BE NCP Meeting 23 10 2017 - Vlaanderen (FWO) · BE NCP Meeting . 23 10 2017 . Inês Pio, Unit B5 ....
Transcript of BE NCP Meeting 23 10 2017 - Vlaanderen (FWO) · BE NCP Meeting . 23 10 2017 . Inês Pio, Unit B5 ....
Established by the European Commission
BE NCP Meeting 23 10 2017
Inês Pio, Unit B5 Social Sciences and
Humanities Unit 23 October 2017
Established by the European Commission
The European Research Council
What is the ERC ?
ERC and Belgium
CoG call
The evaluation process
Tips for applicants
Q&A
Established by the European Commission
ERC is…. 1. funding: it is part of H2020
ERC Budget € 13 billion
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For 2018, the budget is more than 1.8 billion euros, the highest ever since the beginning of the ERC.
Established by the European Commission
Panel Members • Appointed by the Scientific Council • Full independence in the evaluation and ranking of the proposals • Appoint remote referees
The ERC Scientific Council • 22 prominent researchers appointed by the
Commission • Establishes overall scientific strategy • Controls quality of operations and
management • Ensures communication with the scientific
community
ERC is…. 2. the Scientific Council
Established by the European Commission
ERC Scientific Officers • Work closely with the panel members • Manage all practical aspects of the evaluations • Carry out scientific follow-up
The ERC Executive Agency • Implements calls for proposals • Organises peer review evaluation • Establishes and manages grant agreements • Administers scientific and financial aspects • Carries out communications activities
ERC is…. 3. the ERCEA
Established by the European Commission
Starting Grant
•2-7 years after PhD •up to €1.5M (+0.5M) •for 5 years
Advanced Grant
•10 year track-record of significant research achievements •up to € 2.5M (+1M) •for 5 years
Proof-of-Concept
for ERC grant holders only
• Supporting innovative potential of ideas from ERC projects
• up to €150,000 • for 1 year
ERC Funding Schemes
Consolidator Grant
•7-12 years after PhD •up to €2M (+ 0.75M) •for 5 years
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Synergy Grant Re-launched 2018
• 2-4 PIs at any career stage • up to €10 M (+4M) • for 6 years
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ERC calls Budget Call Opening Submission Deadline(s)
Starting Grants ERC-2018-StG
581 M€ (391 grants)
3 August 2017
17 October 2017
Synergy Grants ERC-2018-SyG
250 M€ (30 grants) 3 August 2017 14 November 2017
Consolidator Grants ERC-2018-CoG
550 M€ (287
grants)
24 October
2017
15 February 2018
Advanced Grants ERC-2018-AdG
450 M€ (194 grants)
17 May 2018
30 August 2018
Proof of Concept ERC-2018-PoC
20 M€ (130 grants) 6 September 2017
16 January 2018 18 April 2018
11 September 2018
2018 Call Calendar
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Social Sciences and Humanities SH1 Individuals, Markets and Organisations SH2 Institutions, Values, Environment and Space SH3 The Social World, Diversity, Population SH4 The Human Mind and Its Complexity SH5 Cultures and Cultural Production SH6 The Study of the Human Past
Life Sciences LS1 Molecular Biology, Biochemistry,
Structural Biology and Molecular Biophysics LS2 Genetics, 'Omics', Bioinformatics and
Systems Biology LS3 Cellular and Developmental Biology LS4 Physiology, Pathophysiology and
Endocrinology LS5 Neuroscience and Neural Disorders LS6 Immunity and Infection LS7 Applied Medical Technologies,
Diagnostics, Therapies, and Public Health LS8 Ecology, Evolution and Environmental
Biology LS9 Applied Life Sciences, Biotechnology
and Molecular and Biosystems Engineering
Physical Sciences & Engineering PE1 Mathematics PE2 Fundamental Constituents of Matter PE3 Condensed Matter Physics PE4 Physical & Analytical Chemical Sciences PE5 Synthetic Chemistry and Materials PE6 Computer Science and Informatics PE7 Systems and Communication Engineering PE8 Products and Processes Engineering PE9 Universe Sciences PE10 Earth System Science
Each panel: Panel Chair and 12-16 Panel Members
2018 Panel Structure
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Frontier of science, scholarship and engineering, i.e. Multi- or interdisciplinary proposals which
cross boundaries between different fields of research, or
Pioneering proposals addressing new and emerging fields of research, or
Proposals introducing unconventional, innovative approaches and scientific inventions.
Particular emphasis on…..
Established by the European Commission
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ERC Grant Schemes Who can apply?
