Contact details
• TWAS Fellowships Office
ICTP Campus, Strada Costiera 11
34151 Trieste, Italy
Phone: +39 040 2240-314
Fax: +39 040 224559
E-mail: fellowships@twas.org
• DBT Contact
Dr. Manoj Kumar
Scientist ‘D’
Department of Biotechnology
Block 2, CGO Complex
Lodhi Road, New Delhi 110 023
Email: manoj.kr09@gov.in
• DBT HRD Project Management Unit Contact
Project Manager DBT HRD Project Management
Regional Centre for Biotechnology (RCB)
Faridabad, Haryana – 121001
Phone: +91-129 2848-800
E-mail: twas.dbt@rcb.res.in
