Government of Ireland Postdoctoral Fellowship 2026 | Fully Funded

Scholarships for International

The Government of Ireland Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme is one of the most prestigious national initiatives in the field of scientific research. It is funded by the Irish Department of Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and administered by the Irish Research Council (IRC).

The programme aims to support qualified researchers to pursue postdoctoral research at an eligible higher education institution in Ireland for a period of one or two years.

Fellowship Details

Funding body: Irish Department of Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, administered by the Irish Research Council (IRC).
Host institutions: Any eligible higher education institution in Ireland.
Applicants are selected through a rigorous, independent, international peer-review process.
Funding is available for all academic disciplines, from archaeology to zoology.
The programme supports investigator-led (bottom-up) research and welcomes pioneering proposals exploring new and emerging fields or offering innovative and creative approaches.
Interdisciplinary projects are encouraged, recognizing that addressing fundamental issues often requires integrating knowledge, tools, and methodologies from more than one discipline.
The fellowship is open to researchers from all around the world.

Financial Benefits

Successful fellows will receive:

Annual salary:
- €47,273 in the first year.
- €47,880 in the second year.
Employer’s contribution to social insurance (PRSI).
Direct research expenses of €5,000 per year.

Note: The stated salaries align with the Irish Research Council’s Postdoctoral Researcher Salary Scale (Level 2A) at the time of the call opening and may be subject to change under national wage agreements.

Key Dates

Call opening: 11 September 2025 (12:00 noon, Irish time).
FAQ deadline: 16 October 2025 (16:00 Irish time).
Applicant deadline: 23 October 2025 (16:00 Irish time).
Academic supervisor deadline: 6 November 2025 (16:00 Irish time).
Research office endorsement deadline: 13 November 2025 (16:00 Irish time).
Outcome announcement: End of April 2026.
Fellowship start date: 1 September 2026.

Dates may be subject to change as determined by the funding authority.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible, applicants must:

Have published or co-published at least one peer-reviewed scholarly work (such as a journal article or peer-reviewed conference paper, published or accepted for publication),
OR possess equivalent scholarly or intellectual output (e.g., patents or other research outputs).
There is no age limit for applicants.
All applicants must be affiliated with an Eligible Research Body (ERB), which is responsible for verifying the validity of all academic qualifications cited in the application.
If the applicant has not yet been awarded a doctoral degree, they must have completed all requirements for the degree no later than 31 May 2026.
Applicants from any country are eligible to apply.
Applications will be accepted only in English or Irish.
Applicants may not have submitted more than two unsuccessful applications to this programme in the past, regardless of changes in host institution or research topic.
Applicants cannot be permanent members of staff at any research body, in Ireland or abroad.
Applicants must secure an academic supervisor willing to oversee the proposed project. (Note: the Irish Research Council does not assist in finding supervisors.)
An academic supervisor may support only one applicant in the 2026 call. If a research office submits more than one application linked to the same supervisor, all such applications will be deemed ineligible.
Applicants must not currently hold, nor have previously held, a Government of Ireland Postdoctoral Fellowship.

How to Apply

All applications must be submitted exclusively through the online system before the specified deadline.
It is strongly recommended to submit the application form and all required documents well in advance of the deadline, as server congestion may occur on the final day.
Applicants are strongly discouraged from waiting until the last day to apply. If unavoidable, applications must be submitted at least eight hours before the deadline.
No hard copies or email submissions will be accepted.
Any extra materials not required in the application form will not be considered and may render the application ineligible.

Role of the Academic Supervisor

An academic supervisor must be willing to oversee the proposed research project.
The supervisor is required to complete and submit an endorsement form as part of the application process. Any delays in submitting this form will make the application ineligible.
A supervisor may support only one applicant in the same call. If multiple applications are submitted under one supervisor, all will be considered ineligible.
The Irish Research Council will not help applicants find a supervisor; this is solely the applicant’s responsibility.

Important Notes

Applicants must contact their proposed supervisor before starting the application, to discuss the project and secure approval.
It is the applicant’s responsibility to inform the supervisor about their nomination early enough, well before the electronic submission is finalized.