The ERC starting grant call 2024 opened this month, with a deadline for submission of October 24th, 2023. European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grants are designed to support excellent Principal Investigators in all scientific fields at the career stage at which they are starting their own independent research team or program.
ERC Starting Grants in brief:
- For researchers of any nationality with 2-7 years of experience since completion of PhD or an equivalent doctoral degree (Extensions are possible under certain circumstances — see the latest ERC Work Program), a scientific track record showing great promise and an excellent research proposal
- Applications can be made in any field of research
- Research must be conducted in a public or private research organization (known as a Host Institution, or HI). It could be the HI where the applicant already works or any other HI located in one of the EU Associated Countries.
- Funding per grant: up to €1.5 million. However, an additional €1 million can be made available to cover eligible “start-up” costs for researchers moving from a third country to the EU or an associated country and/or the purchase of major equipment and/or access to large facilities and/or other major experimental and fieldwork costs. An ERC grant can cover up to 100% of the total eligible direct costs of the research plus a contribution of 25% of the total eligible costs towards indirect costs.
- Duration: up to 5 years
- Sole evaluation criterion: scientific excellence of researcher and research proposal
- Calls for proposals: published once a year
