Boost your scientific career in our international postdoctoral program focused on excellent research in a multidisciplinary environment
PROBIST is a post-doctoral fellowship Program lead by the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology. All together, 61 fellowships will be awarded and implemented in top research in the Barcelona and Tarragona area (Spain) .
BIST brings closer together seven independent Catalan internationally recognized research centres. The centres participating in the PROBIST program are:
• The Institute of Photonic Sciences
• Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia
• Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology
• Institute for High Energy Physics
• Institute for Research in Biomedicine
Also affiliated to BIST are
• Centre for Genomic Regulation
• Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia
PROBIST applicants will have complete research freedom. Applicants may subscribe to one or several generic research topics published with the calls. Once pre-selected they may design their research project proposal with a research group of their choice in the participating BIST centres. Successful candidates will be hosted by the selected research group. They will have full access to facilities, seminars and training programmes of the BIST centres. Networking activities shall facilitate inter-centre and inter-disciplinary exchange and collaborations. PROBIST will offer fellows the opportunity to opt for secondments from a pool of international institutions with which BIST centres have institutional agreements or collaborations.
The fellowships are granted for 3 years including:
• An annual gross salary of 36.252,82€ plus a single payment of 1504,89€ relocation support (Spanish tax and social security deductions apply),
• Close mentoring and supervision through prestigious Senior Researchers,
• A personalized career development plan,
• A training program for scientific and transferable skills.
PROBIST fellows will receive training in entrepreneurial skills and technology transfer issues, such as industrial and intellectual property, industrial collaborations, spin-off development, and other related subjects. BIST offers “Science to Business” courses with the goal to raise awareness of business opportunities and also to accelerate the transfer of technologies developed in BIST centres to the market.
PROBIST counts with an important number of active collaboration R&D with local and international companies and research institutions. Several BIST centres are also closely associated with major research hospitals in the Barcelona area. BIST has also established extensive collaboration agreements with major technology centres in Catalonia. PROBIST fellows will be encouraged to undertake visits and short-term stays and secondments with these partners whenever relevant to their field of research.
Each BIST centre offers an internationally renowned, attractive research environment, complemented by a range of training activities that will help highly qualified young scientists to develop the skills necessary for a successful career. The high interdisciplinary nature of BIST makes it an excellent setting for fellows to access an extensive offer of scientific seminars, courses and workshops.
PROBIST fellows will be able to participate in a number of existing programmes, including:
• Seminar programmes of the BIST centres
• Researcher exchange and networking programmes with key academic partners and including international conferences and workshops organised by BIST centres.
In its effort to establish an outstanding long-term training programme, BIST is planning a variety of training initiatives for postdocs, to support them in the different stages of their career development, by exploring the different options for becoming successful leading scientist. Along this process, fellows should acquire responsibility in conducting their own research project in a highly competitive environment (effective research, leadership skills, strategic thinking, ethical research responsibility, technical workshops), and awareness and responsibility for their own career progression.
BIST is aware that for training the scientific leaders of the future, involves providing them with tools and aptitudes on transferable skills which will allow them to excel in both, the academic and industrial worlds. The European Charter for Researchers requires that “all researchers … are given the opportunity for professional development and for improving their employability through access to measures for the continuing development of skills and competencies”. In this regard, PROBIST will offer courses and seminars specifically designed to foster these abilities.
The actions included in the programme are focused on:
1) training in leadership skills;
2) offering opportunities to assume responsibility;
3) offering tools to be active in own career progression plan.
One of the main objectives of PROBIST is to provide high quality supervision offering:
• Targeted mentoring and access to a wide variety of scientific activities, services, and networks.
• Have close mentoring: The PROBIST research project chosen and performed by the fellow will be under the supervision of the group leader, who at the same time will be shaping, together with the fellow, a personalized career development plan (PCDP). The goal of this plan will be to develop and foster the individual competences of the fellow.
The calls for candidatures will be open to everybody but special eligibility criteria and a multistep evaluation procedure will apply. There are no restrictions on gender, age, ethnic groups, national or social origin, religion or belief, sexual orientation, language, disability, political opinion, and social or economic conditions. BIST and its associated centres are committed to pro-active policies on equal opportunities and gender issues.
Please review the eligibility and evaluation criteria and carefully read the instructions on how to submit an application before applying.
