The International Human Frontier Science Program Organization (HFSPO) is pleased to announce the names of the recipients of HFSP international postdoctoral fellowships for 2013 following a rigorous selection process in a global competition. A total of 750 applications were received in this round from applicants originating from 61 different countries.
HFSP postdoctoral fellowships are given to young scientists within 3 years of the Ph.D. degree who wish to broaden their training in a laboratory in another country. This year, 70 fellowships have been awarded. Of these, 61 are Long-Term Fellowships for life scientists planning to extend their expertise into another field of biology and 9 are Cross-Disciplinary Fellowships for young scientists with Ph.D. degrees in physics, chemistry, computer science or engineering. The latter are particularly special as they link the life sciences with neighboring disciplines thus pushing the use of quantitative approaches in modern biology.
In 2013, HFSP fellowships support young scientists from 22 different nationalities. German, Israeli, Italian and French applicants were the most successful; new awards will also support young scientists from the non-member countries: Chile, China, Croatia, Cuba, and Israel. The research institutions where fellows carry out their projects are located in Australia, Austria, Canada, Israel, Ireland, France, Germany, Switzerland, the UK, and the USA.
"The outstanding quality of the proposals and the worldwide interest of young scientists in our fellowship awards speak for the uniqueness of this HFSP program. Hosting an HFSP postdoctoral fellow is a real distinction for a research laboratory anywhere in the world.", comments HFSPO President Nobutaka Hirokawa of the University of Tokyo Medical School.
HFSP's fellowships are highly prestigious because of the competitive selection on a global scale and for their built in return component. Starting in their second year of tenure, HFSP fellows can draw up plans for setting up their first independent laboratory. Fellows can then use the remaining time of their tenure to move to the new location. A fellowship is worth about $180,000 spread over three years and includes support for research costs and child care.
Full lists of the 2013 awards including research abstracts are available on the HFSP web site at http://www.hfsp.org/awardees/newly-awarded.
The Human Frontier Science Program is an international program of research support implemented by the International Human Frontier Science Program Organization (HFSPO) based in Strasbourg, France. Its aims are to promote intercontinental collaboration and training in cutting-edge, interdisciplinary research focused on the life sciences. HFSPO receives financial support from the governments or research councils of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, UK, USA, as well as from the European Union.