Swiss ERC substitute scheme announces successful grantees
The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) has announced that it has awarded Starting Grants to 27 young researchers.
The funding scheme was setup after Switzerland was downgraded to third country status in Horizon 2020 in February. The scheme, in addition to SNSF Consolidator Grants, essentially mirrored that of the European Research Council programme of the same name and was open to Swiss-based institutions. The SNSF says the transitional measure offered the Swiss research community an adequate substitute to ERC grants.
The SNSF evaluated 142 proposals in the two-phase evaluation procedure. Ultimately, 27 proposals were chosen for funding, including five projects in social sciences and humanities, ten projects in life sciences and 12 projects in physical and engineering sciences, representing a success rate of 19%. Successful female grantees represent 22% of the total. Two of the funded applicants will move to Switzerland thanks to their grants.
The applicants were able to request up to CHF 1.5m (~€1.2m) to cover the costs of five-year projects, with the total budget amounting to CHF 40.6m. The University of Basel was the most successful academic institution, receiving four grants.
Switzerland regained associated country status to partial elements in Horizon 2020, including the opportunity to apply for ERC grants, following a breakthrough agreement with European Commission in September. As a result, the SNSF will not launch a call for SNSF Starting Grants again.
