The European Research Council Established by the European

The European Research Council Established by the European Commission Valentin Oprea Project Adviser Physical Sciences and Engineering ERC Executive Agency Academia de Studii Economice din Bucureşti 6 June 2017 © Art & Build Architect / Montois Partners / credits: S. Brison

Overview Established by the European Commission • What ERC offers • How proposals are evaluated • Preparing an application │2

ERC supports excellent frontier research Established by the European Commission Ø Bottom-up approach, curiosity driven Ø All fields of science and scholarship are eligible Ø Scientific Excellence is the only evaluation criterion Ø Individual team + research project Ø Irrespective of nationality, gender or age of researchers Ø Attractive grants for independent teams in Europe Ø Significant, flexible grants Ø Host organisation located in EU or in an Associated Country │3

After 9 Years, a Success Story Established by the European Commission 6, 000 40, 000 € 13 billion 90, 000 677 67 │4

Features of ERC grants Established by the European Commission • High flexibility: aims of the project can be modified through amendments to the grant agreement • Grants are portable • PI’s time commitment: 50% (St. G), 40% (Co. G) and 30% (Ad. G) • Light reporting along the project life-time: financial report every 18 months, scientific report at mid-term and end of the project • No constraints on eligible costs as long as they are for the execution of the project (rules of the HI apply) │5

ERC Grant Schemes Established by the European Commission Starting Grants Consolidator Grants starters (2 -7 years after Ph. D) up to € 2. 0 Mio for 5 years consolidators (7 -12 years after Ph. D) up to € 2. 75 Mio for 5 years Advanced Grants track-record of significant research achievements in the last 10 years up to € 3. 5 Mio for 5 years Proof-of-Concept bridging gap between research - earliest stage of marketable innovation up to € 150, 000 for ERC grant holders │6

ERC Grant Schemes Established by the European Commission • Synergy Scheme to be reintroduced with Work programme 2018 – Small group of principal investigators with complementary skills – Total budget ~250 M€ │7

Visiting Research Fellowships Established by the European Commission Placements available via national or regional funding agencies. Funding provided by national/regional authorities, covering costs of the research visit, such as salary, travel and reasonable subsistence costs. National and/or regional authorities who want to set up a programme can consult the ERC guidelines.

Overview Established by the European Commission • What ERC offers • How proposals are evaluated • Preparing an application │9

Excellence - the sole evaluation criterion Established by the European Commission Excellence of the Research Project ü Ground breaking nature Important challenge? Substantially beyond the current state of art? High-gain/high-risk balance ü Potential impact Possibility of a major break-through? ü Scientific Approach Feasibility, novel concepts/methodology • Excellence of the Principal Investigator ü Intellectual capacity: Track-record, capacity to go significantly beyond the state of the art, evidence of creative independent thinking ü Creativity ü Commitment : Willing to devote a significant part of PI's working time (minimum of 50% for Starting, minimum of 40% for Consolidator Grant) │ 10

Review procedure Established by the European Commission STEP 1 STEP 2 Remote assessment by Panel members of section 1 – PI and synopsis Remote assessment by Panel members and reviewers of full proposals Panel meeting + interview (St. G and Co. G) Score: B or C Proposals retained for step 2: Score A Ranked list of proposals: Score A B Feedback to applicants │ 11

Review procedure Established by the European Commission STEP 1 STEP 2 Remote assessment by Panel members of section 1 – PI and synopsis Remote assessment by Panel members and reviewers of full proposals Panel meeting + interview (St. G and Co. G) Score: B or C Proposals retained for step 2: Score A Ranked list of proposals: Score A B Feedback to applicants │ 12

Scoring system Established by the European Commission • Score 'A': Fully meets the ERC excellence criterion and is recommended for funding if sufficient funds are available. • Score 'B': Meets some but not all of the ERC’s excellence criterion and will not be funded. If score B is awarded in step 1, PI may not submit a proposal to any call under next Work Programme • Score 'C': Proposal is not of sufficient quality to pass to Step 2 of the evaluation. PI may not submit a proposal to any call under next Work Programme │ 13

