How to Apply for RWTH Aachen Junior Research Fellowships

The research internship candidate (a RWTH Aachen University student planning to apply for the Junior Research Fellowship) must independently find a UAlberta faculty member who is willing and able to be their host supervisor if they receive the Junior Research Fellowship.

In discussion with the host professor, the RWTH Aachen University student will establish a mutually agreed upon prospective research project and duration based on the scholarship that is being applied for, which is typically funding for 6 months.

Interested RWTH Aachen students should look at University of Alberta's professor listings by faculty and/or research areas on the different University of Alberta faculty websites.

Here are the professor listings by Faculty:

Then the interested candidate should send emails to professors that you would potentially like to work with. The faculty contact information is on the website and in the U of A Directory.

When emailing faculty members, please be sure to include:

  • your full name and contact information
  • your home University and home country
  • whether you are currently an undergraduate (Bachelor) or graduate student (Master or PhD)
  • which year of your program you are in
  • the full name of the scholarship that you would be applying for, along with a link to this webpage as they may not have heard about this program before
  • how long of a stay you wish to do research for (ex. 3 months, 6 months, etc.)
  • your ideal start date and end date, especially if you must return to RWTH Aachen University in Germany by a certain date to resume studies, etc.

Once you have successfully found a prospective Host Professor at the University of Alberta (pending funding confirmation), please follow the instructions to apply for scholarship funding from RWTH Aachen. 

Then we all await the funding decision. No further arrangements can be made until such time that the results are shared with candidates by Herr Jan Müller of RWTH Aachen University.

After you confirm receiving the scholarship funding from RWTH Aachen, complete this RWTH Aachen - University of Alberta Junior Research Fellowships Participant Questionnaire . 

You will require the following information and documents to complete the questionnaire. Do not submit this form until you have confirmation that you will receive funding from RWTH Aachen University. Do not send the information by email.

  • Your full legal name, date of birth, and country of citizenship
  • University of Alberta Host professor's full name and email address
  • Project Title/Description of Research Activities
  • Research experience start date and end date
  • Copy of your funding approval letter "Bewilligung"
  • Copy of the Letter of Invitation from the UAlberta host professor

Additional Funding Opportunity

The University of Alberta International may be in a position to offer Junior Fellowship recipients additional funding of $6,000 CAD total to extend their research stay for 12 weeks through the UARE program, if scholarship funds are still available for the year you wish to travel in.

While the two sources of funding cannot be held concurrently, UARE and Junior Research Fellowships may be held consecutively for an extended research stay, if applicable.

Note that the UARE program is typically 12 weeks, and since RWTH Aachen Junior Research Fellowship funding can be up to 6 months, together the maximum funded stay is approximately 9 months total.

Your UAlberta host professor must be willing to contribute $2000 towards the UARE scholarship, as ISVS funds the other $4000. If UARE funding is available, the University of Alberta Inbound International Internship Coordinator will discuss the possibility of this funding extension with your UAlberta host, but it is not guaranteed.

Once the complete Participant Questionnaire is submitted by the visiting RWTH Aachen student and received by the University of Alberta International, within ten business days, the University of Alberta International Student + Visitor Services staff will prepare and email a scholarship summary offer and send it to the candidate via email.

The candidate will need to confirm the offer of the placement by submitting the signed Terms & Conditions Letter, as well as a completed confirmation form, to initiate the next steps. The details for these steps will be shared directly with the candidate at that time. 

The University of Alberta International Student + Visitor Services will start the official invitation process for the RWTH Aachen University Junior Research Fellowships recipient to enter Canada as an academic visitor (i.e., for work purposes).

Please note, visiting international students performing research do NOT apply for a study permit to enter Canada.

You will be invited by U of A International Student + Visitor Services on behalf of the host professor. ISVS and HR Immigration Shared Services staff help prepare the document(s) required for entry into Canada, then request the collection of required signatures by the host professor, then provide the letter to the candidate once ready. Documentation will be accompanied with useful pre-departure information, such as how to find housing accommodations for your research stay, etc.

The candidate will start any required immigration applications and other pre-departure preparations based on the information provided via email from the University of Alberta International Student + Visitor Services.

Participants are responsible for arranging their own flights, housing (residence) accommodations, and transportation after arrival and will be provided with resources that outline these options. Please be aware that for most of the year, on-campus residence dormitories are not available to be rented by academic visitors, as they are reserved for enrolled students. The pricing between on-campus and off-campus residences is quite similar here, with many short-term private options adjacent to our University of Alberta campuses.