Fully Funded Life Science PhD, Fellowship and Scholarship Deadlines: August 2026 Onwards

Thirty-three life science funding opportunities are open or opening now, covering PhD positions, fellowships, scholarships and postdoc awards worldwide. The earliest binding deadline is 3 August 2026 (Rhodes Scholarship, Southern Africa) and nine ICGEB fellowships close their Expression of Interest stage on 14 August 2026. Every date below was read from the funder’s own website on 31 July 2026.

This is the first of our weekly funding roundups for life scientists. Every entry was checked against the funding organisation’s own website on 31 July 2026, not against a scholarship aggregator. That distinction matters more than it sounds, and the section on how we verify explains why.

The list covers biology, biotechnology, biochemistry, biomedical science, bioinformatics, structural biology, immunology and neuroscience, at master’s, PhD and postdoctoral level. Most entries are open to applicants of any nationality. Where a programme is restricted, we say so in the eligibility line rather than letting you discover it three hours into an application.

Global: open this week

Rhodes Scholarship, Southern Africa
The Rhodes Trust · Multiple levels · United Kingdom (University of Oxford)
GBP 20,400 per year (2025-26 rate) plus full fees.
Deadline: 3 August 2026

Travelling Fellowships (Development, Journal of Cell Science, Journal of Experimental Biology)
The Company of Biologists · Multiple levels · Worldwide (the host laboratory must be in a different laboratory from your own)
GBP 3000.
Deadline: 7 August 2026

Arturo Falaschi Short-term Postdoctoral Fellowships
ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology) · Postdoc · Italy (Trieste), India (New Delhi) or South Africa (Cape Town)
EUR 2,300/month (Trieste), USD 1,749/month (New Delhi), ZAR 27,500/month (Cape Town).
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (Expression of Interest)

Arturo Falaschi Postdoctoral Fellowships
ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology) · Postdoc · Italy, India or South Africa
EUR 2,300/month (Trieste), USD 1,749/month (New Delhi), ZAR 27,500/month (Cape Town).
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (Expression of Interest)

Arturo Falaschi Short-term PhD Fellowships
ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology) · PhD · Italy, India or South Africa
EUR 1,500/month (Trieste), USD 1,122/month (New Delhi), ZAR 16,500/month (Cape Town).
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (Expression of Interest)

Arturo Falaschi SMART Fellowships
ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology) · Multiple levels · Any ICGEB Member State other than your own
USD 1,500/month (PhD) or USD 2,000/month (postdoc).
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (Expression of Interest)

Biotechnet Short-term PhD Fellowships
ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology) · PhD · Italy, India or South Africa
EUR 1,500/month (Trieste), USD 1,122/month (New Delhi), ZAR 16,500/month (Cape Town).
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (Expression of Interest)

Biotechnet Short-term Advanced Fellowships
ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology) · Postdoc · Italy, India or South Africa
EUR 2,300/month (Trieste), USD 1,749/month (New Delhi), ZAR 27,500/month (Cape Town).
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (Expression of Interest)

ICGEB-AICAD Short-Term Postdoctoral Fellowships
ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology) · Postdoc · Italy, India or South Africa
EUR 2,300/month (Trieste), USD 1,749/month (New Delhi), ZAR 27,500/month (Cape Town).
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (Expression of Interest)

ICGEB Fellowships for Scientists in Biosecurity
ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology) · PhD · Italy, India or China
EUR 1,500/month (Trieste), USD 1,122/month (New Delhi), USD 1,500/month (Taizhou).
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (Expression of Interest)

ICGEB Fellowships in Pathogen Detection and Biosecurity (Africa)
ICGEB (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology) · Multiple levels · Italy, India or South Africa
EUR 1,500/month (Trieste), USD 1,122/month (New Delhi), ZAR 16,500/month (Cape Town).
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (Expression of Interest)

JCS-FocalPlane Training Grants
The Company of Biologists · Multiple levels · Worldwide
GBP 1000.
Deadline: 14 August 2026

Rhodes Scholarship, East Africa
The Rhodes Trust · Multiple levels · United Kingdom (University of Oxford)
GBP 20,400 per year (2025-26 rate) plus full fees.
Deadline: 27 August 2026

