More diversity, greater autonomy: the SNSF is reforming its career funding
In consultation with its stakeholders, the SNSF has developed a new postdoctoral funding scheme. It will be launched in 2028 and will replace both Postdoc.Mobility and Ambizione.
Supporting early-career researchers is a central concern of the SNSF. The SNSF funds early-career researchers both indirectly as employees of projects and directly, on an individual basis, through Career funding schemes. In its Multi-Year Programme 2025–2028, the SNSF committed to continuing the development of its strategy to support early-career researchers and ensure optimal working conditions for researchers at the start of their careers.
The SNSF conducted in-depth discussions with Swiss higher education institutions and early-career researchers and then prioritised the measures to be taken. One of them was to rethink the career funding portfolio. The aim is to better implement the SNSF's strategy and values in terms of supporting excellent research, in particular by offering researchers favourable framework conditions and reflecting the diversity of their career paths. "Our analyses have shown that our funding schemes no longer fully correspond to the realities of the career paths of researchers at the start of their careers," observes Katrin Milzow, Co-director of the SNSF. "It is important to adapt the mechanisms behind our funding and evaluation to current needs."
A high level of autonomy
In consultation with Swiss higher education institutions and early-career researchers, the SNSF has drawn up a framework to reform its career funding portfolio. The first step concerns the postdoctoral level: A new funding scheme that will enable researchers to lead a project at a Swiss institution will replace both Ambizione and Postdoc.Mobility. The goal is to align funding more closely with the different stages of researchers' careers, to redefine the eligibility criteria to better reflect the diversity of scientific career paths, to encourage national and international collaboration, and to ensure more favourable framework conditions for carrying out research projects (more details in the box).
Grantees will be able to develop their research project with a high level of autonomy and develop their skills to pursue a career that corresponds to their achievements, whether in an academic or extra-academic context. "With this new funding scheme, the SNSF wants to offer grantees the best possible framework conditions – the duration and amount of the grant should enable them to accelerate their professional development and be ready for the next stage in their career," emphasises Torsten Schwede, President of the SNSF Research Council.
Final calls in 2026 and 2027
The final submission deadline for Ambizione is set for November 2026, while the final Postdoc.Mobility call will close in August 2027. The eligibility criteria for these final calls will be adjusted to ensure the quality and impact of these funding schemes; further information will follow in April. The new postdoctoral funding scheme will be launched in early 2028. More details about the eligibility criteria, evaluation process, grant duration, funding amounts and the transitional phase between the existing funding schemes and the new one will be communicated by the end of this year.
For the time being, SNSF Starting Grants are not affected by these changes. However, reflections are currently in progress about the funding objectives at this career level, in order to ensure coherence in the SNSF's overall portfolio of funding schemes.
With this reform, the SNSF aims not only to improve the situation of researchers at the beginning of their careers, but also to strengthen the development of Swiss research and increase its value for society. "We want to select, attract and retain the most promising researchers," says Schwede. "They foster innovative, forward-looking research. Their acquired competences are an investment in the academic and extra-academic sectors."
The fundamental principles behind the reform
Target group: The proposed new funding scheme is aimed at early-career researchers who are ready to lead their own research projects and take responsibility for their own professional development in a constructive environment. The scheme will correspond to the R2 career level ("recognised researcher") according to the research profiles descriptors of the European Union, i.e. postdoc or equivalent.
EU descriptorsEligibility: Researchers' eligibility to apply will be defined by their membership of the target group and their achievements corresponding to the start of this career stage, rather than by time-based eligibility windows, in order to better reflect the diversity of scientific career paths and differences between disciplines.
Collaborations: Grantees will be employed by a host institution in Switzerland. National and international collaborations will be encouraged, with the possibility of research stays abroad. These may take the form of one long stay or several short stays, depending on the needs of the proposed research project and the acquisition of the necessary expertise.
Favourable framework conditions: Grantees will be employed for the entire duration of the grant, including during stays abroad, which will guarantee them access to all social benefits. This was not possible with a system of fellowships such as Postdoc.Mobility.
Scope of the grant: The duration and funding amount must enable grantees to carry out their projects with a high degree of autonomy. The two-year Postdoc.Mobility grants in particular were considered too short.