Scholarship
National Science Chair- Scientific Excellence(NSC-SE)
Eligibility
The nominee should be an active resident Indian scientist/academician, with an outstanding research track record in any one or more areas of STEM and medicine, particularly during the last five years.
Region
All India
Award
Composite
By Expertie Editorial Team · Expertie editorial desk
Overview
About NSC-SE
The National Science Chair (NSC) is a recognition scheme run by the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) under the Department of Science & Technology, Government of India. It operates in two modes, Scientific Excellence and Science Leadership. The Scientific Excellence mode is aimed at senior scientists who stay research-active after retirement.
The aim is to recognise active, eminent senior resident Indian scientists who have superannuated (retired) for their contributions in science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) and medicine, and to sustain their work in research and development. The chair goes to individuals with a distinguished, continuing research record, not to students or early-career researchers.
The benefit is composite, pairing national recognition with support to keep doing research, granted for an initial three-year tenure that can be extended on review. Only a limited number of chairs are awarded, and candidates who already hold an administrative post or draw another salary, fellowship or honorarium are generally not eligible.
Sources: National Science Chair - Scientific Excellence, myScheme (Government of India) · National Science Chair, SERB (Science and Engineering Research Board, DST)
Who runs it
Provider
Ministry Of Science And Technology
Central Government
Department Of Science & Technology · Science And Engineering Research Board, Government Of India
At a glance
Key details
| Level | Central |
| Scheme type | Central Sector Scheme |
| Category | Science, IT & Communications |
| Beneficiaries | Individual |
| Benefit type | Composite |
| Application mode | Online |
Calendar
Important dates
Across all open application cycles.
| Cycle | Stage | Date |
|---|
Who can apply
Eligibility criteria
| Eligibility for nomination | The nominee should be an active resident Indian scientist/academician, with an outstanding research track record in any one or more areas of STEM and medicine, particularly during the last five years. |
| Eligibility for nomination | The nominee must have received recognition for his/her work from national/international scientific bodies such as fellowship in prestigious academies and S&T awards. |
| Eligibility for nomination | The nominee could be affiliated with an academic institutions/R&D lab or should have consent on the subject from the future host institution. |
| Eligibility for nomination | Note: The nominee should not hold any administrative roles and functions and is not in receipt of any honorarium/fellowship/salary from any other institute or organization at the time of initiation of the NSC award if offered by SERB. |
| Eligibility for nomination | Assessment Criteria: The assessment criteria for the selection of the awardee will be decided by NSCAC and it will be generally based on the following considerations: |
| Eligibility for nomination | Outstanding research track record of the nominee and international standing in the field. |
| Eligibility for nomination | Quality/originality of proposed research plan. |
| Eligibility for nomination | Ability to mentor young researchers and implement proactive approaches towards the advancement of S&T talent in the country. |
What you get
Award & benefits
- An amount of ₹1.5 lakhs per month will be given to the awardee as a fellowship.
- The Research Grant in this case will be ₹25 lakhs per annum.
- For overhead expenses, ₹1.0 lakh per annum will be given to the host institution.
- Note: The grant shall be used for manpower, equipment, travel (including international), contingency, etc. It needs to be utilized as per the norms of the Host Institute. Items purchased out of the contingency grant will be the property of the Host Institute after the completion of tenure. However, in certain listed items, their retention by the awardee will be decided in accordance with the existing government rules and regulations on the subject.
What to prepare
Documents required
Research Proposal with brief Introduction, Objective, Methodology, Budget, and expected outcome (up to five pages)
Endorsement Letter by the head of the Host Institute
Certificate from the Nominee
Step by step
How to apply
- 1Apply online
See the official links below for the application portal.
Source
Official links
Questions
NSC-SE – FAQ
The nominations are being accepted in online mode only through SERB online portal i.e. www.serbonline.in.
1. The nominee should be an active resident Indian scientist/academician, with an outstanding research track record in any one or more areas of STEM and medicine, particularly during the last five years. 2. The nominee must have received recognition for his/her work from national/international scientific bodies such as fellowship in prestigious academies and S&T awards. 3. The nominee could be affiliated with an academic institution / R&D lab or should have consent on the subject from the future host institution. 4. The nominee should not hold any administrative roles and functions and is not in receipt of any honorarium/fellowship/salary from any other institute or organization at the time of initiation of the NSC award if offered by SERB.
1. Research Proposal with brief Introduction, Objective, Methodology, Budget and expected outcome (upto five pages) (For Mode-1 nominations only). 2. Endorsement Letter by the head of the Host Institute. 3. Certificate from the Nominee.
Yes, you can but after withdrawing your position from the foreign institution and getting a No Objection Certificate from the same institution to apply under NSC Award.
Researchers working in areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) and Medicine are eligible to apply under this fellowship.
Your nomination will be reviewed by an approved NSC Advisory Committee (NSCAC).
The final decision on all nominations is based on the recommendations of NSC Advisory Committee. The high level committee comprises of eminent experts in the field of S&T. The SERB solely depends on the recommendations of the Selection Committee.
This will usually follow approximately four to six weeks after the selection committee meeting. Please note that we cannot provide any personalised information before this juncture so as not to delay the notification process.
Yes, you can but the decision on the plea will be taken, after thorough discussion and deliberations in the successive NSCAC meeting only.
No, it is not possible to apply for both modes at same time. However, if your nomination is not accepted for recommendations, you may apply to any other program as long as you fulfill the eligibility requirements in the successive call(s).
The essential aspect of the nomination is the individual nominee track record. Please refer to the eligibility and assessment criteria sections for more details on the selection criteria.
A letter is sent by the SERB to the nominee as well as to the host Institute informing the award of NSC. After receiving the same the nominee has to join the chair within six months of the date of offer letter and to send his / her Acceptance Letter to the Host Institute, indicating the tentative Date / Month when the nominee wants to start the award. Then the Institute will forward his Acceptance / Joining Letter to Science & Engineering Research Board along with the updated details of the bank for transfer of fund through RTGS (in the prescribed format). Based on this letter, SERB will process the file for getting administrative and financial approvals and then a Sanction Order is issued to the Host Institute. The start date, as per joining letter date of the nominee, of the award will be mentioned in the Sanction Order.
The selected NSC fellow, cannot avail of any other fellowship, during the tenure of the award but they are free to seek additional funds for pursuing research from other funding agencies excluding fellowship/honorarium/salary. However, if they want to switch over and carry out any other fellowship, then they are required to submit the surrender certificate first with other relevant documents i.e. final Statement of Expenditure, Utilization Certificate, Project Completion Report, and unspent balance to SERB and then only they should start the other fellowship.
No, you cannot delay the implementation date after issuance of the sanction order for the award. Your joining date of the institute will be counted as the date of start for the fellowship.
It is strongly advised to have one host institution for fund transfer & account management. However, you may get into collaboration with any other institute or organization.
In general, the host institute will receive overhead @ ₹1,00,000/- per annum, apart from this there is no provision to provide additional funds.
Yes, the Grant received under NSC Award is taxable as per I.T. rules.
Disclaimer
Scheme details are compiled from myScheme, the Government of India’s official scheme-discovery platform, and are reproduced without alteration. Amounts, deadlines and eligibility change between cycles — always confirm on the official links above before applying. Expertie does not process applications or charge fees.
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