Call for proposals: Junior Projects 2025

Call for proposals: Junior Projects 2025


  • Dear Professor,
    Dear Professor,
    Ladies and Gentlemen,

    Please find enclosed the call for proposals for the IZKF’s junior projects. Applications from early career researchers with a good innovative project idea can be submitted to the IZKF until 10.03.2025 for all main research areas of the Faculty of Medicine. A clinical reference (preferably direct and/or translational) must be present. Eligible applicants are

    • Physicians, natural scientists and psychologists with a completed doctorate from clinics, institutes and departments of the entire Faculty of Medicine (a habilitation is an exclusion criterion)
    • up to 35 years of age (cut-off date: 1.1.2025/ up to 24 months (women) and 12 months (men) per child can be taken into account, additional proven periods of parental leave can be considered),
    • who have already completed project-specific preliminary work,
    • who can provide evidence of at least 1 original publication as first author in a journal recognized for the subject,
    • who do not yet have any significant third-party funding of their own. Grants/projects with a short duration and low financial volume (e.g. ELAN, Marohn etc.) as well as grants that demonstrably serve exclusively to finance the applicant’s own position, including scholarships, are not eligible. If you are unsure about your eligibility for funding, please contact the IZKF office before submitting your application. The evaluation committee decides on the admission of borderline cases.
    • whose own position is secured for the entire duration of the junior project and at least 25% of which is financed from the operating budget / from a permanent position or free third-party funds / programme allowance
    • and whose project is supported by the head of the institution.

     

    The volume for junior projects includes a staff position (MTA or doctoral student position 65% E13) as well as consumables of up to € 15,000 p.a., which can be applied for project-specific consumables, equipment and animal husbandry costs, for a funding period of 30 months. In addition, physicians can apply for a rotation position for up to 12 months full-time or up to 24 months part-time (50%) as part of the application. If approved, funding from the travel, publication and high-tech pool can also be used. It is expected that physicians who apply for junior projects will complete the Clinician Scientist Program (Module Step 2) from the start of funding. IZKF doctoral candidates are required to participate in the IZKF Research Training Group and Life@FAU.

     

    The junior projects are designed to enable successful applicants to prepare and submit their own first application to an external funding organization within a funding period of 30 months. If this is successful after 30 months at the latest and the approved funds have not yet been fully spent, a cost-neutral extension of 6 months (bonus period) can be granted upon application. A regular extension of the project term is excluded.

     

    Individual applications are assessed in a one-stage process by the IZKF Management Board with the involvement of the ELAN Committee and the IZKF Junior Scientist Committee. The evaluation is based on the written application and the oral presentation at the application colloquium on Thursday, May 8, 2025. The applicants will then be informed promptly about the result of the evaluation. The approved junior projects will be given a flexible funding start date between 01.07.2025 and 01.01.2026.

     

    As mentioned at the beginning, project applications must be uploaded to the IZKF application tool by midnight on March 10, 2025 at the latest. You can find the link to the application tool as well as instructions on how to register and submit your application on the IZKF homepage. The application tool will be open from 01.01.2025 for the processing and submission of applications for the junior projects 2025. Prior registration of the applicant in the application tool is possible.

     

    The full application in English (proposal junior project) must be accompanied by a CV (research profile) and confirmation from the head of the institution (clinic, institute, department) that the project will be supported (with confirmation of laboratory capacity and pro rata funding from the budget/unrestricted third-party funds). In addition, some information must be entered directly in the tool. The formal requirements (use of the attached template for project applications for junior projects, also available for download on the IZKF homepage) are binding.

     

    The call for proposals and the application documents can also be found on the IZKF homepage at https://www.izkf.med.fau.de/en/projekte/erstantragsteller-projekte/application/

    Please forward this call to interested researchers in your clinic/department/institute.

     

    For further information, please contact the IZKF office (Dr. Faber – 46841 or Ms. Reichel -46843).

     

    Kind regards

    Prof. Dr. M. Wegner
    Chairman of the IZKF

    Contact:
    Dr. rer. pol. Katrin Faber
    IZKF Administrative Office
    Telefon +49 9131/ 85-46841
    Fax +49 9131/ 85-35903

    katrin.faber@uk-erlangen.de
    www.izkf.med.fau.de