How to apply for a MD fellowship

The online application for a MD fellowship of the Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds (BIF) consists of

  • A questionnaire regarding your CV data, your research stay and research project
  • Additional documents 1 – 4 (see box below)
  • Two letters of recommendation (see box below).

The application must be written in English by yourself.

There are three deadlines each year: 1 February, 1 June, 1 October.

After the deadline, the evaluation process takes two months. Accordingly, applicants must choose the appropriate deadline to guarantee that their application is submitted at least two months before they start their research visit.

Project proposal

Please be aware that the project proposal is the centrepiece for our evaluation and that MD fellowships are coupled to the project applied for.

The project proposal consists of the seven parts listed below:

  1. Title and abstract of your research project (~0.5 - 1 page)
  2. Introduction containing the current status of research, and the formulation of the problem (~2 - 3 pages)
  3. Your own groundwork if you have already generated experimental data for your research project (if applicable)
  4. Aims and objectives
  5. Experimental strategy including the methods of investigation (~4 pages); Please be detailed and specific enough that external reviewers, i.e. senior scientists, can evaluate your proposal.
  6. Work schedule for the entire project (at least ten months) showing the duration of all major experimental steps
  7. References including all authors and full titles of cited papers.

The proposal must be written by yourself. Text passages must not be highlighted by bold fonts, underlines, or different colours.

We strongly recommend you to discuss your draft proposal with your scientific supervisor.

Additional documents

  1. Letter of motivation stating your reasons for choosing the proposed research project and the host laboratory as well as outlining your future plans
  2. Scans of certificates of all academic qualifications including grades (e.g. 1. Abschnitt der Ärztlichen Prüfung bzw. Äquivalenzprüfung im Modellstudiengang), of subsequent study achievements, and, if applicable, of professional formation (e.g. as nurse or carpenter) prior to university. If the language of certificates is other than English or German please provide a translation.
  3. Scans of university entrance qualification including grades (e.g. Abiturzeugnis, A-Levels). If the language of certificates is other than English or German please provide a translation.
  4. Confirmation that you will interrupt your studies and clinical activities for the duration of the fellowship from the office of matriculation (Immatrikulationsamt) or the dean of your faculty (Studiendekan)

Letters of recommendation

  1. From the scientific supervisor at the host institution including your acceptance at the host institution and stating the timing of your stay (please state, if this will be submitted separately)
  2. From the scientific supervisor at your home university (please state, if this will be submitted separately)

Letters of recommendation must be in English, on official letterhead, and signed by the supervisor.

MD online application

Please click here to start your MD online application.

After registration, you can also log in to the portal via the link at the top right hand corner of this website or in the menu if you are using a mobile device.