Azrieli Postdoctoral Fellowship 2027–28: Funding, Eligibility & Deadline

01 Azrieli Postdoctoral Fellowship 2027–28 at a Glance

The Azrieli International Postdoctoral Fellowship supports early-career researchers undertaking postdoctoral work at participating academic institutions in Israel. Researchers from STEM, humanities and social sciences may apply, subject to the programme’s eligibility requirements.

02 Fellowship Funding and Duration

Azrieli International Postdoctoral Fellows receive a basic stipend of ILS 168,000 per academic year, paid as ILS 14,000 per month. Fellows also receive ILS 20,000 per year for approved research expenses and research-related travel.

The fellowship is initially awarded for two years. Renewal for a third year may be considered through a competitive evaluation process.

Fellows accompanied to Israel by a companion may receive additional support of up to ILS 20,000 per year. This support is discretionary and should not be treated as an automatic component of the award.

The Azrieli Fellows Program does not itself prohibit fellows from holding additional funding. However, the host institution may impose its own restrictions, so applicants should confirm local rules before accepting concurrent funding.

03 Who Is Eligible?

Applicants should check every criterion against the current 2027–28 guidelines before submitting an application.

• Applicants who have already completed a PhD must have been officially awarded the degree no earlier than 1 November 2023.
• The relevant PhD must have been awarded outside Israel.
• Current PhD candidates may apply if they successfully complete their dissertation defence no later than 1 June 2027.
• Candidates who have received an undergraduate or graduate academic degree from an Israeli institution are not eligible under the current rules.
• Former visiting or exchange students in Israel may still be eligible.
• Applicants must not have begun a postdoctoral position in Israel before 1 September 2026.
• Applicants must already have an eligible academic sponsor when they submit the application.

04 Eligible Israeli Host Institutions

Applicants must secure an academic sponsor who is a faculty member at one of the programme’s eligible institutions:

• Bar-Ilan University
• Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
• Reichman University
• Technion – Israel Institute of Technology
• Tel Aviv University
• The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
• University of Haifa
• Weizmann Institute of Science

Each academic sponsor may sponsor only one candidate in the current Azrieli International Postdoctoral Fellowship application process.

The current guidelines also state that an academic sponsor cannot host a candidate whom they previously supervised in an official capacity during the candidate’s PhD programme. A prior visiting-PhD research relationship does not automatically create the same restriction.

05 Application Documents and Information Required

The 2027–28 application is more extensive than a conventional postdoctoral CV-and-cover-letter application. Applicants should prepare the required materials before the deadline rather than attempting to assemble them at the final stage.

Academic and research information

• Personal and contact information
• PhD abstract
• PhD transcript
• PhD diploma or documentation of completion
• Information on additional academic degrees
• Academic distinctions, awards and scholarships
• Academic appointments and previous postdoctoral positions
• Publication and other research-output information
• Conference participation
• Curriculum vitae
• A scholarly writing sample

Personal essays

The official application instructions require a 650-word personal essay addressing research and career objectives, the value of the fellowship to those objectives, innovation in the applicant’s work, longer-term research direction, leadership and wider interests.

Applicants must also prepare two 150-word essays concerning leadership/change and contribution to fellow researchers or society.

Research proposal

Applicants submit a research summary of up to 250 words for a broad non-specialist audience and a research proposal of up to 1,500 words, excluding references.

The proposal should explain the significance and feasibility of the research, the candidate’s contribution, compatibility with the host environment, the relationship with prior doctoral work, and a project timeline.

Recommendations

• A recommendation from the intended academic sponsor
• Two recommendations from referees familiar with the applicant’s academic and research record

06 How to Apply for the Azrieli Fellowship

1. Confirm eligibility. Check your PhD award/defence date, previous academic history in Israel and any previous postdoctoral appointment in Israel.
2. Identify an eligible academic sponsor. The sponsor must be a faculty member at one of the participating institutions.
3. Agree on the proposed research. Discuss project fit, available infrastructure, mentorship and the proposed fellowship start date with the sponsor.
4. Prepare the application materials. This includes the CV, academic documents, writing sample, essays, publication information and research proposal.
5. Invite the sponsor and referees. Do this early because their recommendation deadline precedes the applicant deadline.
6. Complete the online application. Submit through the official Azrieli Fellowship application portal.
7. Review before final submission. Check uploaded files, proposal limits and recommendation status before the deadline.

07 Selection Process

Selection takes place through three stages, with a smaller group of applicants progressing after each stage.

1. Preselection screening: applications are reviewed by teams of academics from different disciplines.
2. Academic committee review: shortlisted applications are assessed by multidisciplinary academic committees covering life sciences, exact sciences, humanities and social sciences.
3. Interview panel: finalists proceed to an interview with representatives of the programme, academic committees and specialists considering leadership and personal merit.

What is assessed?

Current guidelines identify three broad areas of evaluation: academic excellence, the proposed research, and leadership and versatility.

This means that publication strength alone is not the complete selection case. Applicants also need to communicate research independence, project feasibility, innovation, suitability of the host environment, intellectual curiosity, leadership and communication ability.

08 Important Dates for the 2027–28 Cohort

09 How to Prepare a Strong Application

CareerAidHub guidance: the recommendations below are application strategy, not additional official eligibility requirements.

Secure the sponsor early

Sponsor availability can become a practical bottleneck because each academic sponsor may support only one candidate in the application cycle. Contacting a potential host early gives both sides time to assess research compatibility and shape the proposed project.

Write for multidisciplinary reviewers

The official instructions explicitly ask applicants to explain their research clearly for academic but non-specialist reviewers. Avoid assuming that every reviewer will understand specialised terminology from your discipline.

Explain why this host matters

A competitive proposal should do more than describe an interesting research question. Explain why the proposed sponsor, research group, facilities and academic environment are important to completing the work.

Connect past work with research independence

Show how your doctoral work establishes relevant expertise while also demonstrating how the proposed postdoctoral programme develops a distinct research trajectory.

Do not treat the essays as secondary

Leadership, intellectual curiosity, societal engagement and communication are explicitly included in the selection criteria. The personal essays therefore deserve the same level of preparation as the scientific or scholarly proposal.

10 Key Fellowship Obligations

Successful fellows are expected to maintain high academic standards and participate actively in the Azrieli Fellows Program.

• Fellows are expected to be based in Israel for at least 75% of the fellowship period.
• Fellows participate in programme-sponsored professional and interdisciplinary activities.
• Fellows may take part in voluntary, non-political and non-partisan community engagement.
• Publications arising from fellowship-supported research must acknowledge support from the Azrieli Foundation.
• Fellows become part of the programme’s alumni community.