• Everyone can apply (2
years past PhD) • In conjunction with a
Host Institution (HI) based in the EU or an Associated Country
• Spend min. 50% (StG / CoG) 30% (AdG), of total working time at HI (over project duration)
• Iceland • Norway • Albania • Bosnia and
Herzegovina • the former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
• Montenegro
• Serbia • Turkey • Israel • Moldova • Switzerland • Faroe
Islands • Ukraine • Tunisia • Georgia • Armenia
As of 01 January 2017, the following countries are Associated to Horizon 2020:
Established by the European Commission
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ERC funds "frontier research", including applied research.
The budget is distributed among the scientific panels as a function of demand.
The panel descriptors do not represent ERC scientific priorities.
The success rate is virtually flat across the eligibility window (StG, CoG).
Publication record is not decisive in selection decisions.
The Host Institution is not an evaluation criterion.
Contrary to what you may think…..
Established by the European Commission
Top European
Institutions Hosting
ERC Grantees
by Funding Schemes
ERC calls 2007-2016
and StG2017
Current signatories of the grant agreement
Data as of
21/08/2017
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Grantees at Home and Abroad
41 foreign grantees in BE: mainly IT (7), DE(6), NL(5), FR(5), UK(4)…
217 PIs with Belgian nationality in Belgium
85 Belgian PIs abroad mainly in NL(23), UK(16), FR(16), CH(12)…
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ERC grantees and applicants by gender
ERC evaluated proposals by PI-s in Belgium's HI, by gender
ERC grants in Belgium's HI, success rate by gender
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ERC Consolidator Grants
(7-12 y past PhD) Objective
support excellent PIs at the stage at which they may still be consolidating their own independent research team or programme
PI Profile Has already achieved certain degree of research
independence (very often already working with own group – supervision experience?)
Some publications with significant impact Invited presentations in conferences Funding, awards, prizes
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TO BEAR IN MIND
• Time commitment: minimum of 40% time commitment of PI to the project
• Time at the Host Institution: minimum of 50% of time employed and spent at HI (counting with field work)
• Freedom: Researcher has the freedom to choose its team - national or trans-national
• Portability of grants: the ERC grant will follow the PI in case of change of HI
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ERC Consolidator Grants (7-12 y past PhD)
*Potential to become a leader in the field*
Established by the European Commission
Work on a topic of own choice, with a team of own choice
Attract top team members (EU and non-EU) Gain true financial autonomy for up to 5 years
Negotiate best work conditions with the host institution
Move with the grant to any place in Europe (portability of grants)
Attract additional funding and gain recognition: ERC is a quality label
What does ERC offer? Generous grants, independence, recognition & visibility
Established by the European Commission
Eligibility window can be extended for following cases: • Maternity leave: 1.5 years per child before or after the PhD – attention given to equal opportunities in access to ERC grants
• Paternity leave: for whatever documented paternity leave that has been taken before or after the PhD • National service, long-term illness: whatever documented time after the PhD • Further details in ERC Work Program
Which Call? Possibility of eligibility extensions
Established by the European Commission
• Hosts the PI and is located in an EU Member State or an Associated Country
• Is a legal entity: university, research center, business research unit, etc. • Is committed to ensure that the PI may:
o Apply for funding independently o Manage research and funding project o Publish independently as senior author o Have access to reasonable space and facilities
• Signs Grant Agreement • Overhead: 25% • The PI does not need to be employed by the host institution (HI) at the time
when the proposal is submitted. If not already employed by the HI, the PI must be engaged by the latter at least for the duration of the grant
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Role of the Host Institution
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The Evaluation Process
Goal select the best frontier research proposals
Excellence is the sole evaluation criterion at 2 levels, Principal Investigator and Project
Method Two steps, peer review
Structure 25 panels, 12-16 experts/panel
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Submission to Panels
• Proposals are submitted to a Targeted Panel (of PI's choice)
Can flag one “Secondary Review Panel” Can explain the interdisciplinary nature of the proposal
• Switching proposals between panels not possible unless clear mistake on part of applicant, necessary expertise being available in a different panel
• But: In case of cross-panel or cross-domain proposals, evaluation by members of other panels is possible
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Excellence of the Research Project Ground breaking nature Important challenge? Substantially beyond
the current state of art? High-gain/high-risk balance Potential impact Possibility of a major break-through? Scientific Approach Feasibility, novel concepts/methodology
Excellence of the Principal Investigator Intellectual capacity: Track-record, capacity to go significantly
beyond the state of the art, evidence of creative independent thinking Creativity Commitment : Willing to devote a significant part of PI's working time
(minimum of 50% for Starting, minimum of 40% for Consolidator Grant, minimum of 30% for Advanced Grant)
What is evaluated? CoG Calls Excellence is the sole evaluation criterion
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Remote assessment by Panel Members of section 1 – PI and synopsis
Panel meeting
Proposals retained for step 2: Score A
STEP 1
Remote assessment by Panel members and reviewers of full proposals
Panel meeting + interview (StG and CoG)
Ranked list of proposals: Score A
STEP 2
• Right balance between generalist + specialized review • Appropriate treatment of interdisciplinary proposals • Good benefit-cost ratio
ERC basics Evaluation of proposals: review procedure
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Score: B or C Score:
B
Redress
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Remote assessment by Panel members of section 1 – PI and synopsis
Panel meeting
Proposals retained for step 2: Score A
STEP 1
Remote assessment by Panel members and reviewers of full proposals
Panel meeting + interview (StG and CoG)
Ranked list of proposals: Score A
STEP 2
• Right balance between generalist + specialized review • Appropriate treatment of interdisciplinary proposals • Good benefit-cost ratio
ERC basics Evaluation of proposals: review procedure
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Score: B or C Score:
B
Redress
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Submission of Proposals Differences in Part B1 and Part B2
In Step 1: Panel Members (generalists and with multidisciplinary approaches) see only Part B1 of your proposal: Prepare it accordingly!
