Going Abroad During And After The Doctorate
A stay abroad can give you access to special sources, expand your knowledge and language skills, and strengthen your international network. In addition to that, it can be an advantage in applications and in funding proposals, as it illustrates that you think across borders, are open to new things, and can engage with different academic cultures. But above all, it is a valuable experience. Here you can find information on what stays abroad are possible during and after your doctorate, how to find suitable hosts, and what to bear in mind when organising your stay.
Info Session "Planning and Organising Research Stays Abroad"Every semester, the Academic Career Development Office offers a 1-hour info session for doctoral candidates planning to go abroad. Topics include different types of stays, funding options, and organisational steps. The next info session will be take place on 15 April 2025. Please note that the event is held in German. |
When, where, how long?
Before you plan your stay abroad, you should be clear about your goals and what you need to do to achieve them. In addition to deciding how long the stay should be, this also determines where to go. Hence you need to have a general idea of the structure of your project. On the other hand you should not be so far along in the project that you cannot really expect new findings.
When and Where?
The best time for a stay abroad, as well as the ideal location, depend on what the purpose of the stay is: Do you want to present your project at a specific conference? Do you need access to specific sources or do you have the opportunity to conduct research together with an outstanding researcher in your field? While shorter stays can still be planned spontaneously, it makes sense to prepare longer stays well in advance.
For how long?
The duration of your stay abroad should correspond with the scope and relevance of your intended research programme. If you want to gather key findings for your doctoral dissertation during your stay abroad, you should start early and allow sufficient time. If the stay abroad is more about networking in the international research community, access to certain secondary sources, or if you want to gain teaching experience, a stay of 4 weeks to 3 months may already be sufficient.
- DAAD Research Grants for Doctoral Candidates
Funding for a research stay of between 1 and 12 months abroad. The stay abroad can be flexibly divided and spread over several countries. - Erasmus+ Semester Abroad (SMS) oder Erasmus+ Internship Abroad (SMP)
Under certain conditions, the mobility of doctoral candidates can be funded as Erasmus+ student or internship mobility. If you are interested in this, please contact the International Office. - Fulbright Doctoral Candidate Programme (US only)
Funding for doctoral research stays of up to six months in the US. - Heinrich Hertz Foundation
German researchers in North Rhine-Westphalia can receive a scholarship for a research stay of several months abroad, foreign scientists for a research stay in North Rhine-Westphalia. The call for proposals is usually released twice a year, in spring and in autumn.
- DAAD: Short-Term Grants for Postdocs ("Postdoc Programme")
Research grants for young academics and scientists with a doctorate who would like to complete a 3 to 6-month research stay abroad. - Heinrich Hertz Foundation
German researchers in North Rhine-Westphalia can receive a scholarship for a research stay of several months abroad, foreign scientists for a research stay in North Rhine-Westphalia. The call for proposals is usually released twice a year, in spring and in autumn. - DAAD: Postdoctoral Researchers International Mobility Experience (PRIME)
Funding for a 12-month phase abroad and a 6-month integration phase at a German higher education institution, where the recipient has to be employed as postdoctoral researcher for the entire funding period. - Alexander von Humboldt Foundation: Feodor Lynen Research Fellowship
Depending on the career stage, the AvH funds long-term research stays abroad (6-24 months) up to 12 years after the doctorate. - DFG: Walter Benjamin Programme
The Walter Benjamin Programme enables researchers in the qualification phase following their doctorate to independently implement their own research project at the location of their choice within 2 years. - Marie Sklodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships
Funding is provided for research stays in Europe and worldwide (European Postdoctoral Fellowships 12-24 months; Global Postdoctoral Fellowships 24-36 months). - Fulbright Forschung & Lehre (U.S. only)
Research visit or teaching at an American university between 3 and 9 months. - Fritz Thyssen Stiftung: Travel Grants
The Fritz Thyssen Stiftung accepts applications to cover travel expenses (also within Germany) directly related to a research project in the humanities, social sciences, or biomedicine.
- DAAD Congress Travel Programme
Grants for active participation in international congresses and conferences (in person and online). - DAAD Lecture Travel Programme
Grants for lectures at the invitation of foreign academic institutions.
- Erasmus+ Teaching Mobility (STA)
Funding for short-term teaching activities (up to 60 days) at an Erasmus+ partner university by teachers and research assistants of Paderborn University. If you are interested in this, please contact the International Office. - DAAD Short-term Lectureships
Funding is available for invited lecturers who would like to teach at a foreign university for a limited period of time (4 weeks to 6 months. - DAAD Long-term Lectureships
The DAAD enables lecturers to do long-term teaching assignments at foreign universities (2 to 5 years). - Fulbright Forschung & Lehre (Postdoc & U.S. only)
Research visit or teaching at a university in the United States between 3 and 9 months.
- Erasmus+ Mobility for Further Education and Training Purposes (STT)
Funding is available for language courses, summer schools, staff weeks, and individually organised stays at a foreign (partner) university in an Erasmus+ country. If you are interested in this, please contact the International Office.
- Scholarship Database of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)
Database of funding opportunities for stays abroad, differentiated by subject area and destination country. - Meeting International Partners and Maintaining Cooperations
Travel to initiate and maintain cooperations that serve the exchange of students can be funded from the Internationalisation Fund of the Presidential Board of Paderborn University. If you are interested in this, please contact the International Office. - Paderborn University's Committee for Research and Junior Academics Travel Grants
Paderborn University awards travel grants for conference visits, information and research trips (also within Germany). The grants are awarded by the dean of your faculty. The conditions can be found in the funding guidelines for the allocation of funds from the research reserve.