Rhodes Scholarship, West Africa
The Rhodes Trust · Multiple levels · United Kingdom (University of Oxford)
GBP 20,400 per year (2025-26 rate) plus full fees.
Deadline: 27 August 2026

Faculty for the Future Fellowships
Schlumberger Foundation · Multiple levels · Any host university or research institute abroad
Fellowships are awarded on academic ability, leadership potential and engagement in STEM…
Deadline: 6 November 2026 (portal opens 1 September 2026)

Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships
Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK · Master’s · United Kingdom
GBP 1,712/month (GBP 2,000 in London) plus full tuition and airfare.
Deadline: See official page

Commonwealth PhD Scholarships for least developed countries and vulnerable states
Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK · PhD · United Kingdom
GBP 1,712/month (GBP 2,000 in London) plus full tuition and airfare.
Deadline: See official page

Gates Cambridge Scholarship
Gates Cambridge Trust, University of Cambridge · Multiple levels · United Kingdom (University of Cambridge)
Award values are not stated on the timeline page and are published separately by the…
Deadline: Varies by programme

North America: open this week

American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowship (2027 award year)
American Heart Association · Postdoc · United States
USD 63,480 to USD 77,076 per year plus USD 12,200 health insurance and USD 3,000 project…
Deadline: 5 August 2026

Alzheimer’s Association Research Fellowship for All (AARFA)
Alzheimer’s Association · Postdoc · United States (open worldwide)
Up to USD 200,000 over 2 to 3 years.
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (letter of intent)

Career Awards at the Scientific Interface (CASI)
Burroughs Wellcome Fund · Postdoc · United States and Canada
USD 560,000 over 5 years.
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (letter of intent)

Damon Runyon Fellowship Award
Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation · Postdoc · United States
USD 70,000 to 76,000 per year for four years.
Deadline: 14 August 2026

CRI Irvington Postdoctoral Fellowship
Cancer Research Institute · Postdoc · United States or abroad
USD 243,000 over three years.
Deadline: 1 September 2026

Canada Postdoctoral Research Award (CPRA)
CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC (Canada Research Training Awards Suite) · Postdoc · Canada
CAD 70,000 per year for 24 months.
Deadline: 16 September 2026 for CIHR (health and life sciences); 19 October 2026 for NSERC (biology)

Postdoctoral Research Fellowships in Biology (PRFB)
US National Science Foundation, Directorate for Biological Sciences · Postdoc · United States
USD 220,000 over two years.
Deadline: 29 September 2026 submitting organisation’s local time · not open to international applicants

Life Sciences Research Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship
Life Sciences Research Foundation · Postdoc · United States or abroad
USD 255,000 over three years.
Deadline: 1 October 2026 (portal opens 15 August 2026)

Canada Graduate Research Scholarship, Doctoral (CGRS D)
CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC (Canada Research Training Awards Suite) · PhD · Canada
CAD 40,000 per year for 36 months.
Deadline: 19 October 2026 when applying direct to the agency

Hanna H. Gray Fellows Program
Howard Hughes Medical Institute · Postdoc · United States
Up to two years of salary or stipend support, additional support for certain…
Deadline: 15 December 2026 (applications open 3 November 2026)

Jane Coffin Childs Fellowship
Jane Coffin Childs Memorial Fund for Medical Research · Postdoc · United States
A three-year fellowship with a USD 2,000 research allowance and a separate USD 1,800…
Deadline: 1 February 2027 (portal opens 1 October 2026)

Fulbright Foreign Student Program
US Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs · Multiple levels · United States
Grant values are set by each binational Fulbright Commission or US Embassy, not…
Deadline: Varies by programme

India: open this week

Project-JRF, platelet factor 4 and CXCR3 in dengue infection (Advt. 23/Project/2026/HR)
Regional Centre for Biotechnology (RCB), Faridabad, funded by DBT · Master’s · India
INR Rs. 37,000/month + 27% HRA.
Deadline: 5 August 2026

Project Associate-II, Dr Tina Mukherjee Lab (Advt. No. inStem/Temp/29/2026)
BRIC-inStem (Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine), Bengaluru · Master’s · India
INR Rs. 42,000/month + HRA (NET) or Rs. 33,000/month + HRA.
Deadline: 7 August 2026 · not open to international applicants

