Dutch Research Council (NWO)Scholarship

Up to €420,000 Mosaic PhD Scholarship

Nov 03, 2026 14:00:00 Europe/Amsterdam

Opportunity type

Scholarship

Funding

Fully Funded

Location

Netherlands

Deadline

Nov 03, 2026 14:00:00 Europe/Amsterdam

About this opportunity

Mosaic 3.0 is a PhD scholarship programme run by the Dutch Research Council (NWO) to bring more graduates from under-represented backgrounds into Dutch academia. You write and submit your own PhD proposal, on any research topic, together with the professor who would supervise you at a Dutch university or research institute. It is open to graduates with a migration background from outside Europe and to researchers with a recent asylum background living in the Netherlands.

What you get:

Funding of up to €420,000 for your own PhD project
A four year PhD appointment at 1.0 FTE, or the equivalent part time up to eight years at 0.5 FTE, paid at the standard Dutch PhD salary rates
A one-off personal bench fee of €5,000 to support your scientific career
Up to €15,000 per year per FTE for research materials, travel, workshops and publications
The freedom to choose any research topic in any discipline

What you'll do:

Find a PhD supervisor (promotor) at an eligible Dutch university or institute and shape a research idea together
Submit a pre-proposal in English through NWO's ISAAC system, focused on your profile, motivation, supervision and training plan
If invited, develop it into a full proposal with a research design, methodology, work plan and budget
Shortlisted applicants attend an interview in September 2027

Key dates:

Pre-proposals close November 3, 2026 at 14:00 Amsterdam time
January 2027: applicants hear whether they are invited to submit a full proposal
March 2027: NWO decision on pre-proposals
Full proposals close May 4, 2027 at 14:00 Amsterdam time
September 2027: interviews
November 2027: final funding decision

More information:

Full call for proposals, eligibility rules and forms on NWO's Mosaic 3.0 call page
NWO expects to fund at most 18 projects in this round, from a total budget of €7,400,000

Who can apply

You apply as an individual; duos and research groups cannot apply
You must hold a university master's degree by the time you submit the full proposal
Group 1: you hold Dutch nationality or a permanent residence permit (type II or IV) when you submit the pre-proposal, with no exceptions
Group 1: you were born in, or at least one parent was born in, an eligible country of origin outside Europe (including Turkey, Morocco, Suriname, Indonesia, other African and Asian countries, Central and South America, the Caribbean, or indigenous peoples of North America and Oceania)
Group 1: you obtained your bachelor's degree in the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Group 2: you have a recent asylum background, shown by a type III permit obtained on or after 3 November 2021, a type III or IV permit or naturalisation with a right of residence starting on or after 3 November 2018, or temporary protection in the Netherlands as someone from Ukraine
Your research must take place at a Dutch university, university medical centre, KNAW or NWO institute, or another listed institute
Your intended promotor must hold the right to award doctorates and sign a supporting declaration
You cannot apply if you already hold a doctorate, already have PhD funding, or already hold a PhD position
Pre-proposal and full proposal must be written in English

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Good to know

+Four years of salaried PhD funding, plus a €5,000 personal budget
+You propose your own PhD on any topic, in any discipline
+Designed to open Dutch academia to graduates with a migration or refugee background
+Free to apply

Worth checking yourself

!Only for people already in the Netherlands with Dutch nationality or a qualifying residence or asylum permit
!You need a professor at a Dutch university who can award doctorates and agrees to supervise you, before you apply
!The pre-proposal closes at 14:00 Amsterdam time on 3 November, not midnight
!The €420,000 is a ceiling paid to your university for your salary and research, not cash to you
!At most around 18 awards this round

Sources checked

NWnwo.nlApplyNWnwo.nlApplyNWnwo.nlApplyNWnwo.nlApplyNWnwo.nlApplyNWnwo.nlApply

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