Nomination of Junior Fellows and Advanced Fellows

Junior Fellows of the ETH Institute for Theoretical Studies (ETH-ITS) are independent junior postdocs of exceptional talent and promise, having achieved significant results in mathematics, theoretical computer science or the theoretical natural sciences. They stay at the Institute for up to three years. Candidates with PhD in 2023 or after are considered for Junior Fellowships. 

Advanced Fellows are young researchers with some experience after their PhD, who have established themselves as leaders in their disciplines. They stay at the Institute for up to five years. Candidates with PhD in the period 2019-2022 are considered for Advanced Fellowships. 

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Call for nominations of 2025 Junior Fellows

The ETH-ITS invites nominations of Junior Fellows by faculty members and senior researchers of universities and research institutions around the world. The deadline for the nomination of Junior Fellows to be appointed in 2025 is 19 September 2024 (noon CEST).

To submit a nomination, please write to nominations@eth-its.ethz.ch with

  • Name, affiliation, e-mail address and PhD year (if applicable) of the candidate for a Junior Fellowship
  • A letter describing the achievements of the candidate with an assessment of talent, independence, and promise.

Selection procedure

Upon receipt of a nomination, eligible candidates will be contacted after the nomination deadline and asked to submit

  • A cv and list of publications
  • A research plan (Please find more information on the bottom of this page)
  • The names of three persons who agree to write a recommendation letter

Instructions for uploading this material and the recommendations letters will be provided to the nominated candidates. To be considered for the 2024 interview round, this material as well as the recommendation letters should be sent before 17 October 2024 (noon CEST).

A selection of the candidates will then be invited for interviews by committee members and other experts. We aim for the interviews to take place between 25 November and 6 December 2024.

First offers will be made in December 2024. The anticipated start date of the position is September 2025. Other contract start dates are possible and may be discussed with the committee.

Please note

  • Junior Fellows must have a PhD. at the time of appointment.
  • Candidates with a PhD. from ETH will be considered only in exceptional circumstances.
  • Direct application by candidates are not considered. Candidates must be nominated by faculty or senior researchers in mathematics, theoretical computer science or the theoretical natural sciences.

Call for nominations of 2025 Advanced Fellows

The ETH-ITS invites nominations of Advanced Fellows by faculty members and senior researchers of universities and research institutions around the world. The deadline for the nomination of Advanced Fellows to be appointed in 2025 is 19 September 2024 (noon CEST).

To submit a nomination, please write to nominations@eth-its.ethz.ch with

  • Name, affiliation, e-mail address and PhD year of the candidate for an Advanced Fellowship
  • A letter describing the achievements of the candidate with an assessment of talent, independence, and promise

Selection procedure

Upon receipt of a nomination, eligible candidates will be contacted after the nomination deadline and asked to submit

  • A cv and list of publications
  • A research plan and a summary of main research achievements (Please find more information on the bottom of this page)
  • The names of 3-5 persons who agree to write a recommendation letter

Instructions for uploading this material and the recommendations letters will be provided to the nominated candidates. To be considered for the 2024 interview round, this material as well as the recommendation letters should be sent before 17 October 2024 (noon CEST).

A selection of the candidates will then be invited for interviews by committee members and other experts. We aim for the interviews to take place between 25 November and 6 December 2024.

First offers will be made in December 2024. The anticipated start date of the position is September 2025. Other contract start dates are possible and may be discussed with the committee.

Please note

  • Advanced Fellows should start at the ITS at most 6 years after their PhD.
  • Direct application by candidates are not considered. Candidates must be nominated by faculty or senior researchers in mathematics, theoretical computer science or the theoretical natural sciences.

Research Plan

Please note that there are no specific guidelines. It is left to the candidates to choose the format and length that best presents their ideas in research. The system accepts only PDF files up to a certain size.

However, the research plan is usually 5-10 pages. It should be written for a wide audience since the committee consists of mathematicians, physicists, and computer scientists. The level of detail is up to the applicant. Some plans are very specific about future research goals and others describe directions more generally. Successful plans are usually connected in some way to the applicant's past or current work.