Apprenticeship in Biological Science (Advt. No. RCB/APPRENTICE/04/2026-27/SD)
Regional Centre for Biotechnology (RCB), Faridabad, funded by DBT · Undergraduate · India
INR Rs. 13,500/month.
Deadline: 7 August 2026, walk-in interview · not open to international applicants

Project Associate-I, Dr Srinivasarao Repudi lab (Advt. No. inStem/Temp/32/2026)
BRIC-inStem (Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine), Bengaluru · Multiple levels · India
INR Rs. 37,000/month + HRA (NET qualified) or Rs. 31,000/month + HRA (non-NET).
Deadline: 14 August 2026

Project Associate-I, Dr Diya Binoy Joseph Lab (Advt. inStem/Temp/28/2026)
BRIC-inStem (Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine), Bengaluru · Master’s · India
INR Rs. 31,000/month + HRA (NET-qualified) or Rs. 25,000/month + HRA.
Deadline: 31 August 2026

International Travel Support (ITS)
Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), formerly SERB · Multiple levels · India
INR Economy airfare, airport tax and visa fees; registration up to Rs. 50,000.
Deadline: Rolling · not open to international applicants

Young Investigator Programme (TIFR Advt. 2026/16)
NCBS-TIFR (National Centre for Biological Sciences), Bengaluru · Postdoc · India
NCBS states that salary and benefits are attractive and that accommodation is provided at…
Deadline: Rolling

Latin America: open this week

Becas Internas de Finalizacion de Doctorado (Doctorate Completion Fellowships)
CONICET (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas) · PhD · Argentina
A non-extendable 24-month fellowship for doctoral candidates who need to finish a…
Deadline: 14 August 2026 (window opened 27 July 2026)

Europe: open this week

MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2026
European Commission, Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions · Postdoc · EU Member States and Horizon Europe associated countries
Call budget of EUR 399.05 million. Support comprises a living allowance and a mobility…
Deadline: 9 September 2026

EMBL-EBI and Sanger Postdoctoral Fellowship (ESPOD)
EMBL-EBI and Wellcome Sanger Institute · Postdoc · United Kingdom (Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton)
A three-year project-based contract. Benefits listed include monthly family and child…
Deadline: 27 September 2026

ARISE2 Postdoctoral Fellowship
EMBL, co-funded by Horizon Europe MSCA COFUND · Postdoc · Germany, UK, France, Italy or Spain (EMBL sites)
EUR 3,228.38 to EUR 4,118.45 per month, varying by site.
Deadline: 30 September 2026

EMBL International PhD Programme
EMBL (European Molecular Biology Laboratory) · PhD · Germany, UK, France, Italy or Spain (EMBL sites)
A fully funded, salaried EMBL predoctoral fellowship across the six EMBL sites. No figure…
Deadline: 12 October 2026

EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowships
EMBO (European Molecular Biology Organization) · Postdoc · EMBC Member States, plus global partners Chile, India, Singapore and Taiwan
Fellowships run up to two years and include a salary or stipend, a relocation allowance…
Deadline: 22 January 2027 (next cutoff)

Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds MD Fellowship
Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds · PhD · Europe and overseas
EUR 1,560/month in Germany, up to EUR 2,470/month in the USA.
Deadline: See official page

Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds PhD Fellowship
Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds · PhD · Europe, or overseas for European citizens
EUR 2,400/month in Germany, up to EUR 3,800/month in the USA.
Deadline: See official page

Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds Travel Grants
Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds · Multiple levels · Europe and worldwide destinations
Grants of up to three months, paid as a lump sum contributing to travel, lodging and…
Deadline: Rolling

EMBO Scientific Exchange Grants
EMBO (European Molecular Biology Organization) · Multiple levels · EMBC Member States and global partners
Exchanges of up to three months between laboratories in eligible countries. The grants…
Deadline: Rolling

International Max Planck Research Schools (IMPRS)
Max Planck Society · PhD · Germany and partner institutions abroad
No stipend figure is published centrally. Funding is arranged by each individual school.
Deadline: Varies by programme

These are this week’s openings. The full list of every verified opportunity, with filters, is at stemskillslab.com/opportunities.