Peer review Established by the European Commission § Panel members: US − High-level scientists (7%) − Recruited by Sc. C from all over the world: ~14% from outside Europe − About 10 -15 members, including a chair person − Evaluate in Step 1 and Step 2 § External Reviewers: typically 2000 / call − Nominated in Step 1 by panel − Evaluate only a small number of proposals only in Step 2 Other (7%) EU and Associated Countries (86%) │ 14

Peer review: panel members Established by the European Commission - >1000 experts every year - No possibility to register to be an ERC Panel Member - The Scientific Council looks for women and men with outstanding profiles from any country in the world: • Make yourself visible online • Engage in international collaborations • Accept, if invited to be an external reviewer

Panel structure : 3 domains and 25 panels Established by the European Commission Each panel : Panel Chair and 10 -15 Panel Members Life Sciences (LS) 9 LS 1 Molecular & Structural Biology & Biochemistry LS 2 Genetics, Genomics, Bioinformatics & Systems Biology LS 3 Cellular & Developmental Biology LS 4 Physiology, Pathophysiology & Endocrinology LS 5 Neurosciences & Neural disorders LS 6 Immunity & Infection LS 7 Diagnostic Tools, Therapies & Public health LS 8 Evolutionary, Population & Environmental Biology LS 9 Applied Life Sciences & Non-Medical Biotechnology Social Sciences and Humanities (SH) 6 SH 1 Markets, Individuals & Institutions SH 2 The Social World, Diversity & Common Ground SH 3 Environment, Space & Population SH 4 The Human Mind and its Complexity SH 5 Cultures & Cultural Production SH 6 The Study of the Human Past Physical Sciences & Engineering (PE) 10 PE 1 Mathematics PE 2 Fundamental Constituents of Matter PE 3 Condensed Matter Physics PE 4 Physical & Analytical Chemical sciences PE 5 Synthetic Chemistry & Materials PE 6 Computer Science & Informatics PE 7 Systems & Communication Engineering PE 8 Products & Process Engineering PE 9 Universe Sciences PE 10 Earth System Science │ 16

Overview Established by the European Commission • What ERC offers • How proposals are evaluated • Preparing an application │ 17

How to prepare and submit an ERC research proposal? Established by the European Commission § Have a bright, original and exciting idea § Design a research project to implement the idea § Get a letter of support from a Host Institution where the project is to be carried out (the HI must be located in the EU or any of the H 2020 associated countries) § Make sure to be "visible" § Write your research proposal § Get feedback § Fully electronic/web based submission system │ 18

Projects funded by the ERC Established by the European Commission http: //erc. europa. eu/erc-funded-projects Search by: • Scheme • Year • Domain • HI country 19

Questions to ask yourself as an applicant Established by the European Commission • • Why is my proposed project important? Does it promise to go substantially beyond the state of the art? 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? │ 20

ERC Grant Schemes Established by the European Commission Ø Starting Grants (2 -7 years after Ph. D) Ø € 1. 5 M, with possibility of an additional € 0. 5 M Ø Consolidator Grants (7 -12 years after Ph. D) Ø € 2. 0 M, with possibility of an additional € 0. 75 M Ø Advanced Grants Ø € 2. 5 M (Ad. G) possibility of additional € 1. 0 M Reasons for additional funds: Ø start-up costs when moving to Europe Ø access to large facilities Ø major equipment │ 21

St. G/Co. G: Eligibility extensions Established by the European Commission Ø Eligibility window can be extended for following cases: Ø Maternity leave: 1. 5 years per child before or after Ph. D Ø Paternity leave: for documented paternity leave taken before or after the Ph. D Ø National service: documented time after Ph. D Ø Long-term illness: documented time after Ph. D Ø Clinical training: MD date plus 2 years (+ proof of doctoral equivalency) │ 22

St. G/Co. G: applicant’s profile Established by the European Commission “Am I competitive enough? ” § Potential for research independence § Evidence of scientific maturity § At least one (St. G) /several (Co. G) publications without participation of Ph. D supervisor Condition St. G: Ph. D at least 2 and up to 7 years before 1 January 2017 Condition Co. G: Ph. D over 7 and up to 12 years before 1 January 2017 Promising track-record of early achievements • Significant publications • Invited presentations in conferences • Funding, patents, awards, prizes │ 23

