The ISTernship is a summer research fellowship at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA), a graduate research institute in Klosterneuburg near Vienna. It places enrolled bachelor’s and master’s students, along with recent graduates, into an ISTA research group for two to three months of hands-on work on a real project chosen together with the host group. Fields span biology, computer science, data science, mathematics, physics, neuroscience, and chemistry & materials.
Fellows receive a monthly living stipend, a travel lump sum, and access to campus or Vienna student housing. The program runs annually but has been paused for the 2026 cycle; details of the 2027 cycle are expected late in 2026.
Benefits & funding
- Monthly fellowship stipend for basic living costs (€1,150 per month in the 2025 cycle).
- Travel lump sum toward airfare and travel to ISTA and back home, scaled by distance.
- Access, subject to availability, to on-campus guest-house accommodation or OeAD-operated student residences in Vienna.
- Free ISTA shuttle bus.
- A genuine research project inside an ISTA group, defined jointly with the host group.
- Note: health insurance is not covered and is the fellow’s responsibility where needed.
Eligibility
- Enrolled bachelor’s or master’s students in good standing at a degree-granting institution.
- Bachelor’s applicants must have completed at least their second year (fourth semester) before the start date.
- Recent graduates within one year of the program start date may also apply.
- Not open to anyone accepted to or enrolled in a PhD program before the start date.
- Open to applicants worldwide; those currently enrolled at universities located in Russia are not eligible (short-term mobility suspended).
- All scientific disciplines welcome.
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
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Education required
Bachelor Enrolled · Master Enrolled · Bachelor · Master
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Application process
- 1Prepare a CV and a statement of purpose covering your motivation, chosen research groups, skills you want to build, and expected impact.
- 2Identify one or two ISTA research groups you would like to join.
- 3Provide contact details for one or two academic referees.
- 4Upload university transcripts and diplomas (English translation recommended; applicant translations accepted).
- 5Submit through ISTA’s online application system before the deadline.
- 6Selected fellows agree the exact project, dates, and length with their host research group.
Program timeline
5 February 2025
2025 cycle application deadline (most recent cycle)
fellowship period, 2–3 months with exact dates set individually
15 May – 15 September
program paused — did not run
2026
Late 2026
2027 cycle information expected