ERC Grant Program
ERC Calls
ERC : European Research Council
The ERC funds scientific excellence at the frontier of knowledge. It is a “white scientist” program dedicated to exploratory research, whose sole selection criterion is scientific excellence!
The various types of individual scholarships
Starting
From 2 to 7 years
1,5 M €
- Research independence
- Evidence of maturity
- Top 5 publications as main author
- Aura international (record of invited presentations in well-established international conferences, granted patents, awards, prizes)
Consolidator
From 7 to 12 years
2 M €
- International aura (record of invited presentations in well-established international conferences, granted patents, awards, prizes)
- International aura (record of invited presentations in well-established international conferences, granted patents, awards, prizes)
Advanced
Over 12 years
2,5 M €
- Solid balance sheet
- Top 10 publications as main author in the last 10 years
Synergy
2-4 PI at any career stage
10 M €
- Research independence
- Evidence of maturity
- Top 5 publications as main author
- International aura (record of invited presentations in well-established international conferences, granted patents, awards, prizes)
Proof of concept
Any ERC granted
150 k €
- Top 10 publications as main author
- International aura (record of invited presentations in well-established international conferences, granted patents, awards, prizes)
Starting & Consolidator scholarships
The structure of the European research system limits the capacity of young researchers to create their teams around an original idea, this is one of the reasons for the “brain” drain on the level of the old continent.
The objective of the Starting grants is to allow young scientists to form their research team around a
original theme. They support scientific projects on ambitious and risky subjects.
These scholarships are awarded according to the year in which the thesis was obtained:
Starting Grant: 2 to 7 years after the thesis
Consolidator Grant: 7 to 12 years after the thesis
The period taken into account after the thesis can be extended in certain cases: maternity, illness, etc.
Who can benefit ?
All researchers, regardless of nationality, provided they carry out the research related to the grant within an institution
European.
The duration of the grant is 5 years and the selection criteria are the scientific excellence of the project and the researcher who
gate. The latter must demonstrate his scientific independence and his ability to assume the management of his project.
Advanced scholarships
They must allow experienced scientists to propose a subject that breaks with their research activities, while remaining active at the scientific level.
Who can benefit ?
Advanced Fellowships are open to all senior scholars who are recognized as exceptional leaders and who are leading
an exploratory research project. Applicants must demonstrate.
What type of project
The research proposed by the researcher must open up new perspectives. It should not be in the exact continuity of
that carried out so far.
The duration of the grant is 5 years and the selection criteria are the scientific excellence of the project and the
researcher who wears it. The latter must demonstrate his scientific independence and his ability to assume
the management of his project.
Synergy scholarships
Synergy grants target collaborative projects carried out by two to four researchers, with no restrictions on their level of advancement in their career.
It is a question of jointly developing an ambitious research project, at the frontiers of knowledge, around questions that could not be resolved individually.
Who can benefit ?
These collaborative projects revolve around 2 to 4 PIs and their teams. Any of these PIs (excluding the principal) may
depend on a host institution located outside the European Union or an associated country.
Each PI must submit, depending on their own situation, either an early achievement track-record (candidates at the start of their career,
StG or CoG type), i.e. a 10-year track-record (confirmed researchers, AdG type).
The application must demonstrate that the research project cannot be carried out individually, and that
effective and significant synergies will result from the collaboration.
Proof of Concept scholarships
The ERC funds upstream exploratory research whose impact on innovation is often difficult to predict, especially when setting up the project, when breakthrough innovation can arise from these projects.
In order to allow researchers who have won an ERC grant to finance the innovation resulting from their research, the ERC has set up grants entitled Proof of Concept.
Thus the ideas supported by the researcher who developed them will be able to reach the market and cross the “valley of death” of innovation, thanks to this financial supplement.
Applying for the Proof of Concept scholarships is only possible if one has already obtained a previous Advanced, Starting or Consolidator scholarship.