The call for applications is currently closed
Applications are currently closed.
Applications for the 2024 round will open in late 2023.
The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), in association with the Australian Academy of Science, offers postdoctoral fellowships for Australian researchers to work in institutes affiliated with JSPS.
The JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship Program for Foreign Researchers provides fellowships for Australian postdoctoral researchers to conduct, under the guidance of their Japanese hosts, cooperative research with leading research groups in universities and other Japanese institutions. The program aims to help such researchers advance their own research while contributing to the advancement of research in Japan and the counterpart countries.
To allow the smooth process of research in Japan, sufficient consultation should be made in advance between the candidate and their prospective host researcher. Mutual agreement regarding the research plan, conditions at the host laboratory and the candidate’s status under the fellowship should be established prior to application.
As a rule, the fellowship awardees (fellows) shall stay in Japan continuously during the tenure of their fellowships and concentrate on their research at the host institution. Fellows must not engage in other work, either paid or unpaid, during their tenure.
Host researchers in Japan must be employed full time or classified as being employed full time at a listed research university or research institution.
Applications are invited from suitably qualified researchers in any field of the physical sciences, life sciences, engineering technology and medicine.
Strongly desirable research subfields:
Desirable research subfields:
Please note that although JSPS accepts applications in the humanities and the social sciences under its broader program, the Academy is unable to accept applications in these two areas for this current round.
Candidates must be Australian citizens or Australian permanent residents, and must be living in Australia at the time of application. Australian permanent residents need to be citizens of countries that have diplomatic relations with Japan.
Persons of Japanese nationality, dual nationality where one is Japanese, or candidates who have permanent residency in Japan are not eligible to apply.
Candidates must hold a PhD degree, which must have been received on or after 2 April 2017, or be scheduled to receive a doctorate degree before the proposed fellowship commencement date.
As per section 5 (note 3) of the JSPS Application Guidelines, maternity or parental leave can be deducted from the time since receiving the PhD degree, should this reduce the time to less than the eligible period of within 6 years. For this career interruption to be included, please note that a different application form must be completed. This can be requested through the Academy’s Grants Administration Officer (grants@science.org.au).
If the PhD degree has not been conferred at the time of application, the candidate must obtain a letter from their institution stating that—at the time of application—the applicant has met all the conditions required for completion of the degree. The letter must also include the specific date on which the degree will be conferred. This must be before the proposed fellowship commencement date. Please note that specific completion requirements may vary between institutions. Candidates are strongly encouraged to clarify the requirements with their awarding institution prior to submitting the fellowship application. This may involve seeking advice from the institution's Office of the Registrar, for example.
Candidates who have previously been awarded a fellowship under the JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship for Research in Japan (Standard – P, and Pathway to University positions in Japan – PU) are not eligible.
If it becomes known before or after selection that a candidate does not meet the application eligibility, their selection may be cancelled, or the fellowship terminated. If the fellowship has already commenced, the candidate may be required to reimburse JSPS any paid allowances.
Fellowships are awarded for a period of 12 (min 365 days) to 24 full months (max 730 days). Successful candidates must start the fellowship in Japan between 1 April and 30 November 2023.
The amounts of the awards indicated below are subject to change.
If the fellow resides in Japan on the date their award letter is issued, the air ticket to Japan and settling-in allowance will not be provided.
A research grant ‘Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research’ (Tokubetsu Kenkyuin Shorei-hi) is available to cover cooperative research-related expenses. Application for these grants is made by the host researcher through their institution.
Applications are to be submitted online and must include the following attachments as pdf files:
Note: All documents must be in English.
Applications are considered carefully against the selection criteria by a committee of scientists with diverse expertise. The decisions of the committee are based on the assessed competitiveness of the proposal. The Academy is not able to enter discussion or correspondence regarding the reasons why an application is successful or not.
The fellow and their host researchers must submit a final report to JSPS within one month of the completion of the fellowship tenure. A copy of the fellow’s report to JSPS must also be submitted to the Academy, together with an additional report to the Academy within three months of completing the fellowship. The Academy will provide a template to the fellow for the second report.
Awardees will be asked to participate in surveys aimed at improving the fellowship program.
The confirmed quota for Australian nominees in the 2023 round is 12 fellowship places. The Academy will assess and rank the applications and provide JSPS with a nomination list of 12 recommended applicants, but the final selection of successful applicants will be made by JSPS.
It is expected that the Academy will notify applicants of its nominations in late January 2023, and JSPS will then need to approve the Academy nominations.
Approximately three months after receiving the nominations, JSPS will advise the final selection decision to both the candidate and the Academy. Please take this period into consideration when arranging your proposed travel dates.
For further information contact:
Grants Administration Officer
International Programs
Australian Academy of Science
GPO Box 783, Canberra ACT 2601
Phone: 02 6201 9467
Email: grants@science.org.au
This project is supported by the Australian Government Department of Industry, Science and Resources.
© 2023 Australian Academy of Science
