Branco Weiss Fellowship 2027: Up to CHF 600,000 for Outstanding Postdoctoral Researchers to Pursue Groundbreaking Research Worldwide

Overview

The Branco Weiss Fellowship is an international research programme administered by ETH Zurich and founded by Dr. Branco Weiss. It is designed to support exceptional early-career researchers worldwide who want to pursue original, ambitious, and unconventional research projects that move beyond the mainstream of their disciplines. The programme aims to award up to ten fellowships each year across the natural sciences, engineering, social sciences, and humanities, allowing selected fellows to carry out their projects at suitable academic institutions globally.

Who can apply

The fellowship is open to researchers from all academic nationalities and disciplines who have completed their doctoral training and are ready to pursue independent postdoctoral research before taking up their first faculty-equivalent position. Applicants must demonstrate outstanding scientific or scholarly achievement, intellectual independence, and a willingness to connect their research with broader social, cultural, political, and economic issues. Candidates must also be able to identify an appropriate academic host institution and a prospective host supporting their proposed project, and they must be willing and able to travel to the Greater Zurich Area for the annual symposium.

What you get

Selected researchers receive up to CHF 600,000 in funding over a period of five years. This financial support provides fellows with the freedom to develop their own research vision, determine the direction of their work, choose an appropriate host institution, and explore unconventional scientific questions.

Key dates

Applications for the 2027 fellowship intake close on January 15, 2027, at 5:00 p.m. Central European Time. Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit their applications one to two days before the deadline.