Applications will exclusively be accepted through the on-line application platform. You will be informed on the state of your application at all stages. The main means of communication during the formal process will be by e-mail. The entire selection process will be managed under strict control of privacy rules.
Tentative calls schedule:
Call 1: 1 September 2017 – Deadline: 1 November 2017
Interviews: from 15 to 19 January 2018 (exact days to be confirmed)
Incorporation foreseen from 03/2018 (*)
Call 2: 1 February 2018 – Deadline: 1st April 2018
Interviews: from 28 May to 1 June 2018 (exact days to be confirmed)
Incorporation foreseen from 08 to 09/2018 (*)
Call 3: 10 June 2018 – Deadline 15th September 2018
Interviews: from 12 to 16 November 2018 (exact days to be confirmed)
Incorporation foreseen from 01 to 02/2019 (*)
Call 4: 1 December 2018 – Deadline 1st February 2019
Interviews: from 28 March to 1 April 2019 (exact days to be confirmed)
Incorporation foreseen from 06/2019 (*)
(*) the exact date of incorporation will be agreed with the host centre once the award is granted. The indicated entry dates are tentative and may be negotiated with the corresponding host centre.
Please check back frequently for updated information and dates.
To be admitted to the review process, candidates must comply with the following eligibility criteria:
• Presenting complete applications including all requested compulsory information and documentation.
• Having not spent more than 12 months of the prior 36 months in Spain, at the time of the call deadline. You will be required to confirm your compliance through a self-declaration.
• Be in possession of a PhD degree at the time of the call deadline. Please provide evidence when you apply (e.g. scanned PhD-degree or documents that proof having read a successful PhD at the moment of the call deadline).
• Having not been awarded their PhD degree more than 5 years ago, at the time of the call deadline. Exceptions are made for documented periods of parental leave or serious illness. Other equivalent exceptions may be considered when properly documented and motivated by the applicant, e.g, in case of candidates from underdeveloped countries, minorities, and for applicants that pursued their studies under comparatively unfavourable conditions. Please provide evidence when you apply (for instance uploading additional documentation).
• Being main author in at least one publication in an internationally reputed journal at the time of the call deadline. Only accepted and published in print or online papers are eligible.
The evaluation of eligible candidates will be carried out by an external, independent selection panel. The evaluation will be objective, independent, free of conflicts of interest and the selection will be based on merits, equal opportunities and freedom of choice of research.
The review procedure will be carried out in various steps:
- First review by the selection panel reviewing the documentation submitted with the application. General suitability for PROBIST will be evaluated (review 1).
- Invitation of pre-selected candidates to prepare a research proposal with the groups they want to be hosted at. A research proposal that is finally submitted needs to have the hosting commitment by the corresponding GL. Presenting a proposal is a requirement for being invited to the next step (interview).
- Second review by the selection panel: interviews and presentation of the research proposal (review 2).
- Decision on awardees, reserve list and rejected candidatures. Selected candidates (awardees) will be offered the grant. Rejected offers may be offered to candidates from the reserve list.
The evaluation criteria to be applied to review 1 are:
• Scientific achievements: results, previous research experience and skills, scientific results, awards, intersectoral and international links etc. (50%)
• References: referees’ evaluation, referees’ experience (25%)
• Motivation and potential impact on the candidate’s career (25%)
Only candidates with an initial evaluation of 50% or higher are considered “pre-selected” and shall pass to the next step.
The evaluation criteria to be applied to review 2 are:
• Scientific achievements (40%): assessed based on application material and panel interview: scientific results, references, previous research experience and skills, as well as fellowships and awards that had been obtained in the past.
• Scientific merit of the research proposal (30%): Scientific quality and originality of the proposal.
• Impact on the candidate’s career development and prospective, as well as strategic relevance (30%): increased learning curve of the candidate; expose to new ideas and areas; interaction with different groups and centres, internationalization strategy, tech transfer (where applicable), etc.
Intended re-integration of scientists after a career break is encouraged. Equal opportunities is a principle for the selection process. BIST and the participating centres aim at equal gender balance and pay special attention to candidatures coming from unfavourable conditions.
Applicants will be informed on the progress at all stages of the process. The candidates being assessed in the second review stage will receive an evaluation report for their candidature. The default means for communication is e-mail.
This opportunity has expired. It was originally published here:
http://bist.eu/probist/