Introduction
In collaboration with Karolinska Institutet (KI), A*STAR is offering an exciting and challenging PhD scholarship opportunity for those keen to pursue an R&D career in science and technology. Click here for an introduction of KI.

The A*STAR-KI Partnership (AKIP) PhD Programme recruited its first intake of students in Fall 2006, and will continue to recruit on an annual basis. This PhD Scholarship Programme is open to candidates who satisfy entry requirements for both the A*STAR Graduate Academy and KI.

The AKIP PhD Programme is a four-year scholarship comprising approximately two years of PhD studies at KI, and two years at a relevant A*STAR Research Institute (RI) in Singapore. PhD research training will be carried out under the joint supervision of a KI Professor and a senior member of an A*STAR RI. Successful students will be conferred a PhD degree by KI.

Areas of Interest
Research areas under the AKIP PhD Programme fall broadly under the category of Biomedical Sciences only. Approved research areas will be determined by the Programme Governing and Academic Board, and will be aligned with the research thrusts of the A*STAR RIs.

Please refer to the following links for more information on the various research areas available:

- Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience
- Endocrinology and Metabolism
- Molecular and Genomic Epidemiology
- Immunology
- Infection Biology 1, Infection Biology 2
- Inflammation
- Stem Cell Biology and Development Biology

A list of possible research projects can be found at http://ki.se/akip

• Singaporeans, Singaporean Permanent Residents, and nationals of ASEAN countries. Successful candidates who are not Singapore Citizens are expected to take up Singapore Citizenship.
• Candidates must have a first degree in relevant disciplines, and have obtained 1st Class Honours. Those with 2nd Upper Class Honours and good 'A' Levels results are also eligible to apply.
• Candidates must satisfy criteria for PhD admission to KI.
• Candidates must not concurrently hold any other scholarships or fellowships.
• Successful candidates are required to undergo a one-year research attachment at an A*STAR RI, prior to their PhD studies. Exceptions may be granted but will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
• Scores from the GRE General Test are required of all applicants.
• Awardees are expected to attain good GRE scores. The average scores of successful awardees for the combined Verbal and Quantitative components for the last 2 batches (2007 and 2008) were 1360 with a standard deviation of 90. All successful awards would also have to obtain a score of at least 4.5 for the Analytical Writing components.

Successful candidates will be given support for up to 4 years of academic pursuit.

Successful candidates will receive:

• Full tuition fees
• Monthly sustenance allowance; and
• Other allowances including
  1. Annual book allowance
  2. Computer allowance
  3. Conference allowance
  4. Thesis allowance
  5. Travel allowance
  6. Subsistence allowance

⁺ All rates/allowances are subject to adjustments by A*STAR from time to time.

Upon completion of their studies, candidates will return to contribute to A*STAR's RIs for a service commitment period of 3 years.

Application Procedure

Applications for the AKIP PhD Programme can be made to A*STAR - Click here to apply. Please observe the instructions indicated. The application form, together with supporting documents, are also to be submitted by post to:

A*STAR Graduate Academy
Agency for Science, Technology and Research
20 Biopolis Way, #07-01 Centros
Singapore 138668

A*STAR accepts and processes AKIP applications throughout the year. However, priority will be given to applications that reach us by 15 April for admission to KI in August the following year.

Only shortlisted candidates will be notified.

For more information about the university, please visit http://ki.se/

1) Please click here for the list of BMRC Supervisors and Research Areas for AKIP programme.

2) Please click here for a list of enrolled AKIP students.

3) A list of core subjects to be taken can be found at kiwas.ki.se/katalog/courses

A*GA Scholarship Officers:
Joyce Yee
April Tan