Definition and purpose of Postdoctoral Research Fellowships
A postdoctoral fellow is regarded as a young researcher (generally up to 40 years of age), with a doctorate, who conducts research at a university in collaboration with a senior research mentor in order to develop his/her research capabilities.
Postdoctoral Fellowships Offered at the University of Pretoria
The UP Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme supports the following categories of postdoctoral fellows.
- A UP Postdoctoral Fellow is a recent doctoral graduate from UP or another university.
- A Senior UP Postdoctoral Fellow is a doctoral graduate who has successfully completed a postdoctoral fellowship of at least two years and has authored publications as a postdoctoral fellow.
- UP Co-funded Postdoctoral Fellow is a recent doctoral graduate from UP or another university.
Externally Funded Postdoctoral Fellows
UP also administers Externally Funded Postdoctoral Fellowship Programmes from different donors. The terms and conditions are as per the funder’s agreement and are made available as and when the fellowships are advertised.
Duration of Fellowship
- UP Co- funded Postdoctoral Fellowships are awarded for a period of up to two years UP Postdoctoral Fellowships are awarded for a period of up to two years.
- UP Senior Postdoctoral Fellowships are awarded for a period of up to three years.
The renewal of all postdoc fellowships is subject to availability of funding and submission of a satisfactory annual progress report.
Application Process
- The best way to start with is to first identify a potential programme and mentor. Browse through the university website at www.up.ac.za or do literature searches in your area of interest and with authors from the University of Pretoria. You can then contact them directly.
- Once you have identified a supervisor and agreed on the research project then the application should be completed on the prescribed form and submitted by the supervisor to the review committee for consideration.
Eligibility Criteria
- Postdoctoral fellowship candidates must have obtained their doctoral degrees within the last five years at the time of application.
- Postdoctoral fellowship candidates who have not graduated when applying must provide a letter of completion before commencing with the fellowship.
- Postdoctoral fellowship candidates should ideally not be over 40 years of age at the time of applying.
Registration Process
It is important to note that Postdoctoral Fellows have to register every academic year for the duration of their fellowship.
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