Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO)

The Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO) is the agency that supports ground-breaking fundamental and strategic research at the universities of the Flemish Community.
The FWO funds excellent and promising researchers as well as research projects following an inter-university competition. The evaluation is carried out by national and international experts. The selection follows the bottom-up principle and is conducted on an inter-university basis.
The FWO stimulates international cooperation and encourages international mobility by giving researchers the opportunity to gain experience or work as members of international research groups or by attracting researchers from abroad.
The sole criterion is the outstanding quality of researcher and research proposal, regardless of scientific discipline, host institute, gender, political or religious beliefs. Family-friendly provisions and flexible working conditions should further balance gender relationships. Scientists with functional restrictions receive extra support for the financing of adapted material.
The FWO also supports the Flemish Supercomputer Centre (VSC), a virtual centre making supercomputer infrastructure available for both the academic and industrial world. This centre is managed by the Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO) in partnership with the five Flemish university associations.

Main funding instruments of FWO:

• Fellowships for young researchers (PhD fellowships) for 2x2 years
• PhD fellowships strategic basic research for 2x2 years
• Special PhD grants for 1 year
• Clinical PhD grants for 2 years, part-time
• ICM-FWO fellowships for 3x1 year
• EUI fellowships for 4 years
• Postdoctoral fellowships for 2x3 years
• Senior clinical investigator for 3x5 years, part-time
• [PEGASUS]² Marie Sklodowska-Curie incoming and outgoing Fellowships
• Research grants for 1 year
• Research projects up to 4 years
• Research projects Strategic Basic research for 2-4 years
• Research projects Applied Biomedical Research with a Primary Social finality for 2-4 years
• Big Science: supporting research projects at major international research facilities
• Odysseus: providing start-up funding for researchers who have built up a career outside Flanders
• Medium-scale and Large-scale research infrastructure
• Scientific prizes
• Travel grants for short/long stay abroad, attending conferences,…
• International scientific cooperations (Bilateral research networks, Lead Agency Procedures,…)

www.fwo.be

Flemish Interuniversity Council - Secretariat for University Cooperation for Development (VLIR-UOS)

VLIR-UOS supports partnerships between universities and university colleges, in Flanders and in the South, looking for innovative responses to global and local challenges.

VLIR-UOS funds cooperation projects between professors, researchers and teachers. VLIR-UOS also awards scholarships to students and professionals in Flanders and the South. Lastly, VLIR-UOS helps to strengthen higher education in the South and the globalisation of higher education in Flanders.

VLIR-UOS as forum, funder and defender of interests

VLIR-UOS is a forum in which representatives of higher education work together for development and share information and best practices. VLIR-UOS is also the main provider of funds for development cooperation projects in Flemish higher education. Lastly, VLIR-UOS defends the interests of Flemish higher education in development cooperation with regard to the authorities and third parties. VLIR-UOS receives funding from the Belgian Development Cooperation with a yearly budget of approximately 35 million Euros (in 2014).

Innovative responses to global and local challenges

Universities and university colleges play a key role in the search for sustainable solutions to global challenges such as poverty, migration and climate change. Cooperation between countries, institutions and disciplines is vital. VLIR-UOS builds bridges between higher education on the one hand and governments, NGOs and businesses in Flanders and the South on the other.

Scholarships

VLIR-UOS offers various kinds of scholarship programmes:

• Scholarship programmes for citizens from developing countries:
  • Training and master scholarships (ICP and ITP)
  • Short training scholarships (KOI)
  • Short Research Stays (SRS) for researchers with a PhD degree
  • ICP PhD scholarships for graduates of a VLIR-UOS ICP master course
• Scholarships in cooperation projects for citizens from developing countries
• Scholarships for Flemish and EU-students

http://www.vliruos.be

Scholarships awarded by the Belgian Development Cooperation

Belgian Development Cooperation funds scholarships and internships through several channels.

As part of direct bilateral cooperation

These concern scholarships associated with cooperation programmes in Belgian bilateral cooperation partner countries that are registered with the associated scholarship programme. These scholarship programmes are managed and followed up by Belgian Technical Cooperation (BTC). More information on http://www.btcctb.org/.

As part of the programmes implemented by players in non-governmental cooperation

Scholarships and internships are awarded within the framework of programmes implemented by non-governmental cooperation players via the umbrella organisations for university collaboration, VLIR-UOS in Flanders (more information above) and CIUF-CUD in Wallonia.

Scholarships are also awarded by players involved in scientific cooperation via the Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM) in Antwerp, the Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA) and the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBIN). For more information, see below on this page.

Belgian Development Cooperation:http://diplomatie.belgium.be/en/policy/development_cooperation/

Belgian American Educational Foundation ( BAEF)

BAEF encourages applications for fellowships for advanced study or research at a Belgian university or institution of higher learning. The BAEF will award up to eight fellowships, each carrying a stipend of $18,000 for one year.

Applicants must be citizens of the United States and have a master’s or equivalent degree, or be working towards a PhD or equivalent degree. Preference is given to applicants under the age of 30 that have a written and spoken command of Dutch, French or German. BAEF fellows must reside in Belgium during their fellowship.

BAEF also offers fellowships for study or research in the United States. Besides the amounts indicated, the Foundation pays for health insurance at the US institution. Fellows are expected to stay in the USA for a full academic year (nine months) to study at a US institution or conduct research at a research institution for twelve months. Candidates that have the means to finance their studies or research in the USA may apply for an Honorary Fellowship from the Foundation.

http://www.baef.be