Recruiting Group/Team Leaders
Find out which research groups are actively looking for PhD students in the current recruitment round.
Registration for the 2025 Winter Recruitment is now closed.
The next round of applications will open towards the end of January 2025. More details will be provided on our webpage in due time.
2025 Winter Recruitment timeline:
| Application opens | September 2024 |
| Application submission deadline | 14 October 2024, 23:59 CEST |
| Reference deadline | 16 October 2024, 23:59 CEST |
| Written application results | Will be announced in the second half of November |
| Interview dates: | |
| Screening interviews (online) | Between 28 October – 14 November 2024 |
| Virtual Panel Assessment (online) | 3 December 2024 |
| In-person interviews (onsite) | 27 – 31 January 2025 (at EMBL-EBI and EMBL Barcelona, Grenoble, Hamburg and Rome) 3 – 6 February 2025 (at EMBL Heidelberg) |
| Expected start date | Flexible; by October 2025 at the latest |
The 2025 Winter Recruitment will consist of online panel interviews as well as an on-site component. The Virtual Panel Assessment will take place via Zoom. Selected candidates will then be invited for in-person interviews at the respective EMBL sites in January-February. It is mandatory for selected candidates to attend the in-person interviews. EMBL will provide financial assistance for travel as well as visa support.
Additional information on the interview structure can be found below. Full details will be shared with invited candidates.
Information for applicants: EMBL does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interviews, processing, training or any other fees). EMBL will not ask for any bank details.
Admission
We welcome applications from highly qualified students of all nationalities. Applicants must hold, or anticipate receiving before starting at EMBL, a university degree that would formally qualify them to enter a PhD or equivalent programme in the country where the degree was obtained. All applications need to be supported by a minimum of two academic reference letters, and are evaluated solely on the basis of qualification and scientific potential.
EMBL is a signatory of DORA. Find out how we implement best practices in research assessment in our recruitment processes here.
PhD candidates with prior EMBL association
EMBL welcomes visitors, interns, trainees, master rotation/thesis students and other scientists who are associated with EMBL for training purposes.
Candidates who have previously been associated with EMBL are welcome to apply. To ensure equal treatment of all applicants to the EIPP, candidates with prior EMBL association will be specifically reviewed by the Graduate Committee.
Candidates are considered to have prior EMBL association if:
- they have been associated with EMBL within the 12 months before the application deadline.
- they have been associated with EMBL during any time of the predoctoral recruitment procedure (from the application deadline until the date of the Initial Admission Assessment)
Please do not hesitate to contact the EMBL Graduate Office for any further questions.
Interview structure
| EVALUATION OF WRITTEN APPLICATIONS AND SCREENING INTERVIEWS | The evaluation of written applications is done by EMBL Faculty. During this stage, applicants may be contacted by recruiting Group Leaders or other senior members of their teams for an informal pre-screening interview. At this stage, your application is still considered, even if you have not been contacted for such a pre-screening interview. You could still be shortlisted and receive an invitation for VPA (see stage below). Based on these evaluations, the Units will put forward a shortlist of candidates for the VPA to the Graduate Committee for approval. |
| VIRTUAL PANEL ASSESSMENT (VPA) | The VPA is a formal 30-minute panel interview conducted by EMBL Group Leaders (both recruiting and non-recruiting). During the VPA, candidates are assessed according to a set of defined criteria. Based on the outcome of the VPA, recruiting Group Leaders will select up to two candidates (per open position) for the on-site interviews. Candidates that are not invited further at this stage are welcome to re-apply in the future. Nota bene: Please note that candidates will not be asked to give a presentation during the VPAs. |
| IN-PERSON 1-ON-1 INTERVIEWS | The interview week will take place in-person at one (or more) of EMBL sites where Group Leaders that have invited the candidates are located. It will be filled with 1-on-1 interviews and detailed discussions with the recruiting Group Leaders, as well as interactions with group members and current EMBL students. The aim of the interview week is to find the right matches between candidates and Group Leaders. After the interviews, the candidates will be asked to submit their preference of the research group(s) they would like to conduct their PhD in. Nota bene: We recommend having a short presentation prepared and being ready to discuss your educational background, scientific interests and (if applicable) research projects you have previously worked on. |
| INTERVIEW RESULTS | The interview results will be communicated to the candidates by the EMBL Graduate Office shortly after the in-person 1-on-1 interviews. |
Reference requirements
Referees must submit their online references by 16 October 2024, 23:59 CEST. We strongly suggest that you complete the ‘general info’ and ‘references’ part of the online application first to give your referees enough time to complete the reference online. Furthermore, please make sure to contact your referees before completing this part to find out if they are available and willing to provide a reference. It is your responsibility to ensure that references reach us on time.
