Postdoctoral Fellowships

Basic information

There are two types of FWO Postdoctoral Fellowships (junior/senior). Based on the date of your PhD defense you will either be eligible for the junior postdoctoral fellowship, or the senior postdoctoral fellowship. 

FWO Eligibility time window PhD 2024

Here’s the link to art. 6: on extensions of the eligibility window.

  • Postdoctoral fellowships are personal fellowships for a period of 3 years starting on the first of October or the first of November. The FWO becomes your employer while UGent acts as your host institution (possibly together with other eligible host institutions).
  • For senior postdoctoral fellowships: you must have a postdoctoral research experience of minimum 2 years on the first of October in which the fellowship commences.
  • With a postdoctoral fellowship there comes an annual bench fee, which can range from 4.000EUR – 10.000EUR. Bench fee regulations can be found here.
  • An estimate of the gross monthly salary can be found for the junior and senior fellowship.

Proposal phase

The FWO deadline is December 2, 5pm (02/12/2024).

Previously, Ghent University (the rector) had to sign a document to confirm the researcher's postdoctoral seniority. Since last year we have been using a new working method, with the approval of the FWO. We declare our agreement (after the deadline) with a so-called rectoral advice. No more documents need to be signed by us. We provide the rectoral advice based on the supervisor's implicit agreement to act as such. The document still needs to be signed by the supervisor, as it is mandatory and forms an essential part of the application.

Your supervisor will be requested to write a letter of recommendation after the FWO deadline.

Selecting the right FWO expert panel is of paramount importance. Please read the FWO guidelines on FWO panels thoroughly.

Evaluation phase

On April the 7th the selected candidates will be invited to the interview phase (23 April – 9 May 2025). UGent organizes mock-interviews to prepare the selected candidates for the actual FWO interview.

In the best case, the individual mock interview is organized at least 7 days before the FWO interview. You can find the (provisional) dates for each expert panel interview at the FWO here. Please keep in mind that this is a very tight timeline in which the mock interview must be organized. We try to inform candidates as early as possible. Please try to be as flexible as possible in the month of April.

Guidelines on the FWO interview can be found here.

Important dates

  • 02/12/2024 (5pm): Deadline proposal
  • 07/04/2025: Invitation to the FWO interview
  • 23/04-09/05/2025: Actual FWO interviews
  • 22/05/2025: Results
  • 01/10 or 01/11/2025: Start of the fellowship

Presentations and recordings

On 08/10 there was an information session at UGent marking the opening of the new call. The recording of the information session can be found here. The slides can be downloaded here.

The info session was structured as follows:

  • Alexandra Vandervelde (FWO): Basic information on the new call
  • Tom Geerinckx (UGent): Ethics
  • Thomas Van de Velde (UGent): Data management
  • Tom De Mette (UGent): Impact & scientific communication

 

On 14/11 there’s an info session planned for the group op starting postdoctoral fellows. More information TBA soon.

Contact

Team for national funding: vlaams-federaal@ugent.be

  • For general information/eligibility/…

Thijs De Jaeger, MS Teams

Sien Smits, MS Teams of 09 264 30 28

  • For budgetary questions:

 Liesbeth Erauw, MS Teams