TU Berlin Center for Junior Scholars (TUB-CJS)

Financing your Postdoc

There are a number of options available for funding your postdoc. For example, you can apply for a position at a university or non-university research institution, acquire funding for a project at a research institution, or apply for a grant from a foundation or funding organization, enabling you to focus on your own development. Temporary calls for postdocs can be found together with calls for doctoral candidates on the pages on scholarships and competitions and prizes.

Newsletter "Förderinformationen aktuell"

The Research Promotion Section informs in its newsletter "Förderinformationen aktuell" (Current funding information) every two weeks about new funding programs, awards, scholarships, events as well as TU-internal news from the research department and is sent exclusively to TU members." You can subscribe to it here.

Budget and third-party-funded positions

Academic chairs at TU Berlin regularly advertise fixed-term as well as permanent positions. Details of currently available positions can be found on the TU Berlin Department of Human Resources website.

Depending on requirements, these are advertised as pay scale E13 or E14 positions. The personnel department’s list of requirements, including details of pay scales assigned to tasks, is also available online. 

TU Berlin-internal funding

As part of its internal measures for promoting research, TU Berlin can help you prepare an application for third-party funding from the DFG or similar programs for a temporary principal investigator position.

If you have received approval for a junior research group from a funding program such as the Emmy Noether Programme, the BMBF, or the Helmholtz Foundation, TU Berlin will provide you with additional funding should you decide to establish your junior research group at the University.

Further information on internal measures for promoting research can be found on the website of TU Berlin’s Research Department.

Leading a junior research group

A number of organizations provide funding for junior research groups:

DFG: Emmy Noether Programme

Funding type —  independent leadership of a junior research group to acquire leadership experience and skills as well as eligibility for appointment to a professorship

Duration and scope — max. 6 years

Application — no deadlines; processing takes 6 months

Further information — doctorate 2-4 years prior to submission of application; not for projects at the institution where applicants completed their doctorate; significant international research experience including publications; excellent research project

Federal Ministry of Eduction and Research - BMBF: Junior research groups

Funding type — leadership of a junior research group to gain experience of conducting independent research work at an early stage of career development

Duration and scope — staff and equipment for a maximum of 5 years (evaluation after 3 years)

Application — funding announced in specific calls

Further information — specific calls in various fields of research; please subscribe to the appropriate BMBF newsletter

 

Helmholtz Young Investigator Groups

Funding type — individual funding for young, talented researchers to lead a research group, enabling them to acquire the skills and experience for a university career

Duration and scope — at least EUR 300,000/year for staff, equipment and research over a maximum period of 6 years (evaluation after 3-4 years)

Application — annual call (current application deadline: May 3, 2022)

Further information — doctorate 2-6 years prior to submission of application 

 

Robert Bosch Junior Professorship for Research into the Sustainable Use of Natural Resources

Funding type — leadership of a junior research group

Duration and scope — up to EUR 1 million for staff and equipment over a period of 5 years

Application — annual call

Further information — doctorate 5 years prior to submission of application; research topics: agriculture and forestry, biology and environmental sciences, economics, politics, sociology, medicine, public health

 

ERC Starting Grant

Funding type — setting up a junior research group in Europe (excellence program)

Duration and scope — 5 years; max. EUR 1.5 million (possibly + EUR 1,000,000)

Application — annual call in July; submission deadline usually in the fall

Further information — doctorate 2-7 years prior to submission
TUB advising: https://www.tu.berlin/en/eu-buero/erc-strategy  

International Mobility Experience: P.R.I.M.E.

The DAAD offers a postdoc program co-financed by the EU’s Marie Curie Program. The Postdoctoral Researchers International Mobility Experience (P.R.I.M.E) program supports international mobility by funding fixed-term employment positions during the postdoc phase. Funding is for 18 months, the first 12 of which are to be completed at a university abroad, with the remaining six months spent at a university in Germany.

The following deadlines are expected for 2024:

Application start: May 2024
Application deadline: 31. August 2024
. Selection result: March 2025
Earliest funding start: 1 June 2025; Latest funding start: 1 November 2025

The calls for applications will be published on this DAAD website.

The duration of the application will take at least four weeks. Please note: Arbeitgebererklärung (tu.berlin).

The Center for Junior Scholars can assist you with all your inquiries about P.R.I.M.E.

Indications:

  • Appropriate host institutions in Germany and abroad must have been identified at the time of application. The contact with these institutions is the responsibility of the applicant and you should already have scientific contact with the potential host at the TU Berlin or another university.
  • The central prerequisite for the application is the completion of the doctorate at the beginning of the sponsorship.
  • In the FAQ section, the DAAD provides answers to the most frequently asked questions.
  • Funding is provided for those who see their professional career in Germany in the long term. For more information, see here.

Other funding opportunities

The German Research Foundation (DFG) is particularly strong in providing assistance in the form of grants, measures, and programs for the advancement of postdocs. These include the Walter Benjamin program, fellowships for research abroad, positions within research training groups, the possibility to apply for a temporary position as a principal investigator as well as funding to develop a junior research group within the Emmy Noether Programme. 

The Fritz Thyssen Foundation finances junior scholars in temporary positions as principal investigators for a maximum of 3 years. 

There are also a number of funding options available at European level. In addition to the Horizon Europe Framework Program for Research and Innovation, excellent funding options for junior scholars are also provided by Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships and ERC Starting Grants.

Scientists in the natural sciences, mathematics and computer science can apply once a year for the Klaus Tschira Boost Fund. Funding of up to €80,000 can be applied for over a period of up to 24 months, with a maximum of 75% of the funding applied for being used to (partially) finance the applicant's own position.

With the Georg Forster Research Fellowship, the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation sponsors academics with above-average qualifications from all disciplines. The researchers must come from developing and transition countries - with the exception of the People's Republic of China and India. Applications can be submitted at any time.

The Leopoldina awards „Leopoldina-Postdoc-Stipendium“ to outstanding postdoctoral scientists from Germany (or persons who stayed in Germany at least 5 years). If approved, they carry out independent projects at the most renowned research institutions in their disciplines abroad. Applications can be submitted at any time.

You will find further announcements on our pages on scholarships and competitions.

Information on obtaining research funding via ELFI

ELFI - the ELectronic Research Funding Information service for German-speaking countries can help you locate potential research funding. This database collates and organizes information on research funding and is available online to researchers, research advisors, students, and businesses. ELFI currently contains information on some 9,000 programs and more than 4,000 national and international funding organizations and sources. To access the database, you need to log in via the TU Berlin network (or one of the other participating institutions).

ResearchConnect

Members of the TU Berlin have access to ResearchConnect, a database for researching national, European and international calls for third-party funded research projects. The database offers useful functions, e.g., extensive filter options for the search for calls for
search, the possibility to save one's own search parameters and to share search results with with colleagues or to receive individualized reports and monthly summaries.

Contact Person

Susanne Teichmann

Senior advisor doctoral and postdoctoral services

teichmann@tu-berlin.de

+49 30 314-25908

Organization name Center for Junior Scholars (CJS)
Building FH
Room FH 506
Address Fraunhoferstr. 33-36
10587 Berlin