Eligibility

You must be in the final year of your PhD studies or have no more than four years of postdoctoral research experience from the date of your PhD viva to the full application submission deadline. Time spent outside the research environment (i.e., career breaks) will be considered but has to be clearly mentioned in the application.

You do not have to be an Indian national or of Indian origin. You need not have undertaken your PhD in India.

You must have shown significant promise in your scientific career to date, which includes, but is not limited to; strong academic record, visits to conferences and workshops, and importantly, the vision to develop as an independent researcher.

It is mandatory that applicants carry out their Fellowship project in a laboratory that is not their Thesis laboratory or Thesis environment. If you have compelling reasons to continue in or return to your thesis laboratory, please contact the Office.

Fellowships may not be taken up prior to the completion of a successful PhD viva. The Fellowship must be started within one year of being awarded.

The final year or a majority of the final year of the Fellowship must be spent in host institution in India.

The host Institute in India is responsible for administering the Fellowship. Hence the award has to start in India before the 'Work outside host Institution' option can be availed. However, length of the start period may be negotiated between the Fellow and the host Institution.

You may apply even if you already hold another Fellowship. However, please note that if awarded, you will be required to make a choice between your current Fellowship and the India Alliance Fellowship. The India Alliance does not permit Fellows to overlap their India Alliance Fellowship with any other national or international Fellowship.

Sponsorship and supervision

You must have an eligible sponsoring institution (Host Institution) in India that will administer the Fellowship for the full duration of the award. The following roles are identified on the application:

Fellowship supervisor: in whose laboratory you intend to carry out the Fellowship project. This individual must have a contract of employment at the sponsoring host institution in India and have tenure beyond the duration of the proposed Fellowship. They should guarantee you access to laboratory space and resources required for the project; as well as provide relevant scientific guidance for the tenure of the Fellowship. This is mandatory for the preliminary and the full application.

Sponsor: Established senior researcher at the host institution; normally the head of department or director of the sponsoring host institution. They should:

• Support the application by agreeing that
• if an award is made, you will be granted the status and prerogatives of other academic staff of similar stature
• You will not have to spend more than two hours per week on activities unrelated to the fellowship (e.g. teaching duties);
• hold a contract of employment that extends beyond the grant;
• Sign up to the Award Conditions & Policies.

Please note that the Sponsor is required only for the Full application. In some cases, the Sponsor and Fellowship supervisor may be the same individual.

External Sponsor(s): The individual in whose laboratory you wish to utilize your “Work outside the host institution” provision. They should be able to guarantee that the applicant will have access to the facilities required and provide the required scientific support. A letter of support from this role is mandatory at the full application stage.

Mentor: This role has been specifically created for the applicant to provide a letter of recommendation in addition to the letter provided by the Fellowship Supervisor; therefore, the Mentor cannot be your Fellowship supervisor. They would typically be an established researcher who has known you for a significant period of time and can provide a detailed letter of recommendation on your abilities. They may be your thesis guide or current supervisor. In some cases, the External Sponsor and Mentor may be the same individual. A letter of recommendation from this role is mandatory for the preliminary and the full application.

Collaborator(s): Scientific/medical/academic colleagues associated with a research proposal and named in the body of the application. Typically these are individuals who will supply reagents, assist in specific protocols, provide resource services etc. They should be able to provide signed consent letters detailing the extent of their participation towards your research program, at the full application stage.

Resubmission Policy

Regardless of your previous applications to the India Alliance, all applicants have to make a preliminary application to every competition.

If you are not short-listed at the preliminary application stage, you may apply to the same scheme, subject to meeting the eligibility criteria for the scheme.

Resubmission after consideration of a Full application is not permitted in any scheme. If the Full application has been reviewed by the India Alliance’s Selection Committee, and it was unsuccessful at eitherthe short-listing or interview stage, the applicant may not re-apply to the same scheme. This implies that applicants would have only one opportunity to compete per scheme, once they are into the full application stage. Therefore, it is very important for applicants to carefully consider the timing of their application.