Ad. G: applicant’s profile Established by the European Commission “Am I competitive enough? ” § Exceptional leader in terms of originality and significance of your research § Excellent track record and achievements during the last 10 years (this time window can be extended in case of eligible career breaks) Substantial track-record of significant research achievements • As appropriate for the field • Publications in peer-reviewed journals, monographs, invited presentations, funding, patents, awards, prizes • Organisation of international conferences • Major contributions to the early careers of excellent researchers • Bibliometry may be one of the proxies used (where appropriate) among many others │ 24

Proposal structure Established by the European Commission Documents sent to panel members in Step 1: Administrative documentation Part A - online forms General information on research proposal Host Institution (HI) and applicant Budget Ethics Call-specific questions Part B 1 – submitted as pdf Extended Synopsis 5 p CV 2 p Early achievements (St. G & Co. G) or 10 -year track-record (Ad. G) 2 p Documents sent to panel/reviewers in Step 2: Annexes - submitted as pdf Host Institution support letter Copy of Ph. D (or equivalent degree) certificate (St. G & Co. G) If applicable, document for extension of eligibility window (St. G & Co. G) If applicable, explanatory information on ethical issues Part B 2 – submitted as pdf Full Scientific Proposal 15 p State-of-the-art and objectives Methodology Resources (including project cost) Read the Information for Applicants │ 25

Hints and tips (Part B 1) Established by the European Commission • Pay particular attention to the ground-breaking nature of the research project – no incremental research! State-of-the-art is not enough. • 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 (evaluators are not necessarily all experts in the field) • Outline of the methodological approach (feasibility) • Demonstrate your (potential) for independence and creativity • Show your ability to think outside the box • Avoid any suspicion of plagiarism │ 26

Hints and tips (Part B 2) Established by the European Commission • Provide sufficient detail on methodology, work plan, selection of case studies etc. (15 pages) • Check coherency of figures, justify requested resources • Explain involvement of team members; avoid unnecessary partners/collaborators • Provide alternative strategies to mitigate risk │ 27

Typical reasons for rejection Established by the European Commission Proposed project Ø Scope: Too narrow too broad/unfocussed Ø Incremental research/continuation of previous work Ø Work plan/team composition not detailed enough/unclear Ø Insufficient risk management Principal Investigator Ø Insufficient track-record Ø Insufficient leadership profile │ 28

Submission to Panels Established by the European Commission Ø 25 panels covering all areas of science and scholarship: Ø Ø Ø Life Sciences (LS) - 9 panels Physical Sciences & Engineering (PE) - 10 panels Social Sciences and Humanities (SH) - 6 panels Ø Proposals are submitted to a Panel of PI's choice Ø Ø PI can flag one “Secondary Review Panel” Can explain the interdisciplinary nature of the proposal Ø Transfer of proposals between panels may occur if Ø Ø clear mistake on part of applicant necessary expertise is available in a different panel Ø But: In case of proposals spanning more than one panel or domain, evaluation by members of other panels possible │ 29

Role of the host institution Established by the European Commission Ø Hosts the PI and is located in an EU Member State or an Associated Country Ø Signs the Grant Agreement Ø Is a legal entity: university, research center, business research unit, etc. Ø Is committed to ensure that the PI may: Ø Apply for funding independently Ø Manage research and funding project Ø Publish independently as senior author Ø Have access to reasonable space and facilities Ø Overhead: 25% │ 30

On the technical side… Established by the European Commission Ø Allow sufficient time to prepare your application Ø Register early, get familiar with the system and templates and start filling in the forms Ø Submit well in advance of the deadline – submitted proposal can be revised until the call deadline (and overwritten if needed) Ø Observe the rules formatting and page limits; proof-read the proposal before submitting Ø Double check that all documents are correct and have been submitted │ 31

More information: Established by the European Commission ERC website: erc. europa. eu National Contact Point (NCP) erc. europa. eu/national-contact-points Sign up for news alerts erc. europa. eu/keep-updated-erc Follow us on www. facebook. com/European. Research. Council twitter. com/ERC_Research www. linkedin. com/company/european-research-council │ 32

Established by the European Commission THANK YOU… QUESTIONS? │ 33