After receipt of the application documents, the applicants' data will be transferred to the database of the Department of Fellowships & Awards of the OeAW.

Online form (available from August 17, 2026)

Applications from the natural sciences, technical sciences, medicine and psychology must be written in English. Applications from the humanities, social sciences and cultural sciences can be written in English or German.

1. Application documents

• Tabular CV

• Publication list
  Please indicate which of the publications mentioned have appeared in journals / publishers with peer review. And indicate which of the publications mentioned resulted from your master's thesis.
   
• Letter of motivation (max. 2 pages)
  Description of the previous scientific activity and career plan, in which the medium-term career goals, the importance of the fellowship for the further scientific career and the motivation for the chosen field of research are presented.
  Please also provide information on the current financing of your dissertation.

• Statement of the dissertation supervisor (max. 2 pages) taking into account the following aspects:
  - How long have you known the applicant and in what context?
  - How do you assess his/her previous academic achievements and qualifications?
  - How do you assess the nature and extent of the applicant's independent contribution to the development of the dissertation project?

• Proof of relevant research achievements of the dissertation supervisor in the field of the proposed project (i.e. a list of selected publications of max. 1 page)

• Confirmation of workplace, i.e. confirmation of the possibility of using rooms and resources of the institute if this is necessary for the implementation of the dissertation project

• Enclosure of the permits required for the research project (e.g. clearance certificate from the Ethics Commission or the Commission for Animal Testing)

• Enclosure of the (informal) invitation from the host institute if a stay abroad is planned as part of the fellowship

2. Certificates

• Proof of academic achievements in the Master's program by submitting the transcript of records including grading
• Confirmation of enrolment if the Dr./PhD program has already been started

3. Project documents

• Abstract (short version of the proposal, 1-2 pages)
   
• Dissertation proposal (min. 10 to max. 20 pages, excl. cover page, table of contents and bibliography)

The following must be taken into account in the project description:

• General aims (defining the problems, state of research)
• Detailed discussion of the problem (specific aims, hypotheses)
• Methodological considerations
• Work steps and timetable, including reasons for the requested duration of the fellowship (minimum duration from start of the fellowship: 24 months)
• Select bibliography

4. Resubmission (max. 2 pages)

• Presentation of project progress or important changes/additions since the first submission
• Statement (point-by-point) on the review, i.e., if criticism has been formulated in the review on the first submission or suggestions for revision have been given, a statement must be made and it must be explained whether and how these have been taken into account.

The documents for resubmission must be uploaded in a separate document.

The prepared documents must be uploaded via the online form.

Upload via online form

Fill out the online form (see point II) and upload the documents in a total of four PDF files (if resubmitted: five PDF files).

In the abstract, state your name and the title of the project.

The size of each file must not exceed 3 MB. Protected files are not accepted.

The files shall be named as follows:

• Application_Surname.pdf  (= application documents)
• Certificates_Surname.pdf (= proof of academic achievements)
• Abstract_Surname.pdf       
• Project expose_Surname.pdf (= dissertation proposal)   
• Resubmission_Surname.pdf (= Statement on resubmission)

Confirmation of submission

After you have uploaded your documents, you will receive a PDF document with your details by e-mail. Please print and sign this document. Return a scan of the signed form in PDF format in a single file as an attachment to a reply to the e-mail received (click on the reply button).
IMPORTANT: The given subject and the recipient must not be changed.

Editing

Upon receipt of an application, it will be checked that it is complete and meets the formal criteria and will then be entered into the database of the Department  of Fellowships & Awards with a project number (A number).

When all applications have been checked for completeness, about 3-4 weeks after the submission deadline, all applicants will be informed about the further course of the selection procedure.