UIBK - FemCareer - Fellowship (Female Postdoc Early Career Fellowship)

External female researchers who:

• had their PhD degree awarded after June 30, 2022 (date of the official notification). Child-raising periods (two years for each child cared for), care periods (usually care leave) and longer periods of serious illness that have led to a career break are taken into account for the time limit
  or
  are about to receive their PhD degree; in this case the dissertation must already have been submitted (a confirmation must be enclosed). The fellowship may only commence, once the doctoral degree is awarded

and

• must not have resided or carried out their main activity^[1] (work, studies, etc.) in Austria since July 31, 2023.

[1] Country of the main activity: the country where the researcher is physically based when carrying out the main activity and the country of the institution for which the main activity is performed (e.g. employer);

The place of work is UIBK and the proposed research must be carried out at UIBK, however international co-operation is desired.

The position is full-time, an extension of the employment beyond 36 months is not possible.

The position must be taken up by July 1, 2026 at the latest.

The Fellow's employment at UIBK via other funding terminates the Fellowship.

Selection of the host - requirements:

The host must belong to one of these faculties at the UIBK:

• Faculty of Architecture
• Faculty of Biology
• Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy
• Faculty of Engineering Sciences
• Faculty of Geo- and Atmospheric Sciences
• Faculty of Law
• Faculty of Mathematics, Computer Science and Physics
• Faculty of Philosophy and History

Who can be a host:

• Professors, associate professors, ao. univ.  professors of UIBK
• who can supervise the postdoc for the entire duration of the contract

Letter of Support:

Part of the application is the submission of a letter of support from a host of UIBK. This letter of support must be sent separately by the host to forschungsfoerderung@uibk.ac.at. The reference to which application the letter of support belongs must be clearly indicated by the name of the applicant and the title of the research statement. The letter of support must also be signed by the Head of the host’s Department and confirm that employment of the proposed person is desired and that all necessary resources will be made available.

• A fixed-term appointment as a postdoc for 36 months, i.e. a fixed-term employment contract at the rank of University Assistant B1/3 in accordance with the provisions of the collective labour agreement (Kollektivvertrag).
• The employment includes a teaching activity of 2 hours per week (45 min classroom time) in every semester.
• The funding covers personnel costs for the applicant and costs for materials and travel expenses required for the implementation of the research project up to the amount of EUR 15,000 per year. Of this EUR 15,000 a maximum of EUR 2,000 per year can be used for career-promoting measures (e.g. further training and coaching measures) or child care costs.

The costs for the research proposed cannot be used to fund any positions other than those of the applicant.

Applications must be sent with all required documents as one .pdf file (except for the Letter of Support and the Letter of Recommendation). All documents have to be received by

August 20, 2025

via e-mail to forschungsfoerderung@uibk.ac.at at the latest.

Documents to be submitted

1. Application form download
2. plain language, easily understandable abstract; max. 1 page; min. font size 12
3. research statement: the planned research at UIBK must be formulated in a manner that is comprehensible to general audiences. The description also includes the professional synergies with the UIBK host (fit, suitability). Max. 5 pages, min. font size 12 without literature.
4. letter of motivation (max. 2 pages, min. font size 12 formulated in a manner that is comprehensible to general audiences): The letter of motivation is an essential part of the application and should answer the following questions clearly:
   - Why is UIBK the best place for your research?
   - What are your future career plans?
   - Where would you like to be professionally at the end of the fellowship?
5. CV and list of publications (max. 3 pages, min. font size 12)
6. official notification of the award of the doctorate/PhD
7. letter of recommendation from a supervisor, to be sent separately by the supervisor to forschungsfoerderung@uibk.ac.at.
8. letter of support from the UIBK host, in which possible synergies are identified and support measures are described. The letter of support must be sent separately by the host to forschungsfoerderung@uibk.ac.at and must include the signature, the consent and a confirmation of resources of the Head of the host’s Department.
9. if necessary, confirmation of the submission of the dissertation by the supervisor/university.

All documents may be submitted in German or English.

The Vice-Rector for Research and the Vice-Rector for Teaching and Students together with expert representatives from the eligible hosting faculties will choose the successful applications.

The assessment criteria are

1. Scientific excellence of the applicant in relation to their academic age
2. Relevance and originality of the research project
3. Synergies with the UIBK host
4. Career prospects of the applicant
5. The proportion of female postdocs at the respective host's faculty