Senckenberg Global Fellowships in Germany for Global South researchers 2026/2027

Senckenberg funds early career scientists from the Global South to spend a few months on a research project inside one of Germany's largest natural history research institutions. You do not arrive with a fixed assignment: you find a scientific host there and design the project together.

What the fellowship pays

The monthly rate depends on your stage. Doctoral candidates receive 1,600 € a month and postdoctoral researchers 2,700 €, for three months and in selected cases up to six. A one-time travel allowance is added on top. The award cannot run alongside other project funding for the same period, because the institute rules out double funding.

Who can apply

The programme is open to doctoral candidates and postdoctoral researchers from countries of the Global South, using the list the funder publishes. You need a master's or doctoral degree in one of the institute's research areas, which span biodiversity, anthropology, geology, collection-based research, genomics and conservation ecology. Access to collections holding tens of millions of objects is part of what you are applying for.

Find your host first

This is the step people underestimate. Before you apply you contact a suitable scientist at the institute who agrees to host you, and together you shape a research topic. Your application then needs a letter of support from that host explaining how your stay adds value on both sides. Without an agreed host there is no application.

Deadline

Applications close on 1 October 2026, the second of two rounds the institute runs each year. The online form opens four weeks before the deadline, processing takes up to eight weeks, and once approved the fellowship has to start within three months. Plan the conversation with your prospective host well before the form appears.