IF@ULB is a European postdoctoral programme, COFUNDed by the Université libre de Bruxelles and the European Commission within the framework of MSCA. The programme will enable ULB to recruit 63 international postdoctoral researchers between 2018 and 2023, in three calls.
The current call offers 21 positions in one of the ULB research centres.
The positions are open to researchers in all fields, according to a bottom up approach. The evaluation procedure will be organised through three panels: Social Sciences and Humanities, Physical and Engineering Sciences, Life Sciences.
This comprehensive fellowship programme will provide excellent Experienced Researchers with the opportunity to conduct frontier research and receive broad training in an environment of scientific excellence, under the supervision of renowned academics, and to benefit from an extensive collaboration network with academic and non-academic institutions. To discover the diversity and the excellence of our research centres and find the appropriate supervisor for your project, see the dedicated webpage Life at ULB.
IF@ULB is based on an efficient triple “i” dimension and a strong training philosophy that will give the postdoctoral fellows the opportunity to boost their future career inside or outside academia:
International mobility: ULB promotes internationalisation which is at the core of its research and teaching activities (e.g. 63% of postdoctoral researchers come from abroad). The University highly encourages international collaboration through bilateral agreements, institutional cooperation and international programmes such as Erasmus Mundus programme. IF@ULB fellows will benefit from the network of their supervisors and vice versa, thus opening up new international collaboration opportunities that will outlast the duration of the fellowships.
Interdisciplinarity is intrinsic part of ULB’s research and training philosophy. As ULB is a comprehensive university covering all major research fields, it encourages close interactions between researchers of different fields. In this context, ULB has several Interdisciplinary Institutes with a view to promoting innovative interdisciplinary projects that are expected to open up new fields of investigation.
Inter-sectoral exposure is ensured via the well-established collaboration and interaction between ULB research units, industry and societal stakeholders in all fields of research. ULB is actively involved in the regional development in both the Brussels-Capital and Walloon Regions. (see list of partners below).
IF@ULB fellows will benefit from a comprehensive career development programme, adapted to the needs of each postdoctoral researcher, with activities offered at the level of both the research unit and the university:
Individual career development support and coaching
Research-based training (research seminars, specialised courses, etc.)
Transferable soft skills training (open science, research communication, languages, research funding & grant writing, project management, research supervision, teacher training, etc.)
Eligibility criteria
Applicants of any age and of any nationality are eligible.
Eligible applicants are Experienced Researchers, i.e.
Holders of a PhD degree obtained max. 7 years before the call deadline.
Applicants without a PhD, provided they have documented full-time equivalent research experience of minimum 4 and maximum 11 years prior to the call deadline.
An eligibility extension of 15 weeks per child is granted in case of maternity
Eligible applicants must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Belgium for more than 12 months during the 3 years preceding the call deadline.
There are no restrictions on scientific domain. A member of ULB academic staff must explicitly accept to supervise and train the applicant to integrate them in their group.
Call application
The Guide for Applicants for the first call will help you to prepare your application file. The Guide also provides detailed information about the evaluation and selection procedure, which involves three stages: an eligibility check, a remote expert evaluation and a panel review.
The applicant must identify a supervisor at ULB and obtain a letter of acceptance from them. If the applicant has not yet identified a supervisor, they can consult the ULB Research Inventory.
Please find below templates for your application file:
Research proposal template (mandatory)
CV template (mandatory)