SCIEX - Scientific Exchanges between Switzerland and Bulgaria: Call for Proposals

Deadline: 13 March, 2025

The SCIEX Fellowships 2025 support scientific exchanges between Bulgaria and Switzerland under Switzerland’s Second Swiss Contribution. Designed for early career researchers—PhD students and postdoctoral researchers—the program enables a research secondment at a non-commercial Swiss research institute. Its objectives are to advance scientific knowledge, enhance the researchers’ skills, and foster collaboration between Bulgarian and Swiss institutions.

Eligibility

• Doctoral Students:

  • Must be enrolled in a PhD program at a Bulgarian institute for at least six months.
  • Must either be of Bulgarian nationality (and permanent residents of Bulgaria) or, if of another nationality, be permanent residents in Bulgaria.

• Postdoctoral Researchers:

  • Must hold a doctoral degree (or equivalent) or have at least three years of postdoctoral experience.
  • Must be affiliated with a Bulgarian institute at the time of application.
  • Must meet the same nationality/residency criteria as doctoral students.

Funding and duration

Total available budget is up to CHF 2 million.The fellowship covers the grantee’s salary (including social security contributions), research and conference costs, and eligible expenses for short-term research visits.

Duration For Doctoral Students: 6 to 24 months

For Postdoctoral researchers: 6 to 18 months

Timeline of the Call

• Call Opening: 1 November 2024
• Submission Deadline: 13 March 2025, 17:00 CET
• Evaluation Period: April – July 2025
• Communication of Results: August 2025
• Earliest Possible Project Start: October 2025
• Latest Possible Project Start: April 2026

More information
SNSF website
Contact
Research Service