ERC has a bottom-up approach which means it can fund virtually any topic of research. However, this does not mean that it is open to any type of research. With the highly competitive written and unwritten rules of ERC, some research types simply fall short of the ERC requirements for Read more…
Excluding the ERC Synergy grant, ERC grants are personal. This means that the ERC AdG, CoG and StG projects cannot be collaborative efforts. Since many applicants are used to working in collaboration with their peers and colleagues – this comes as a contrast and strikes as counter-intuitive. In many other Read more…
Throughout the years, our team continues to encounter one repeating issue with countless ERC applicants regarding the ERC grant writing phase of their grant proposal. In general, grant writing is the bread and butter of any researcher. Therefore, the ERC application will surely not be a first attempt at applying Read more…
Our most initial communications with new researchers working on Horizon 2020 or ERC grant proposals include an overview of the expected evaluation process for each respective grant. Such an overview is based on our experience working with countless grant applications and allows us to track winning grant proposals and note Read more…
A prevailing comment responsible for the failure of many ERC AdG (Advanced) applications (though also found in Starting and Consolidator grants) pertains to the ‘incremental nature’ of the proposed research. Why is that? How can one successfully design a project which reflects the naturally occurring progress forward which builds on Read more…
ERC and FET-Open are very different funding schemes under Horizon 2020. To name a few differences – ERC is an individual grant, while FET-Open is a collaborative project. ERC is looking into excellence in basic research, while FET-Open is seeking Future and Emerging Technologies and it is by-definition more applicative. Read more…
The world of competitive grants offers different funding schemes that vary in formats, number of review stages, number of reviewers, and more. Additionally, the nature of different grants also varies in concept, type of project, scope, etc. Once you have chosen the specific grant you are after, you will typically Read more…
2017 was packed with important lessons, tips, experiences and insights. Below is a list of our Top 10 most viewed, shared and used articles. Check them out, and be sure to stick around because we are certain 2018 will bring even more thoughts for us to share. All of these Read more…
The urban myth about h-index and ERC is that the h-index serves as a means for comparing applicants and assessing their scientific productivity and impact. Since an impressive publication list is the “bread and butter of a competitive ERC applicant”, many applicants tend to rely mainly on h-index as an Read more…
When preparing to apply for the ERC grant, or as part of the ERC interview preparation (for the StG/CoG/SyG applicants), it is highly recommended to learn as much as possible about the potential review panel members that may serve on the review panel and will evaluate your proposal. For those Read more…