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Alexander von Humboldt Professorship

International Award for Research in Germany

Academics of all disciplines from abroad, who are internationally recognised as leaders in their field and who are expected to contribute to enhancing Germany's sustained international competitiveness as a research location in consequence of the award, are eligible to be nominated for an Alexander von Humboldt Professorship.

The Alexander von Humboldt Professorship, which is being financed by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research through the International Research Fund for Germany, enables award winners to carry out long-term and ground-breaking research at universities and research institutions in Germany. The prize money, totalling 5 million EUR for academics in experimental disciplines and 3.5 million EUR for researchers in theoretical disciplines, is being made available for a period of five years.

Nominations may be made by German universities; non-university research institutions may also submit nominations jointly with a German university.

Other important details

Further information

  1. The nominee must be recognised internationally as an outstandingly qualified academic.
  2. Established as an academic abroad.
  3. Nomination by an institution entitled to make nominations.
  4. Detailed statement on the nominee's academic qualifications by the institution in Germany making the nomination.
  5. The nominating institution's concept for integrating the nominee, also outlining the importance of his or her role in achieving its strategic goals, e.g., enhancing its capacity to compete internationally in the nominee's subject area.
  6. The nominating institution's concept for continuing the nominee's long-term affiliation to the institution, even after Alexander von Humboldt Foundation sponsorship has come to an end.
  7. Expert reviews by important international and German collaborative partners and/or academics.
  8. The Humboldt Foundation requires nominees to abide by the Rules of Good Scientific Practice during the application and sponsorship periods.
Further information on these points as well as advice on how the nominating research institution can make the best use of the programme can be found in the Regulations on the Selection Procedure.
Nominations may be sent to the following address at any time:

Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Selection Department,
Jean-Paul-Str. 12, 53173 Bonn, Germany

Reviewing the nominations takes three to six months. Therefore, nominations should be submitted well before the Selection Committee Meeting targeted. The next deadlines for submitting applications are 21 May 2010, 12 November 2010 and 13 May 2011. From 2011 onwards, there will be two selection meetings annually.

It is the nominator's responsibility to ensure that he or she has submitted all the necessary documents. Nominations not submitted as a single entity will take longer to process. The confidential statements by the expert reviewers shall be submitted to the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation directly. Subsequently, independent peer reviewers assess the nominations.

An independent Selection Committee composed of academics from all disciplines makes the final decision on the nominations received. The competition between nominations is international and there are no quotas for countries or disciplines. The Selection Committee makes its decision on the basis of the nominees' academic qualifications and the nominator's concept for the academic's integration into the German institution as well as the nominee's importance for the institution's strategic goal attainment (see Regulations on the Selection Procedure).

Nominees will be notified about the Selection Committee's decision immediately after the meeting.

Specifically

 

* Contain advice on how the nominating research institution can make the best use of the programme and information on the contents and formal requirements for a successful nomination

Further information

One of our hallmarks is the degree of support we try to provide for every single guest researcher. This is why we offer you extra benefits in addition to the award amount: from invitations to events to language courses.

Further information

Once an Humboldtian, always an Humboldtian: Even after your initial research stay has come to an end, we shall still maintain close contact with you. Our alumni sponsorship is flexible and designed to support every Humboldtian’s particular path in life and development as well as collaborations between individuals.

Further information