What closes first?

Four deadlines are close enough to act on this week.

• 3 August 2026: the Rhodes Scholarship for Southern Africa closes at 23:59 SAST.
• 5 August 2026: the RCB Faridabad Project-JRF post on dengue immunology closes at 5:00 pm.
• 14 August 2026: the Damon Runyon Fellowship Award closes at 4:00 pm Eastern Time, and all nine ICGEB Arturo Falaschi fellowships close their Expression of Interest stage at 23:59 CET.

The ICGEB date deserves a warning. Its calls advertise two dates, an Expression of Interest on 14 August and a full application on 30 September. The September date looks like the real deadline and it is not. You cannot submit a full application unless ICGEB first notifies you that you may proceed, and that notification only follows a cleared Expression of Interest. Miss 14 August and the 30 September date is unreachable. This pattern, where the earliest stage is the one that actually locks you out, repeats across several programmes below, so we list every stage rather than only the final one.

Which of these can I actually apply to?

Three restrictions in this list catch people out, because the programmes are widely recommended without the caveat attached.

The NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowships in Biology require you to be a US citizen, national or permanent resident. That is not negotiable and it does not depend on where you hold the fellowship, since NSF allows fellows to host at an international institution while still requiring US status of the person.

The Commonwealth PhD Scholarships are restricted to 18 least developed countries and vulnerable states, and India is not among them. Indian students are eligible for the Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships, which is a different scheme with a different page. The short URL cscuk.fcdo.gov.uk/scholarships/commonwealth-phd-scholarships/ now redirects to the restricted page, so anyone sharing that link is quietly sending Indian readers to a scheme they cannot apply to.

Faculty for the Future, the Schlumberger Foundation programme for women in STEM from developing countries, currently publishes an eligible-country list headed 2025-2026 even though the open call is for 2027-2028. As printed today that list excludes India, China, Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, Vietnam, South Africa and Mexico. Check it again when the portal opens on 1 September 2026, because the list may be refreshed.

Against those, four programmes place no citizenship condition on the applicant at all. The Cancer Research Institute states plainly that there are no citizenship restrictions on its Irvington fellowship. The Life Sciences Research Foundation and the Jane Coffin Childs Fund both accept citizens of any country, with the condition that non-US citizens hold the award at a US institution. HHMI’s Hanna Gray Fellows Program asks for work authorisation rather than citizenship.

Why do so many scholarship listings turn out to be wrong?

Three kinds of stale listing circulate widely, and all three were live on aggregator sites while we were compiling this.

Programmes that look open but are not. The HFSP postdoctoral fellowship page still advertises a September 2026 date for full proposals. That stage is invitation-only. The Letter of Intent, which is the only way in, closed on 12 May 2026, and HFSP runs one competition per year. A student skimming that page would reasonably conclude they had two months in hand.

Programmes that no longer exist. Canada’s Banting Postdoctoral Fellowships and Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships have both been discontinued and replaced by the Canada Postdoctoral Research Award and the Canada Graduate Research Scholarship. Both old names are still listed as open on scholarship sites. Similarly, the ICMR Junior Research Fellowship applies only up to the 2023 batch and was replaced by the Biomedical Research Eligibility Test from 2024, and SERB became ANRF under the ANRF Act 2023.

Deadlines with the year rolled forward. While researching this list, a search summary confidently stated that the next ICGEB round would open in January 2027 with a March 2027 deadline. ICGEB’s own page, read at the same moment, showed an open round closing on 14 August 2026. A student who trusted the summary would have missed a deadline that was two weeks away.

How is this list verified?

Every fact in this article comes from the funding organisation’s own domain, fetched on 31 July 2026. Aggregators are used only to notice that an opportunity might exist. We then find the funder’s page and read the deadline, the eligibility and the funding there. If we cannot find an official page, the opportunity does not appear here.

We also refuse to print a date we cannot stand behind. Where a funder gives a day and month but no year, as Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds and the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission both do, we print exactly what they printed instead of inferring the year. Where a numeric date could be read two ways, we do not guess. Where a funder points at a per-course or per-school deadline, as Gates Cambridge and the Max Planck IMPRS network do, we say the deadline varies and link you to the place that holds it. A vague but honest answer costs you five minutes. A confidently wrong date costs you the application.

