Overview

In that way the awardees will get access to technologies and expertise that may not be readily available in their home countries, allowing them to grow their knowhow and skills, and contribute to building capacity in the molecular life sciences at their home institutions.

Eligibility

• Applications are welcomed from:

1. Students officially enrolled in PhD programmes in Latin American countries and affiliated with PABMB (via their corresponding national societies) to carry out research work that is a part of their PhD thesis.
2. Latin American postdoctoral fellows and new researchers (not more than 5 years after obtaining the PhD degree) affiliated with PABMB (via their corresponding national societies) to carry experiments that require special techniques and expertise or to facilitate other forms of scientific collaboration or advanced training. Some discretion will be made for duly justified career breaks, such as maternity leave (18 months per child), prolonged illness or other personal reasons.

• Current awardees may apply for no more than one 6-month extension. For applications requesting an extension, the research proposal should contain a detailed report of the activities and results obtained during the first stay.
• The host should be based at an eligible not-for-profit institution or university within a FEBS country. A ‘FEBS country’ is a country in Europe and neighbouring regions that has a FEBS Constituent Society (a national Society that belongs to FEBS).
• No more than one application for a PROBio-LatAm Fellowship will be awarded from any given home laboratory.
• No more than two applications for a PROBio- LatAm Fellowship will be awarded to visit any given host laboratory.

Applications

The call for 2027 PROBio-LatAm Fellowships will open in Spring 2027 (exact dates to be announced). The following documents should be provided in English via the online application platform:

• An outline of the research proposal, sufficiently detailed, on no more than two A4-sized pages of single-spaced text set out under the following headings: (i) title; (ii) nature of the work and outline of the experiments proposed; (iii) why it is necessary to travel to a laboratory in another country to perform the work. The proposal should be submitted as a single PDF file.

In case of the extension, the research proposal should contain a detailed report of the activities and results obtained during the first stay.

• A budget, in which all other sources of support, whether awarded or applied for, should be mentioned. All budgeting should be in EUR.
• The applicant’s short curriculum vitae and a list of publications as per the provided template (for PhD students: any available academic transcript).
• The membership certificate of the applicant showing affiliation with PABMB (via the corresponding national Society) at the time of application.
• Proof of proficiency in English (or the official language of the host laboratory)
• A letter of recommendation from the PhD student’s supervisor, postdoctoral fellow’s mentor, or head of the department of the applicant’s institution, in which the benefits of the award are highlighted.
• A letter of agreement from the head of the host laboratory (and head of the institution, if applicable), declaring the willingness to accept the applicant. The letter should indicate how the receiving institute will contribute to the costs of the visit (for example, consumables, bench fees, or additional living expenses).
• A list of papers published by the host supervisor during the last five years and current projects in the laboratory.
• A membership certificate of the host supervisor showing affiliation with FEBS (via the corresponding national Society).

Condition of the award

• Awards will be provided to offset the costs of travel to/from and living expenses in the FEBS country of the host laboratory for the 3–6 months duration of the research visit. Travel costs will provide for economy airfares, incidental expenses directly related to the travel, local bus fares to/from the airport, and visa costs.
• Awards will be granted for a maximum of EUR 10,500 (up to EUR 2,000 for travel costs and EUR 8,500 for living expenses for a stay of six months). If the research visit is shorter than six months, the living expenses will be the following: EUR 7,100 for five months; EUR 5,700 for four months; and EUR 4,300 for three months. Money will be transferred to the awardees after their arrival in the host country.
• The awards will not cover health insurance, insurance against damages, or research expenses at the host laboratory.
• The research visit should commence within six months of the award being granted. It is expected that suitable matching funds will be available from the host laboratory to cover the awardee’s living expenses for any extended stays.
• Applicants are required to make a full declaration of all other support received in connection with the proposed visit. An award cannot be used to supplement scientific visits otherwise fully covered from other sources.
• Awards will not cover courses, symposia, meetings, or congresses.
• Within 3 months of completion of the fellowship, awardees should send a written scientific report (no longer than 2 pages) signed by the host supervisor and awardee, and a budget report (including copies of all receipts covered by the award). Successful awardees should indicate the support from the IUBMB-FEBS-PABMB PROBio-LatAm Fellowship in all outputs (conference presentations, publications, etc.).

Selection of host laboratory and assistance provided

IUBMB and FEBS provides a list of the laboratories willing to host PhD students and fellows from LatAm so that the applicants can contact them directly (https://iubmb.org/probio-latam-host-labs/).

If the applicant prefers to contact a non-listed laboratory (up to three laboratories), FEBS may assist in contacting it after receiving and reviewing the following documents from the applicant (sent to [email protected]).

• A cover letter with full contact details (including an official email address) of the applicant’s potential host supervisor(s).
• The applicant’s short curriculum vitae and a list of publications as per the provided template (including an official academic transcript from the institution for PhD students).
• Proof of proficiency in English (or the official language of the host laboratory).
• The certificate of membership of one of the PABMB Constituent Societies at the time of application.
• A letter of recommendation from the PhD student’s supervisor, postdoctoral fellow’s mentor, or head of the department of the applicant’s institution, highlighting the benefits of the award.

The request for this assistance should be sent at least one month before the call deadline.

Selection of awardees

The awarding of PROBio-LatAm Fellowships is overseen by the PROBio-LatAm Fellowship Committee. Selection of the awardees will be based on the following:

• Scientific quality of the research proposal
• The recommendation letter from the PhD student’s supervisor, postdoctoral fellow’s mentor, or head of the department of the applicant’s institution
• Applicant’s CV, including publications
• An official academic transcript from the applicant’s institution (for PhD students)
• Proof of proficiency in English (or the official language of the host laboratory)
• Scientific outputs, including publications of the host supervisor
• Scientific expertise, mentoring environment, available infrastructure, and availability of research funds in the host laboratory, to cover the proposed research plan.
• Preference will be given to applications that establish new collaborations.

PAST AWARDEES

See who has been awarded in previous PROBio-LatAm calls and learn about their research.

• 2026
• 2025