IAEA fellowship aims to bridge gender gap in the nuclear

The initiative, by IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, was presented at an Agency event in Vienna in March to mark International Women's Day. "Women are still far from being adequately represented in the nuclear field, and this is unacceptable," Grossi said at its launch. "Nuclear science and technology help countries to combat many of today's challenges, like climate change, so the demand for qualified professionals is high and will continue to grow."

Named after twice Nobel Prize winner, the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellowship Programme will provide scholarships for up to 100 selected applicants annually, subject to availability of funds. It will cover university tuition fees up to 10,000 euros per year and living expenses based on the cost of living for the university's location, up to EUR10,000 (USD11,810) per year, for a maximum of two years. Fellows will also be offered internships at the IAEA.

The fellowship programme is open to female students from IAEA Member States who have been accepted or are enrolled in a Master's programme at an accredited university. Preference will be given to applicants with above average academic credentials.

The application process opened last month for the MSCFP 2020 cycle, for scholarships in academic years 2020/2021 and 2021/2022. Candidates have until midnight on 11 October 2020 to apply.

Applications will be assessed by the IAEA MSCFP Technical Selection Committee against MSCFP selection criteria including the applicant's entry requirements, educational background and prior achievements, motivation and impact of the fellowship on the applicant's career goals and commitment to public service. Consideration will be given to geographic distribution, the field of study distribution, linguistic diversity and whether the applicant has received previous support from the IAEA.

The IAEA said it promotes greater engagement of women in the nuclear field by enhancing their participation in education and training courses, workshops, fellowships and scientific visits and regional nuclear education networks. The MSCFP takes these efforts a step further, aiming to help build up gender‑balanced capacities in national and world-wide nuclear energy and nuclear applications programmes, including nuclear safety and nuclear security.