Size of ERC Advanced Grants

Advanced Grants may be awarded up to a maximum of EUR 2 500 000 for a period of 5 years. The maximum award is reduced pro rata temporis for projects of a shorter duration. This does not apply to ongoing projects.

However, up to an additional EUR 1 000 000 can be requested in the proposal to cover (a) eligible "start-up" costs for Principal Investigators moving to the EU or an Associated Country from elsewhere as a consequence of receiving the ERC grant, and/or (b) the purchase of major equipment, and/or (c) access to large facilities. As any additional funding is to cover major one-off costs it is not subject to pro-rata temporis reduction for projects of shorter duration. All funding requested is assessed during evaluation.

Profile of the ERC Advanced Grant Principal Investigator

ERC Advanced Grant Principal Investigators are expected to be active researchers and to have a track record of significant research achievements in the last 10 years which must be presented in the application. There is little prospect of an application succeeding in the absence of such a record, which identifies investigators as exceptional leaders in terms of originality and significance of their research contributions.

Thus, in most fields, Principal Investigators of Advanced Grant proposals will be expected to demonstrate a record of achievements appropriate to the field and at least matching one or more of the following benchmarks:

• 10 publications as main author (or in those fields where alphabetic order of authorship is the norm, joint author) in major international peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journals, and/or in the leading international peer-reviewed journals and peer-reviewed conferences proceedings of their respective field;
• 3 major research monographs, of which at least one is translated into another language. This benchmark is relevant to research fields where publication of monographs is the norm (e.g. humanities and social sciences).

Other alternative benchmarks that may be considered (individually or in combination) as indicative of an exceptional record and recognition in the last 10 years:

• 5 granted patents;
• 10 invited presentations in well-established internationally organised conferences and advanced schools;
• 3 research expeditions led by the applicant Principal Investigator;
• 3 well-established international conferences or congresses where the applicant was involved in their organisation as a member of the steering and/or organising committee;
• International recognition through scientific or artistic prizes/awards or membership in well-regarded Academies or artefact with documented use (for example, architectural or engineering design, methods or tools);
• Major contributions to launching the careers of outstanding researchers;
• Recognised leadership in industrial innovation.

 

List of countries and applicable rules for funding:
The conditions specific to the ERC are described in the ERC Work Programme 2017 under the heading 'Eligibility criteria' and in 'Annex 3'. An overview is provided below:

The ERC actions are open to researchers of any nationality who intend to conduct their research activity in any EU Member State or H2020 Associated Country. Principal Investigators may be of any age and nationality and may reside in any country in the world at the time of the application. However, Principal Investigators funded through the ERC frontier research grants shall spend a minimum percentage of their total working time in an EU Member State or Associated Country and a minimum percentage of their total working time on the ERC project.

The host institution must either be established in an EU Member State or H2020 Associated Country as a legal entity created under national law, or it may be an International European Interest Organisation (such as CERN, EMBL, etc.), the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) or any other entity created under EU law.

Evaluation procedure

A single submission of the full proposal will be followed by a two-step evaluation. The evaluation will be conducted by means of a structure of high level peer review panels as listed in Annex 1 of the ERC Work Programme 2017. The panels may be assisted by independent experts working remotely.

Evaluation criteria

For all ERC frontier research grants excellence is the sole criterion of evaluation. It will be applied in conjunction to the evaluation of both: the ground-breaking nature, ambition and feasibility of the research project and the intellectual capacity, creativity and commitment of the Principal Investigator. The detailed evaluation elements applying to the excellence of the research project and the Principal Investigator are set out in the ERC Work Programme 2017.

1. Guide to the submission and evaluation process:
   Please refer to the ERC Rules for Submission and Evaluation. For more information on the peer review evaluation methodology, please refer to the ERC Frontier Research Grants Guide for Peer Reviewers.
   
   Proposal page limits and layout:
   
   A complete proposal is composed of:
   
   • Administrative Proposal Submission form (including Ethics Review Table): available on this page under section 6 below and online via the Participant Portal Submission System (PPSS) – registration to Participant Portal is required first.
   • The Research Proposal, Parts B1 and B2: templates are available as word-templates in PPSS. Both parts should be uploaded and submitted via PPSS as PDF files.
   • Host Institution Binding Statement of Support: available on this page under Section 6 below and as a word-template in PPSS.
   • Ethics review self-assessment (if applicable) and supporting documentation.

          Proposal Part B1
          Extended Synopsis: max. 5 pages (please note that references do not count towards the page limits)
          Curriculum Vitae: max. 2 pages
          Funding ID: no page limits
          Track Record: max. 2 pages

          Proposal Part B2
          Scientific Proposal: max. 15 pages (please note that references do not count towards the page limit)

The minimum font size allowed is 11 points. The page size is A4 (with single line spacing). Side margins should be at least 20 mm and the bottom and top margins at least 15 mm. Ensure that the font type chosen is clearly readable (e.g. Arial or Times New Roman). Experts will be instructed to disregard any excess pages.

Source and further information: EC