CAS President's International Fellowship Initiative (PIFI)
The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) is the linchpin of China’s drive to explore and harness high technology and the natural sciences for the benefit of China and the world. Comprising a comprehensive research and development network, a merit-based learned society and a system of higher education, CAS brings together scientists and engineers from China and around the world to address both theoretical and applied problems using world-class scientific and management approaches.
Since its founding, CAS has fulfilled multiple roles — as a national team and a locomotive driving national technological innovation, a pioneer in supporting nationwide S&T development, a think tank delivering S&T advice and a community for training young S&T talent.
Now, as it responds to a nationwide call to put innovation at the heart of China’s development, CAS has further defined its development strategy by emphasizing greater reliance on democratic management, openness and talent in the promotion of innovative research. The academy aims for a bright future as one of the world’s top S&T research and development organizations.
The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) President's International Fellowship Initiative, PIFI, is a funding program designed to establish scientific cooperation and promote research communication around the globe. It is open to all scientific research personnel worldwide.
Aiming at promoting global research mobility, the PIFI covers scholars at different career stages, from Nobel laureates to young master’s students.
CAS-ANSO Scholarship
The Alliance of National and International Science Organizations for the Belt and Road Regions (ANSO) is a non-profit, non-governmental international organization founded in 2018. Founding members include the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and 36 other scientific institutions, universities, and international organizations worldwide. ANSO aims to improve regional and global capacity in science and technology, human livelihoods and wellbeing, and to promote broader S&T cooperation and communication.
CAS-ANSO Scholarship (previously known as ANSO Scholarship for Young Talents) was formally launched in 2019 with the goal of training and cultivating young scientists from all over the world. CAS-ANSO Scholarship has two categories: degree program and non-degree program. The degree program supports 100 to 200 Master’s students and 300 PhD students every year to pursue postgraduate education at the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS) and institutes of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) around China.
A sub-category of the CAS-ANSO Scholarship (Degree Program) – the ANSO-CAS-TWAS/UNESCO PhD Scholarship – was officially launched in 2022. Each year, TWAS/UNESCO will select up to 40 PhD students from developing countries for this scholarship category, with 10 scholarships prioritized for recipients engaged in climate-related research. Aligning with TWAS/UNESCO’s priority areas, special (non-exclusive) consideration will be extended to two target groups: Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and women.
CAS, the leading founding member of ANSO, is the major sponsor of CAS-ANSO Scholarship. TWAS and UNESCO, both founding members of ANSO, provide partial funding for ANSO-CAS-TWAS/UNESCO PhD Scholarship awardees. ANSO welcomes all members and parties who are interested in creating a more diversified scholarship program together.
Read More About CAS-ANSO Scholarship
TWAS Fellowships for PhD Studies and Postdoctoral Research
The World Academy of Sciences for the Advancement of Science in Developing Countries (TWAS) was founded in 1983 by a distinguished group of scientists from the developing world, under the leadership of Abdus Salam, the Pakistani physicist and Nobel laureate. They shared a belief that developing nations, by building strength in science and engineering, could build the knowledge and skill to address such challenges as hunger, disease and poverty. From the start, the Academy had essential support from Italian scientists and political leaders.
The Third World Academy of Sciences, as it was originally known, was inaugurated officially in 1985 during a ceremony attended by United Nations Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar. Initially, TWAS had 42 elected fellows, nine of them Nobel laureates. The name was changed twice: in 2004, to "The Academy of Sciences for the developing world" and, in 2012, to the current one, "The World Academy of Sciences for the advancement of science in developing countries"
Today, TWAS more than 1,400 elected fellows — some of the world's most accomplished scientists and engineers — representing 112 countries; 13 of them are Nobel laureates. About 84 per cent come from developing nations, and the rest are scientists from the developed world whose work has had a significant impact in the South. TWAS fellows are the foundation for all of the Academy's work.
TWAS offers PhD Fellowships—to earn a PhD—as well as Postdoctoral Fellowships.
To expedite the submission of your application, please, follow the recommendation below:
● Applications can be submitted only through the online portal and only once the call for the programme of your choice is open.
● To start your application, use the "Apply now" button at the bottom of the programme of your choice.
● Candidates need to upload, along with their application, a preliminary acceptance letter issued in the same year of the application itself by their chosen host institution. Applicants are encouraged to apply for the acceptance letter from the chosen host institutions as early as possible, even before the opening date of the call of the programme of their choice.
● The opening and closing dates of each programme are specified on each programme page.
● Applicants may apply for only one programme per calendar year in the TWAS and OWSD portfolio.
● Applicants may not visit another institution in that year under any other TWAS programme.
