Opportunities for Postdoctoral Research and Fellowship in Israel
Postdoctoral research has grown by leaps and bounds in fields such as science, social science, management and humanities. The scope of postdoctoral research in Israeli institutions is massive. Students can be part of cutting edge research projects here.
Those dedicated to research would do well to pursue postdoctoral fellowship in Israel. Some of the fellowships on offer include engineering, philosophy, psychology and physics. Students can opt for a teaching or non-teaching postdoctoral research fellowship depending upon their preferences. Council of Higher Education in Israel has created opportunities for international students who want to pursue research.
Postdoctoral fellowships: These offer students a chance to continue research under the guidance of a professor and study in groups for superior research and development projects. Students can avail postdoctoral fellowships chiefly in English medium. However, if postdoctoral fellows also wish to take up a teaching post, many institutions need them to know Hebrew. Postdoctoral fellowship lasts for 2 to 3 years.
Admission Requirements: Candidates should complete their doctorate prior to application. They must also submit fellowship request no later than 3 years (in some cases, this period is 5 years) following the completion of their PhD. All postdoctoral fellows must complete their studies before 7 years has elapsed since the receipt of the PhD.
Admission Procedure: For postdoctoral fellowships, the procedure is as follows. A special committee comprising the rector and representatives of different academic departments assess the past work of the candidate as well as his/her research proposal before deciding on the admission. Further proposal for studies should also be included in this process.
Financial Aid: Fellows generally receive a grant from the host institution. Sometimes, the grants are also provided by external funding. Stipends that are offered as grants are not taxed in Israel generally. Postdoctoral fellows can receive numerous scholarships at the same point in time from varied funds as per the guidelines for each. Many organisations offer grants for postdoctoral fellowships. This may be based on academic excellence/field of study/country of origin and so on.
Types of Postdoctoral Fellowships: Many public and private funds are available for granting scholarships for postdoctoral fellows. Each department and faculty provides candidates with grants and scholarships that they can avail. Some of the prominent postdoctoral fellow scholarships are the Lady Davis Fellowship Trust, Golda Meir Fellowship Trust, Azrieli Foundation and National Institute for Psychobiology in Israel.