Opportunity profile: Bridging the early career funding gap

One-year fellowships from a Swiss medical research foundation help young researchers find their feet

Top tips

• The IBSA Foundation likes researchers with courage and a desire to expand their horizons.
• Projects must be achievable within a year, so don’t recycle proposals for longer fellowships.
• Be clear about the design of your experiments, including preliminary results if possible.
• Projects can be part of a larger research effort as long as there is a distinct aim.

The first stages of a research career can be financially precarious, so having your own funding, rather than relying on a supervisor, can make the difference when getting your foot in the door.