Deadlines change. Funders extend them, close them early and occasionally correct them. We re-check every live deadline in this list daily and update the entry when the funder changes it, so the date you read here is the date on the official page.

What should I do before the deadline?

Two practical notes that apply across most of this list.

References are part of the deadline. The Life Sciences Research Foundation needs three reference letters and a supervisor letter by 1 November 2026, a month after the application itself. The Jane Coffin Childs Fund requires three referee letters inside the portal by the same instant as the application, and states “no exceptions”. EMBL-EBI will not consider an ESPOD application without two reference letters attached. Ask your referees now, not the week before.

Your institution’s internal deadline may be the real one. Canada’s CGRS D and CPRA are usually submitted through a Canadian institution, and that institution sets its own endorsement deadline well before the agency date. The same is true of most MSCA applications, which are submitted jointly with a host organisation. If you are applying through an institution, ask its research office for the internal date before you plan around the public one.

If you are still building the computational skills these labs screen for, our computational biology skills roadmap sets out the order to learn them in, and our free assessments and certificates give you something verifiable to put on an application while you wait for the next round to open.

Frequently asked questions

Which life science fellowships are open to international applicants?

Most in this list. The Cancer Research Institute states there are no citizenship restrictions on its Irvington postdoctoral fellowship. The Life Sciences Research Foundation and the Jane Coffin Childs Fund accept citizens of any country, provided non-US citizens hold the award at a US institution. MSCA European Postdoctoral Fellowships are open to researchers of any nationality, and EMBO fellowships can be held by an applicant of any nationality as long as the move is international. The notable exception is the NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowships in Biology, which require US citizenship, nationality or permanent residency.

Can I apply for a PhD fellowship before I finish my master’s?

It depends on the scheme, and the distinction is between fellowships that fund a person and positions that fill a project. The ICGEB Arturo Falaschi short-term PhD fellowships ask for a BSc (Honours) for Trieste and Cape Town and an MSc for New Delhi. Indian project posts such as the RCB Faridabad Project-JRF require a completed MSc plus a national eligibility test such as CSIR-UGC NET or GATE. Structured programmes like the EMBL International PhD Programme are normally aimed at students holding or completing a master’s-level qualification.

Do any of these charge an application fee?

None of them. We exclude any opportunity that asks for an application, processing or registration fee, without exception, even where the organisation is otherwise legitimate. The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission states directly that it does not charge to apply for any of its scholarships or fellowships through its online application system. A request for money to apply, a demand for your bank or Aadhaar details before any selection decision, or a contact address that is only a WhatsApp number are the three clearest signs that a scholarship listing is not genuine.

What does fully funded actually mean?

It varies more than the phrase suggests, so read the funding column rather than trusting the label. Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds pays a monthly stipend of EUR 2,400 in Germany and up to EUR 3,800 in the USA, and the stipends are usually tax-free. The Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships cover full tuition, return airfare and GBP 1,712 per month, or GBP 2,000 in London. Rhodes covers Oxford fees plus GBP 20,400 per year at the 2025-26 rate. Some programmes, including HHMI’s Hanna Gray Fellows and the Gates Cambridge Scholarship, publish no figure at all on the pages we checked, so we leave the amount blank rather than estimate.

How competitive are these fellowships?

Where funders publish the numbers, they are demanding. The Life Sciences Research Foundation makes 18 to 27 awards a year from more than 800 applications. Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds states that fewer than 10 per cent of applicants receive a fellowship. Canada’s CPRA reserves up to 20 per cent of postdoctoral awards for international applicants and CGRS D up to 15 per cent, which is a cap rather than a target. Apply to several, and treat the rolling schemes such as EMBO Scientific Exchange Grants and the ANRF International Travel Support as genuine options rather than consolation prizes.

How often is this list updated?

We publish a new roundup every week and re-check every live deadline in the published lists daily. When a funder extends, changes or closes a deadline, we update the entry and note the change. Each entry carries the date it was last verified so you can judge for yourself how fresh it is. Always open the official link before you apply, because the funder’s page is the authority and this page is a signpost to it.