Branco Weiss Fellowship 2026: International Postdoctoral Fellowships

 

 

What Makes This Fellowship Different

The Branco Weiss Fellowship – Society in Science backs independent postdoctoral projects and allows you to choose or change your host institution globally. Unlike schemes tied to a single lab, this program funds you and your idea, not only a laboratory seat. Furthermore, support can continue even if you transition into a faculty role, preserving project momentum and knowledge continuity.

Flexible funding. The fellowship provides a substantial, multi-year budget that can cover salary and/or research costs—equipment, consumables, fieldwork, travel, collaboration visits, personnel time, and dissemination. Consequently, fellows can design a budget that matches the technical demands and logistics of their research rather than forcing the research to fit a rigid budget line.

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Ready to lead bold, cross-disciplinary research with real autonomy? The Branco Weiss Fellowship funds independent, world-anywhere postdoctoral work for up to five years, combining flexibility, mobility, and scale. The current call closes January 15 at 5 p.m. CET. Apply early and submit a complete, polished dossier (see official call: brancoweissfellowship.org/who-should-apply).

Duration, Phases, and the Mid-Term Review

Total term: up to five years delivered in two phases:

Pioneer Phase (Years 1–2)

You establish

the scientific foundations: refine questions, validate methods, hire initial support, and secure key infrastructure or datasets. Early outputs—protocols, pilot data, or preliminary publications—de-risk the next stage.

Exploitation Phase (Years 3–5)

You scale and translate: extend experiments, lead collaborations, publish high-impact papers, and pursue technology transfer or policy engagement. A formal review at the end of Year 2 evaluates progress and originality; successful review unlocks the second phase.

Why this structure helps. The split encourages disciplined planning, measurable milestones, and course correction without slowing the overall trajectory.

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Who Should Apply

The fellowship targets junior researchers with exceptional promise and genuinely original ideas that cross disciplinary or methodological boundaries. Your proposal should be surprising yet testable, anchored in credible methods, and framed to generate field-changing knowledge rather than incremental results.

Core Eligibility (Snapshot)

• • Discipline and nationality: Open to all disciplines and all nationalities.

  • Doctorate: Hold a Ph.D. (or have passed the doctoral exam) by the deadline.

  • Career stage: Ph.D. awarded within five years of the submission deadline (the examination or certificate date is decisive).

  • Age limits: None.

  • Scale: The program typically awards up to ten fellowships

    per round, with selection driven by quality and fit.

Fit test. If your research requires facility access across countries, unconventional partnerships, or non-linear career moves, this scheme’s portability and independence are likely a strong match.

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Timeline to Plan Around

• • January 15, 5 p.m. CET: Online submission deadline for complete applications.

  • May: Notifications to applicants; shortlisted candidates receive interview invitations.

  • June: Panel interviews in Zurich; final selection decisions communicated.

  • October–December: Fellowships commence (start date coordinated with host).

Next cycle (forecast). Based on historical cadence, expect the subsequent call around November–January—we will update soon with month-specific details once announced.

Planning cue. Work backward from the deadline. Because reference letters and host confirmations can take time, line them up early. Moreover, schedule mock interviews soon after submitting, as the invitation-to-panel window can be short.

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What the Panel Looks For

1) Originality with Feasibility

Pose a question the panel has not seen before, then anchor it with a transparent plan: hypotheses, methods, power or robustness checks, and realistic timelines.

2) Proven Independence

Show how you—not only your former group—will lead strategy, manage risk, supervise people, and steward budgets. Cite moments where you initiated collaborations, created datasets or tools, or solved blockers

autonomously.

3) Global Fit and Mobility

Justify your host choice(s) in terms of facilities, field access, supervision culture, and complementary expertise. If a relocation later will materially improve outcomes, explain the trigger and plan.

4) Societal Perspective

Situate the work within a broader societal context. Identify stakeholders, users, or policy hooks specifically; avoid generic claims. Outline responsible research practices and data stewardship.

5) Track Record with Trajectory

Select outputs that show depth and direction—seminal papers, methods, datasets, patents, or influential talks. Briefly state your contribution to each.

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Budgeting Smartly

Because the budget may cover salary and/or research costs, align allocations tightly with milestones:

• • People: your time plus targeted support (e.g., a research assistant, field technician, or part-time engineer).

  • Infrastructure & data: instrument time, compute, storage, field logistics, or specialized software.

  • Mobility: collaboration visits, user research, and dissemination; plan for policy or industry touchpoints if relevant.

  • Contingency: reserve a modest buffer for unforeseeable costs.

Tip. Review institutional overhead policies and ethics requirements early; clarity here prevents scope changes after award.

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Choosing a Host Institution

You can start at one institution and, if necessary,

move later. That freedom makes it feasible to pursue longitudinal fieldwork, multi-site experiments, or staged access to specialized facilities. Nonetheless, prioritize a primary host with:

• • documented supervisory support;

  • access to essential infrastructure;

  • strong compliance offices for ethics, data, IP, and contracts;

  • administrative capacity to manage a multi-year external fellowship.

If you anticipate transitioning to a faculty role during the award, plan workload and support so teaching does not compromise critical project phases.

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How to Apply (and What to Prepare)

While the portal specifics may evolve, you should expect to prepare and label the following clearly:

Required Documents (Typical)

• • Research proposal: aims, background, novelty, hypotheses, methods, milestones, risks, and expected outcomes.

  • CV and selected publications: annotate key contributions to show leadership and originality.

  • Host letter(s) of support: confirm resources, space, and fit.

  • Reference letters: brief referees with a one-page summary and hard deadline.

  • Ethics/compliance statements: for human participants, animals, sensitive data, or environmental permits.

Submission discipline. Upload early and verify PDF legibility, file names, and page limits. The portal closes automatically at 5 p.m. CET; late uploads are not accepted.

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Interview Preparation: What Works

• • Open with the idea. State the problem, why it matters now, and your unique angle in under a minute.

  • Walk the logic. Novelty → testable claims → methods → milestones → outcomes.

  • Own the risk. Name the hardest technical or conceptual risks and your plan B/C.

  • Use plain language. Reviewers may span disciplines; clarity outperforms jargon.

  • Carry one budget/team slide. Demonstrate execution readiness within the fellowship envelope.

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Program Snapshot (Copy-Ready Table)

Feature	Details
Program Name	Branco Weiss Fellowship – Society in Science
Host Country	Global (host institution may be in any country/region)
Funded By	The Branco Weiss Fellowship – Society in Science
Duration	Up to 5 years (in two phases)
Study Mode	Full-time, Independent Postdoctoral research
Eligibility	Ph.D. by deadline; within five years of award; open to all nationalities and disciplines
Financial Support	Flexible budget supporting salary and/or research costs (e.g., personnel, equipment, travel, fieldwork, dissemination)
Fields of Study	All fields; cross-disciplinary and high-risk/high-reward proposals encouraged
Deadline	01/15/2026
Official Website	Brancoweiss Fellowship

Next cycle (forecast). Anticipated announcement around November–January — we will update soon.

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Conclusion

The Branco Weiss Fellowship offers a rare combination of independence, portability, and multi-year resourcing that lets promising researchers pursue ambitious, cross-disciplinary science without geographic constraints. If your project is original, feasible, and societally meaningful, assemble a concise, evidence-rich application and submit before the portal closes. For authoritative requirements, consult the official pages: brancoweissfellowship.org/who-should-apply.

Frequently Asked Questions