You can submit your application irrespective of whether your referees have completed the online reference form. Your referees can access the online form after you have submitted and until the given deadline.
| We only accept references provided through institutional email accounts. Only in cases where the referee does not have an institutional email address, i.e. only holds a ‘hotmail’, ‘gmail’ etc. account, we ask you to: |
| 1. Complete the form with the available email address. 2. Inform your referee NOT to complete the online form. 3. Ask your referee to send a reference letter on institutional headed paper, signed and stamped as a PDF document to graduate-office@embl.org 4. Ask your referee to include your application ID number (8 digits) in the reference letter. |
FAQ
Admission
Can I apply even if I have not received my degree yet?
Yes. However, applicants must hold, or anticipate receiving before starting at EMBL (October of any given year), a university degree that would formally qualify them to enter a PhD or equivalent programme in the country where the degree was obtained.
Is there an age limit?
EMBL does not have a strict age limit. The average age of our 1st year students is 25 years.
What is the working language of EMBL?
English is most commonly used across sites in the everyday working environment.
Can I apply if I am a non-member state applicant?
Yes, we welcome applications from all nationalities. Please note that as a general rule priority will be given to member state applicants, if equally qualified.
I have my own funding. Does this guarantee a place in the programme?
All applications are evaluated on basis of qualification and scientific potential. All invited candidates must successfully pass the interview procedure in order to be eligible.
Do I have to provide GRE, IELTS or TOEFL scores?
No. We do not require any, but would like to point out that proficiency in English, both written and verbal, is a prerequisite to enter the EMBL International PhD Programme.
How many reference letters are required for my application?
Your application should be supported by a minimum of two academic reference letters.
Where can I find more information about research at EMBL?
The Application Process
Is there an application fee?
EMBL does not charge any application fees.
What is the application process?
The online application contains the following steps:
1) You need to create an account to access the online application form.
2) Complete the application form.
3) Submit the completed application form latest by the application deadline.
Is it possible to modify the application?
After submission you will still be able to amend the information until the application deadline. Please make sure to save and resubmit after you have changed any fields.
Can I upload my CV and recommendation letters?
No. Please fill in the requested information into the fields of the application form. All applications are evaluated according to this information. Please do not upload CVs, recommendation letters, course certificates, language school certificates etc, as they will not be considered and will be removed from your application. Uploaded CVs do not replace missing information within the online application form.
I have problems uploading my documents. What should I do?
Please bear in mind the number of documents you are allowed to upload (max 5) as well as the size (max 2 MB per document in PDF format).
I would like to replace one of my referees. How can I do that?
Please contact the Graduate Office who will be able to help you.
My referee has not received a request to submit the reference letter for me. What should I do?
Please double check if your referee’s data, email in particular, is correct. If yes, contact your referee to check if perhaps her/his spam filter has blocked our email. If this is not the case, please contact the Graduate Office.
Will I be informed once the referees have completed their references?
No. However, you may view your submitted application until the application deadline and check if the references have been submitted. Please note that you will not be able to see the actual reference letter.
Do I need to have my certificates translated into English and authenticated?
It is better if your certificates are in English, however this is not required.
If I am unsuccessful in one selection, am I allowed to apply again in the next one?
Yes. However, you will need to fill in the online application form again.
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