Call for Proposals: Early-Career Women in Science Fund 2026 for early-career women researchers

Ednah Carrick April 30, 2026

0 965 2 minutes read

Closing Date: 22 May 2026

Call for Proposals: Early-Career Women in Science Fund 2026 for early-career women researchers

Early-Career Women in Science Fund

In line with ongoing commitments to foster a more equitable scientific community, the Diversity Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee is happy to announce the Early-Career Women in Science Fund to support initiatives that enhance the career development and visibility of early-career women in science.

The fund aims to advance the careers of women researchers by strengthening scientific networks and by increasing both national and international visibility within their respective fields. The fund may also be used to support the development of new skills and acquisition of qualifications that contribute to longer-term professional development.

The call for the year 2026 is open and proposals can be submitted the deadline. Doctoral researchers, postdoctoral scientists, and early-career group leaders based at iDiv or affiliated to the working group of an iDiv member at a research institution in Central Germany, are strongly encouraged to apply.

Background

This call for proposals targets early-career women researchers at critical stages of their academic progression. The fund aims to advance the careers of women researchers by strengthening scientific
networks and by increasing both national and international visibility within their respective fields. The fund may also be used to support the development of new skills and acquisition of qualifications that contribute to longer-term professional development.

Eligible Activities

Funding is dedicated to activities that meaningfully enhance the visibility and career prospects of early-career women in science within the broader scientific community. Eligible activities include (but are not limited to):

Research visits to a woman role model (scientists with recognised expertise in their field, who are willing to provide guidance and mentoring);
Chairing or organising sessions or workshops at national or international conferences;
Participation in targeted networking workshops at major conferences in the applicant’s field;
Activities that increase the visibility of the applicant’s research within the scientific community or to the general public;
Organisation of specific networking activities for women scientists at iDiv;
Attendance at, or organisation of, courses focused on scientific networking and visibility.
Please note: Regular conference participation as part of the research project is not eligible for funding and should be covered by the respective group leader regardless of the researcher’s gender.

Submission Process

Applicants must submit a short proposal explicitly stating how the proposed activity will positively contribute to their career.

There is no fixed maximum funding amount; however, the committee reserves the right to partially fund an application depending on the quality of the budget justification and the number of applications received.

Proposals should be prepared using the provided template and submitted as a single PDF file to Céline Bonnamy ([email protected]) by the deadline.

Evaluation

Submitted proposals will be assessed by the DEI Committee based on the following criteria:

To what extent will the activity contribute to the applicant’s visibility or the network?
To what extent will the activity enhance the applicant’s career development?
Is the requested funding reasonable in relation to the proposed activity?
Have other sources of funding been applied for? If not, has it been sufficiently explained why?

The committee will communicate the outcome of each decision in a short report sent directly to the applicant. For any questions regarding decisions or procedures, please contact Céline Bonnamy directly.

Reporting

Successful applicants may be asked to report back on their experience by giving a short presentation at iDiv organised by the combined group of successful applicants. In this way, more women scientists at iDiv will benefit from the experience and the fund will be brought to the attention of newcomers