TWAS-DBT Postgraduate Fellowship Programme

The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) of the Ministry of Science and Technology in India, and UNESCO-TWAS established a fellowship programme for foreign scholars from developing countries who wish to pursue research towards a PhD in biotechnology.

Applications can only be submitted via online portal once the call is open.

Please use the “apply now” button at the bottom of this page to start your application once the call is open.

Opening date of this fellowship: 15 December 2023

Closing date of this fellowship: 19 March 2024

Applicants are encouraged to apply for the preliminary acceptance letter as early as possible, even before the opening date of the call. Keeping in mind that only Acceptance letters dated the same year as the year of application are eligible.

Programme details

TWAS-DBT Postgraduate Fellowships are tenable at key biotechnology research institutions in India for a period of up to five years.
Note regarding eligible fields: if choosing Biological Sciences or Chemical Sciences only Biotech aspects are eligible.
Applicants may be registered for a PhD degree in their home country, or may enrol in a PhD course at a host laboratory/institute in India. To help candidates in their choice of a suitable host institution a list of biotechnology institutes in India is available below (under Application Documents). However, candidates are free to choose an Indian biotechnology institution that does not appear on the list.
SANDWICH Fellowships (for those registered for a PhD in their home country): The Fellowship may be granted for a minimum period of 12 months and a maximum period of 2 years.
FULL-TIME Fellowships (for those not registered for a PhD): The Fellowship is granted for an initial period of up to 3 years. Such Fellowships may then be extended for a further 2 years, subject to the student’s performance. Candidates will register for their PhD at a university in India. DBT will confirm any such extensions to both TWAS and the candidate.
DBT will provide a monthly stipend of Rs. 37,000/- + HRA for the first two years and Rs. 42,000 + HRA from 3rd year onwards and health insurance of Rs. 600/- per month. The fellowship holder will receive a contingency amount of Rs. 50,000/- per annum and shall be eligible to receive House Rent Allowance as per Government of India HRA rules. The fellowship will not be convertible into foreign currency.
TWAS will provide travel arrangements to and from the home country and will reimburse initial visa fees.
The language of instruction is English

Eligibility

Applicants for these fellowships must meet the following criteria:

Be a maximum age of 35 years within the year of application (31 December).
Be nationals of a developing country (other than India).
Must not hold any visa for temporary or permanent residency in India or any developed country.
Hold a Master’s or equivalent degree in science or engineering.
For SANDWICH Fellowships, be registered PhD students in their home country and provide the “Registration and No Objection Certificate” from the HOME university (sample is included in the application form); OR
For FULL-TIME Fellowships; be willing to register at a university in India.
Be accepted at a biotechnology institution in India (see sample Acceptance Letter that can be downloaded below or included in the application form). N.B. Requests for acceptance must be directed to the chosen host institution(s), and NOT to DBT.
Provide a research proposal outline based on the format of the sample that can be downloaded below.
Provide evidence of proficiency in English, if medium of education was not English;
Provide evidence that s/he will return to her/his home country on completion of the fellowship;
Not take up other assignments during the period of her/his fellowship;
Be financially responsible for any accompanying family members.

Submitting your application

The opening date of the call is: 15 December 2023.
The deadline for receipt of applications is 19 March 2024.
No applications will be accepted after the deadline. Therefore, it is recommended to submit your electronic application as early as possible.
Applications for the TWAS-DBT Postgraduate Fellowship Programme can ONLY be submitted to TWAS via the online portal. A tutorial on how to use the online application form is available below for download.
For SANDWICH Fellowships (only if already registered for a PhD in the HOME country) applicants should ensure that the Vice-Chancellor or Registrar of the university sends a signed copy of the “Registration and No Objection Certificate” on institutional headed paper to TWAS (see sample form).
Applicants should submit the Acceptance Letter from an Indian biotechnology institution to TWAS when applying online. Without preliminary acceptance, the application will not be considered for selection.
Reference letters must be on letter-headed paper and SIGNED by the referee. The subject line must contain the name DBT/PG/ and the candidate’s surname. N.B. Only signed reference letters can be accepted.
Should you have applied to or availed any Indian fellowships (especially INSA JRD TATA and JNCASR-CICS) in the current or previous year this must be clearly specified in the application form.

Results of the fellowship selection should be available toward the mid of 2024 or the end of 2024, and selected candidates will be able to start their fellowship NO earlier than beginning of 2025.

Award details:

A total of 15 awards will be considered for both the Full-time and Sandwich Post Graduate DBT-TWAS Fellowship programme.

Contact details

• TWAS Fellowships Office

ICTP Campus, Strada Costiera 11

34151 Trieste, Italy

Phone: +39 040 2240-314

E-mail: fellowships@twas.org

• DBT Contact

Dr. Manoj Kumar

Scientist ‘D’

Department of Biotechnology