Junior researchers & postdocs

Here you find a selection of funding programmes for international postdocs and junior researchers by various funding organisations. For more funding opportunities please search our funding databases.

Selection of funding programmes (alphabetical order):

Bilateral Exchange of Academics

The programme supports research and study visits up to three months within the framework of the bilateral exchange of scientists and scholars.

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DLR-DAAD Research Fellowships in Space, Aeronautics, Energy and Transportation Research

Outstanding doctoral students, scientists and researchers can complete a doctorate or conduct special research at an institute of the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

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Emmy Noether Programme

Outstanding junior researchers can rapidly qualify for leading positions in science and research or for a university teaching career by heading an independent junior research group and assuming relevant teaching duties.

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ERC Starting Grants

International postdoctoral researchers with 2 to 7 years of research experience can strengthen their research independence by establishing their own research team.

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ERC Synergy Grants

The ERC Synergy Grants target excellent emerging scientists at the start of their career as well as established researchers with outstanding scientific track records.

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Fraunhofer Attract

International specialists in application-oriented research can set up a new research group at a Fraunhofer Institute to develop their ideas into actual innovations.

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Georg Forster Research Fellowship

Junior and senior researchers in all disciplines from developing countries, emerging economies and transition states can carry out a research project in cooperation with an academic host of their choice in Germany.

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Grants to Support the Initiation of International Collaboration

These grants support international collaboration by enabling eligible German and international researchers and academics to plan partner visits, trips abroad and/or joint workshops with their partners.

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Green Talents

The winners of this competition are invited on a journey to leading German institutions of environmental and sustainability research. Furthermore, Green Talents awardees can complete a research stay at an institution of their choice.

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Helmholtz Visiting Researcher Grant

Doctoral students and postdocs with a strong link to (applied) data and information sciences can do a short-term research stay at the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centers.

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Helmholtz Young Investigator Groups

The best junior researchers receive excellent working conditions in a research-oriented environment. Researchers are granted independence early on and can set up and lead their own research group at a Helmholtz Centre.

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Humboldt Research Fellowship

International junior and senior researchers in all disciplines can carry out their own research project in cooperation with an academic host of their choice at a research institute in Germany.

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International Climate Protection Fellowship

Postdocs and young leaders from non-European emerging economies or developing countries who work in the area of climate protection can pursue a long-term scientific project at a host institution of their choice in Germany.

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International Visiting Researchers at Max Planck Institutes

International researchers can conduct independent research at a Max Planck Institute. The programme aims to strengthen cooperation and promote networking between Max Planck Institutes and their international partners.

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Leibniz Junior Research Groups

Promising junior researchers are enabled to set up their own research group in the inspiring research environment of a Leibniz Institute.

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Lise Meitner Excellence Programme

Female junior scientists with outstanding qualifications will be enabled to establish their own research group at one of the renowned Max Planck Institutes.

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Marie Skłodowska-Curie European Postdoctoral Fellowships

Postdoctoral researchers of any nationality can enhance their qualifications and diversify their competences by conducting a research project at a research institution in Germany.

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Max Planck Grants for Advanced Postdoctoral Training

Postdocs can gain additional knowledge and skills at a Max Planck Institute on the basis of their prior professional qualifications.

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Max Planck Research Group Leader

Junior researchers can conduct independent research work at a Max Planck Institute by establishing their own Max Planck Research Group.

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Philipp Schwartz Initiative

The Philipp Schwartz Initiative enables universities and research institutions in Germany to host researchers at risk on the basis of a full fellowship.

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Postdoctoral Researchers International Mobility Experience (PRIME)

The PRIME programme enables postdocs of all nationalities who see their long-term career in Germany to combine employment at a German university with a research stay abroad.

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Research Grants

Junior and senior researchers can realise a research project on a specific subject within a limited period of time. The programme can provide support for project costs, staff and equipment required to carry out the project. 

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Research Training Groups

Research training groups are set up by universities and pursue a focused research programme. PhD students and postdocs can complete a doctorate or engage in independent research activities.

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Scientific Networks

Scientific Networks offer researchers with a PhD to engage in multi-year scientific exchange and cooperation on a topic area of their choice across various locations.

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Walter Benjamin Programme

The Walter Benjamin Programme enables researchers in the postdoctoral training phase to independently conduct their own research project at a German research institution of their choice.

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More information:

Search funding databases

There are more funding programmes available for international researchers. For more information you can either search the funding databases or go straight to funding organisations’ websites.

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