Pay particular attention to the ground-breaking nature of the research project – no incremental research. State-of-the-art is not enough. Think big!
Know your competitors – what is the state of play and why is your idea and scientific approach outstanding?
Only the extended Synopsis is read at Step 1: concise and clear presentation is crucial
Outline of the methodological approach (feasibility) Show your scientific independence in your CV (model CV
provided in the part B1 template)
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Submission of Proposals Differences in Part B1 and Part B2
In Step 2: Both Part B1 and B2 are sent to specialists around the world (specialised external referees) Do not just repeat the synopsis
Provide sufficient detail on methodology, work plan, selection
of case studies etc. (15 pages)
Check coherency of figures, justify requested resources
Explain involvement of all team members
Provide alternative strategies to mitigate risk
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Proposal budget considerations
Budget analysis carried out in Step 2 evaluation (meeting)
Panels have responsibility to ensure that resources requested are
reasonable and well justified
Budget cuts need to be justified on a proposal by proposal basis
(no across-the-board cuts)
Panels to recommend a final maximum budget based on the
resources allocated/ removed
Panels do not “micro-manage” project finances
Awards made on a “take-it-or-leave-it” basis: no negotiations
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Preparing an application Hints and tips (Generalities)
Register early, get familiar with the system and templates and start filling in the forms
A submitted proposal can be revised until the call deadline by submitting a new version and overwriting the previous one
Follow the formatting rules and page limits.
Download and proof-read the proposal before submitting. Make use of the help tools and call documents (Information
for Applicants, Work Programme, Frequently asked questions) to prepare your proposal
Talk to the National Contact Points and your Institution's grant office – or come to events like this!
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Questions to ask yourself as an applicant – CoG Calls
• Is my project new, innovative, bringing in new solutions? theory? applications?
• Does it promise to go substantially beyond the state of the art?
• Why is my proposed project important?
• Is it timely? (Why wasn't it done in the past? Is it feasible now?)
• What's the risk? Is it justified by a substantial potential gain?
• Do I have a plan for managing the risk?
• Why am I the best/only person to carry it out?
• Am I internationally competitive as a researcher at my career stage and in my discipline?
• Am I able to work independently, and to manage a 5-year project with a substantial budget?
• How can I prove/support my case?
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Typical reasons for rejection
Principal investigator
Insufficient track-record
Insufficient (potential for) independence
Insufficient experience in leading projects
Proposed project
• Scope: Too narrow too broad/unfocussed
• Incremental research
• Work plan not detailed enough/unclear
• Insufficient risk management
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Resubmission Restrictions
• If you are a B at step 1 – you need to wait 1 year before reapplying
• If you are a C at step 1 – you need to wait 2 years before reapplying
• If you are a B at step 2 – no restrictions apply
In practice: • If you are a C in 2018 at step 1 you can reapply in 2021 • If you are a B in 2018 at step 1, you can reapply in 2020 • If you are a B at Step 2, you can reapply in 2019
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• More information on: erc.europa.eu which grant am I eligible for? read FAQ check successful applicants’ profiles check panels http://erc.europa.eu/evaluation-panels
• National Contact Point in your country erc.europa.eu/national-contact-points • Follow us on
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EuropeanResearchCouncil
ERC_Research
The European Research Council