PROBio-Africa Fellowships

Overview

PROBio-Africa ( Promoting Research Opportunities for Biochemists in Africa) is a joint venture between FEBS, the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology  (IUBMB) and the Federation of African Societies of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (FASBMB).

The PROBio-Africa Fellowships Programme enables PhD students and postdoctoral fellows to spend up to six months (1-6 months) in the laboratory of a scientist in a FEBS country* who belongs to a FEBS Constituent Society.

In that way the awardees will get access to technologies and expertise that may not be readily available in their home countries, allowing them to grow their knowhow and skills, and contribute to building capacity in the molecular life sciences at home.

*A ‘FEBS country’ is a country in Europe and neighbouring regions that has a FEBS Constituent Society (a national Society that belongs to FEBS).

2025 call for applicants

The call for 2025 PROBio-Africa Fellowships is open from 15 January to 1 March 2025 with the following guidelines:

Eligibility

Applications are welcome from:

  1. Students officially enrolled in PhD programmes in African countries and affiliated with FASBMB (via their corresponding national societies) for short stays (1–6 months) in order to carry out research work that is a part of their PhD thesis.
  2. African postdoctoral fellows and new researchers (not more than 5 years after obtaining the PhD degree) affiliated with FASBMB (via their corresponding national societies) in order to carry experiments that require special techniques and expertise or to facilitate other forms of scientific collaboration or advanced training.

Current awardees may apply for no more than one 6-month extension. For applications requesting an extension, the research proposal should contain a detailed report of the activities and results obtained during the first stay.

The host should be based at an eligible not-for-profit institution or university within a FEBS country. Home and host labs must not be from the same country.

No more than one application for a PROBio-Africa Fellowship will be awarded from any given home laboratory.

No more than two applications for a PROBio-Africa Fellowship will be awarded to visit any given host laboratory.

Applications

The application period opens on 15 January and ends on 1 March 2025.

The following documents should be provided in English:

  1. An outline of the research proposal, sufficiently detailed, on no more than two A4-sized pages of single-spaced text set out under the following headings (to be uploaded in pdf format):
    i. title;
    ii. nature of the work and outline of the experiments proposed;
    iii. why it is necessary to travel to a laboratory in another country to perform the work;
    The proposal should be submitted as a single PDF file.
  2. A budget, in which all other sources of support, whether awarded or applied for, should be mentioned. All budgeting should be in EUR.
  3. The applicant’s short curriculum vitae and a list of publications as per the provided template (for PhD students: any available academic transcript).
  4. The membership certificate of the applicant showing affiliation with FASBMB (via the corresponding national Society) at the time of application.
  5. Proof of proficiency in English (or the official language of the host laboratory)
  6. A letter of recommendation from the PhD student’s supervisor, postdoctoral fellow’s mentor, or head of the department of the applicant’s institution, in which the benefits of the award are highlighted.
  7. A letter of agreement from the head of the host laboratory (and head of the institution, if applicable), declaring the willingness to accept the applicant. The letter should indicate how the receiving institute will contribute to the costs of the visit (for example, consumables, bench fees, or additional living expenses).
  8. A list of papers published by the hosting supervisor during the last five years and current projects in the laboratory.
  9. A membership certificate of the supervisor showing affiliation with FEBS (via the corresponding national Society).

All requested documents should be submitted as one pdf file (in the above mentioned order) and sent to the email address [email protected] no later than 1 March 2025, 23:59 CET.

Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Conditions of awards

  • Awards will be provided to offset the costs of travel to/from and living expenses in the FEBS country of the host lab for the 1–6 months duration of the research visit.
  • Awards will be granted for a maximum of EUR 7000 (approximately EUR 2000 for travel costs, and EUR 5000 for living expenses).
  • Important: Money will be transferred to the awardees after their arrival in the host country.
  • Travel costs will provide for economy airfares, incidental expenses directly related to the travel, local bus fares to and from the airport, and visa costs.
  • The awards will not cover health insurance, insurance against damages, or research expenses at the host laboratory.
  • Travel should commence within six months of the award being granted. It is expected that suitable matching funds will be available from the laboratories hosting the PhD students/postdoctoral fellows or new investigators to cover their living expenses for any extended stays.
  • Applicants are required to make a full declaration of all other support received in connection with the proposed visit. An award cannot be used to supplement scientific visits otherwise fully covered from other sources.
  • Awards will not cover courses, symposia, meetings or congresses.
  • Applicants must be residents of countries that are members of FASBMB and affiliated with FASBMB (via their corresponding national societies) and should be PhD students, postdoctoral fellows, or researchers within 5 years of receiving the PhD degree [exceptions, duly justified in the application, in cases where studies were delayed such as, by maternity leave (18 months per child), prolonged illness or other personal reasons].
  • Within 3 months of completion of the fellowship, awardees should send a written scientific report (no longer than 2 pages) signed by the hosting supervisor and awardee, and a budget report (including copies of all receipts covered by the award). Successful awardees should indicate the support from the IUBMB-FEBS-FASBMB PROBio-Africa Fellowships Programme in all outputs (conference presentations, publications, etc.).

Assistance

IUBMB and FEBS provide a list of the laboratories willing to host PhD students and fellows from Africa so that the applicants can contact them directly: see https://iubmb.org/probio-africa-host-labs/.

If the applicant prefers to contact a non-listed laboratory (up to three laboratories), FEBS may assist in contacting it after receiving and reviewing the following documents from the applicant (sent to [email protected]):

  1. A cover letter with full contact details (including an official email address) of the applicant’s potential hosting supervisor(s).
  2. The applicant’s short curriculum vitae and a list of publications as per the provided template (including an official academic transcript from the institution for PhD students).
  3. Proof of proficiency in English (or the official language of the host laboratory).
  4. The certificate of membership of one of the FASBMB Constituent Societies at the time of application.
  5. A letter of recommendation from the PhD student’s supervisor, postdoctoral fellow’s mentor, or head of the department of the applicant’s institution, highlighting the benefits of the award.

The request for this assistance should be sent at least one month before the call deadline.

Selection of awardees

Selection of the awardees will be based on the following:

  • scientific quality of the research proposal
  • the recommendation letter from the PhD student’s supervisor, postdoctoral fellow’s mentor, or head of the department of the applicant’s institution
  • applicant’s CV, including publications
  • an official academic transcript from the applicant’s institution (for PhD students)
  • proof of proficiency in English (or the official language of the host laboratory)
  • scientific outputs, including publications of the hosting supervisor
  • scientific expertise, mentoring environment, available infrastructure, and availability of research funds in the host laboratory, to cover the proposed research plan
  • preference will be given to applications that establish new collaborations.

Awards will be announced no later than April 15, 2025.

The awarding of PROBio-Africa Fellowships is overseen by the PROBio-Africa Fellowship Committee.

Find an announcement of the 2024 awardees in the IUBMB website here.