The Physics for Future (P4F) is an MSCA COFUND programme aimed at hiring 60 fellows over two recruitment cycles in autumn 2023 and 2025. We are looking for talented postdoctoral researchers who completed their Ph.D. in Physics, and have no more than 8 years experience in research since their Ph.D. award. The duration of the fellowships is 24 months and include secondments ranging from 1 to 3 months.
Deadline of 1st call is 10 November 2023.
The P4F programme is coordinated by the Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences.
The fellowships are supported by Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action Co-funding for regional, national, and international programmes (COFUND) under the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme. The fellows are invited to submit bottom-up proposals in three broadly defined areas: Materials for Society, Matter under Extreme Conditions, and Emerging tools.
Candidate profile
The P4F fellowships are designed to help accomplished postdoctoral scientists with no more than 8 years of experience since their Ph.D. and with a proven track record develop their career through individual bottom-up projects.
It is an excellent choice for researchers who want to advance their careers in various fields of physics, such as:
- CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
- OPTICS
- NANO MATERIALS
- HIGH-ENERGY PHYSICS
- ASTROPHYSICS AND COSMOLOGY
- ATOMIC, MOLECULAR AND CHEMICAL PHYSICS
Eligibility criteria
To be eligible for P4F’s call, applicants must have a Ph.D. by the call deadline and have no more than 8 years of full-time equivalent (FTE) experience in research since they were awarded their doctorate degree. Extensions will be granted for justifiable career breaks. Researchers who have defended their doctoral thesis but have not yet formally received their degree are considered post-doctoral researchers and eligible to apply.
Recruited researchers can be of any nationality and must comply with the following mobility rule: they must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the Czech Republic for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before the deadline of the cofunded programme’s call. Compulsory national service, short stays such as holidays and time spent as part of a procedure for obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention are not taken into account.
Applicants awaiting approval of their refugee status in the Czech Republic will have a relaxed mobility rule, where the time spent waiting will not be considered part of their residence period.
Applications must be complete and must consist of all the parts described in the Guide for applicants including an endorsement from the selected supervisor.
Evaluation criteria
The evaluation process consists of two steps. First, the applicant’s written anonymised research proposal will be reviewed by three independent external expert evaluators. The proposals will be ranked according to the score and a maximum 60 proposals, which pass the 70% threshold, will be invited for interview.
The overall weight of the research proposal review will be 70 % (Excellence 50 %, Impact 25 %, Implementation 25 %).
For a detailed description of the criteria, please see the Guide for applicants.
Successful applicants will pass to the second round of the evaluation. The identity of the applicants will be revealed at this stage. They will be invited for a 45-minute interview to present their project, and respond to comments and questions. The results of both proposal evaluation and the interview will be gathered to establish the final ranking.
The interview weight in the evaluation is 30 % (50 % technical and scientific skills, 30 % CV, and 20 % non-scientific skills). For a detailed description of the criteria, please see the Guide for applicants.
Employment conditions
P4F fellows will be granted a 24-month MSCA COFUND fellowship, including full social security and health insurance, and will be employed by the Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences or ELI Beamlines Facility.
Fellowships include mobility allowances for relocation, including family (where applicable), and can provide a special needs allowance for researchers with disabilities.
Fellows will receive EUR 3200 gross per month as a salary, excluding any family allowances. This can be increased to approx. EUR 3400 per month if the fellow is entitled to a family allowance. Detailed information will be published in the Guide for applicants.
The P4F fellowship also provides generous contributions towards the research proposal costs (i.e. consumables, publications, travel).