TWAS-SN Bose Postgraduate Fellowship Programme

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: 8 April 2024.

Relevant deadlines to apply:

• Deadline to apply for a Preliminary Acceptance Letter to SN Bose Center: 16 August 2024.
• Last date of issuance of Preliminary Acceptance Letters by SN Bose Center:  31 August 2024.
• Deadline to submit the application form and all required documents to TWAS via TWAS online portal: 20 September 2024 (midnight CEST time).

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-SN Bose Postgraduate Fellowships are tenable at the S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences in Kolkata, India for studies leading towards a PhD degree in one of the fields of natural sciences and life sciences for four years with the possibility of a one-year extension.
• The Centre carries out the following research activities:

[A schematic representation of the sub research areas (blue circles) of the four departments (purple colored circles) and their interconnections (green lines) are shown in the figure below]

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• Applicants may be registered for a PhD degree in their home country (SANDWICH option), or may enroll in a PhD course at the S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences  (FULL-TIME option). In both cases, the programme entails only one journey to the host country.
• Admission to the PhD programme at the S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences will depend on the successful completion of coursework (about one year's duration).
• S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences will provide a monthly stipend to cover living costs and food. The monthly stipend will not be convertible into foreign currency. Free on-campus accommodation will be provided. The monthly stipend does not cover comprehensive health insurance.  The Centre does however deduct a small contribution towards a Contributory Medical Scheme. The benefits are partial reimbursement of doctor's fees, medicine costs, if any, and only for costs incurred at Kolkata. The reimbursement structure is at par with the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) of the Government of India.
• The S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences does not provide comprehensive health or medical insurance to its staff or students. All SN Bose-TWAS fellows must have their own "Medical Insurance" before joining the programme to cover medical emergencies.
• The language of instruction is English.
• Applicants are advised to follow the website https://www.bose.res.in/people/FacultyMembers.jsp to find their prospective supervisor/s and their area of research.

Eligibility

Candidates for these fellowships must meet the following criteria:

• be a maximum age of 35 years on 31 December of the application year;
• 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 Masters Degree in Physics, Chemistry, Biology or Mathematics. S/he must have completed at least a total 5 years of undergraduate and postgraduate studies in a recognized university or institute.
• be accepted by a department of the S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences. Prospective applicants are advised to visit the Centre's website www.bose.res.in and seek to find a potential supervisor under whom they would like to pursue their research and contact them.
• Requests for acceptance must be directed to the Dean (Academic Programme), S. N. Bose National Centre for Sciences by e-mail (deanap@bose.res.in). In contacting the Dean (Academic Programme), applicants must fill out the “SNB FORM” (that can be downloaded below) and request for an Acceptance Letter with copy of their CV.
• 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 deadline for receipt of applications is extended to 20 September 2024 (see detailed deadlines on top).
• Applicants must submit an Acceptance Letter from a department of the S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences when applying, or by the deadline at the latest. Without preliminary acceptance the application will not be considered for selection.
• Applications for the TWAS-SN Bose Postgraduate Fellowship Programme can ONLY be submitted via the online portal. A tutorial on how to use the online application form is available below for download.
• Please be advised that applicants may apply for only one programme per calendar year in the TWAS and OWSD portfolio. Applicants will not be eligible to visit another institution in that year under the TWAS Visiting Professor programmes. One exception: The head of an institution who invites an external scholar to share his/her expertise under the TWAS Visiting Professor programmes may still apply for another programme.

Downloadable documents (see at the bottom of the webpage):

Online Forms Tutorial

Sample acceptance letter (PDF)

Sample acceptance letter (Word)

SNB Form

Contact Details

• TWAS Fellowships Office
ICTP campus, Strada Costiera 11
34151 Trieste, Italy
Tel: +39 040 2240687
E-mail: fellowships@twas.org

• S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences
Dean (Academic Programme)
JD Block, Sector 3, Salt Lake City
Kolkata 700106, India
Tel: +91 33 2335 5705/6/7/8
E-mail: deanap@bose.res.in, studentsprogramme@bose.res.in