Funding & benefits
Over the five-year term, the salary grant amounts to 438 874 euros per Academy Research Fellow , which corresponds to a monthly salary of 5,000 euros. The funding recipients may later apply for funding for research costs with a separate application.
The applicant is an independent researcher with 3–9 years of experience since completing their doctoral degree at the end of the call deadline.
The aim of the funding for posts as Academy Research Fellow is to support researchers in gaining competence for demanding research positions and establishing their status as independent researchers in the international research community. A post as Academy Research Fellow provides a researcher with a good and diverse opportunity to work independently on their research and to contribute to developing the research in their field.
As an Academy Research Fellow, you are encouraged to engage in international research collaboration and mobility across international and sectoral borders. Successful applicants will have been engaged in successful scientific publication and collaboration since gaining their doctoral degree.
Before you write your application in the online services (SARA), make sure to carefully read the call text below as well as the Read more section, especially the funding terms and conditions. If the call text and the funding terms and conditions conflict, the terms and conditions should always be considered primary.
Read the full call text below.Click on the link below to print the text or save it in PDF format.
Successful applicants will have been engaged in successful scientific publication and collaboration since gaining their doctoral degree.
When applying for funding for a research post as Academy Research Fellow, you apply for funding for your own salary for five years. Academy Research Fellows work on research plans of a high scientific quality. They have built extensive research networks and the funding allows them to develop their skills of academic leadership and to establish themselves as independent researchers in the international scientific community.
“the funding includes an overhead share of 12.5%).”
Eligible programmes & fields
Use the verified study fields above for subject-fit screening and confirm the exact eligible degree on the provider’s official programme page before applying.
About this opportunity
Over the five-year term, the salary grant amounts to 438 874 euros per Academy Research Fellow , which corresponds to a monthly salary of 5,000 euros. The funding recipients may later apply for funding for research costs with a separate application. The applicant is an independent researcher with 3–9 years of experience since completing their doctoral degree at the end of th...
The opportunity currently maps to study areas including All study areas. Use the programme and eligibility sections below to decide whether the opportunity matches your academic background before opening the official application portal.
Key dates
Eligibility requirements
- The applicant is a researcher with 3–9 years of experience since completing their doctoral degree (degree certificate issued 25 Sept 2010–25 Sept 2016), or up to 13 years, provided that they have since completed medical specialist training.
- Applicants who have completed their doctoral degree more than nine years ago can be considered only for special reasons (maternity, paternity, parental or childcare leave, military service or nonmilitary service, or long-term illness). If you plead these special reasons, justify them in the application under Personal data/CV > Degrees > Additional information. If these reasons are confidential, the applicant must get in touch with the programme’s contact person named in the call text (see Contacts).
- Mobility since completing their doctoral degree is required from applicants for funding for a research post as Academy Research Fellow (Mobility requirement). If an application for funding for a research post as Academy Research Fellow concerns the same research environment where the applicant worked while completing their doctoral degree, the applicant must have at least six months of research experience from another research environment or research-supporting experience from another sector since PhD completion.
- You can find detailed guidelines for fulfilling the mobility requirement in the index of application guidelines (Mobility: Academy Research Fellows and postdoctoral researchers).
- Special conditions and restrictions
- If you are appointed to a professorship for an indefinite term while your application is being processed, please notify us without delay. Academy Research Fellow funding is not granted to persons who hold tenured professorships or other corresponding senior-level research posts at research organisations.
- Researcher who have received Academy funding for a research post as Postdoctoral Researcher cannot be granted Academy Research Fellow funding until the end of the Postdoctoral Researcher funding period.
- A person applying for post as an Academy Research Fellow may be granted funding for one five-year term only.
- We will not process a funding application if the applicant has been found guilty of research misconduct in the three years preceding the year of the call.
- The research councils which started in the beginning of 2019 will update their science policies in May‒June. Funding decisions are based on the policies of each research council. The policies are updated on the research council’s website before the call opens. Read the policies of the research council before submitting your application.
- Research experience required.
- Publications required.
“Applicants who have completed their doctoral degree more than nine years ago can be considered only for special reasons (maternity, paternity, parental or childcare leave, military service or nonmilitary service, or long-term illness).”
Should you apply?
This is a PhD / Doctoral/Postdoctoral-level opportunity working in All study areas. The decisive requirement, in Research Council of Finland's words, is: "Applicants who have completed their doctoral degree more than nine years ago can be considered only for special reasons (maternity, paternity, parental or childcare leave, military service or nonmilitary service, or long-term illness)." Expect to prepare 4 documents (listed below).
Check these against your profile
- Academic level: PhD / Doctoral or Postdoctoral.
- Study area: All study areas.
- Study destination: Finland.
This is a factual checklist of verified programme requirements, not a personalised eligibility decision. The awarding institution makes the final eligibility decision.
Required documents
- CV appendix following the template structure, no more than two pages
- CV is appended under Personal data/CV, no more than two pages
- Finnish doctoral degree certificate or English-language doctoral degree certificate of a degree obtained abroad; please do not append any transcripts
- Invitation by foreign university or research institute, if the research or part of it will be conducted abroad; do not append any letters of recommendation.
Application process
- If these reasons are confidential, the applicant must get in touch with the programme’s contact person named in the call text (see Contacts).
Application checklist
- Review the official application page for the complete list of required documents.
- Use the official application route linked on this page rather than a third-party submission form.
This checklist organises the verified requirements already shown on this page; it does not replace the provider’s official instructions.
Frequently asked questions
How much does this award pay?
Research Council of Finland states: "the funding includes an overhead share of 12.5%)."
Who can apply?
In Research Council of Finland's own words: "Applicants who have completed their doctoral degree more than nine years ago can be considered only for special reasons (maternity, paternity, parental or childcare leave, military service or nonmilitary service, or long-term illness)."
What level of study is it for?
It is for PhD / Doctoral or Postdoctoral level applicants at Research Council of Finland in Finland.
Is there a deadline?
The official page does not state a closing date. Confirm timing directly with Research Council of Finland before preparing an application.
What documents are required?
The official page lists 4 items: CV appendix following the template structure, no more than two pages, CV is appended under Personal data/CV, no more than two pages, Finnish doctoral degree certificate or English-language doctoral degree certificate of a degree obtained abroad; please do not append any transcripts, Invitation by foreign university or research institute, if the research or part of it will be conducted abroad; do not append any letters of recommendation.
How was this information verified?
Every fact on this page was read from Research Council of Finland's official pages, which ScholarshipFrontier rechecks automatically; the sources and the last check date are listed at the bottom of the page.
Official sources & verification
ScholarshipFrontier checks official scholarship, admissions and programme pages and keeps source evidence separate from the public summary.
Official sources last checked: 27 Oct 2026 · Verified 2 h ago
About Research Council of Finland
Research Council of Finland is based in Finland and publishes this opportunity on its own official pages, which ScholarshipFrontier reads directly.