Consolidator grant

You apply electronically in Prisma External link, opens in new window., which is the application system used by the Swedish Research Council. You access the full application form by clicking the registration number of your project outline in your Prisma account.

To enable you to apply, your organisation must have been approved as an administrating organisation Opens in new window. and have created an organisation account in Prisma.

For most items in Prisma, there is a user manual External link, opens in new window. describing all the steps, as well as answers to FAQ External link, opens in new window.. Please refer to these when filling in your application.

Creating a personal account in Prisma

Before you apply, you must create a personal account in Prisma External link, opens in new window., where you can save your personal and CV data. Any participating administrators must also create their own personal accounts in Prisma, and confirm their participation in the application before the deadline of the call.

Signing

Both you, as applicant, and the official representative of the administrating organisation, must sign the application electronically in Prisma. Please see further information under “Registering the application” below.

Please refer to the application form in Prisma in parallel with reading the instructions below. The contents submitted by you in the project outline will be transferred to your full application and you may only modify parts of it as instructed by the Swedish Research Council (please refer to the introductory part of this call text).

Language

Foreign experts are involved in the scientific evaluation of the applications. To ensure fair and equitable assessment and efficient processing, please therefore complete your application in English.

Sections of the application

The application form includes the following tabs:

• Descriptive data
• Research description
• Budget and research resources
• Publications
• Letter of support
• Administrating organisation
• Review panels
• Participants (only administrators in this call)
• CV

Descriptions of the information requested under each tab follow below. Mandatory information is marked with an asterisk (*) in Prisma.

Descriptive data

Under this tab, please fill in the project title in Swedish and English, and select SCB codes and key words. Please also fill in any deductible time, the abstract and popular science description as instructed below.

Deductible time

Please state any interruptions in your active research time after your doctoral degree caused by any of the grounds recognised by the Swedish Research Council. The interruption shall be calculated as a full-time equivalent and be rounded up into full calendar months. Please see the recognised grounds for deductible time under the heading “Career age” above.

Abstract

The abstract shall include a brief description of:

• what is to be done: purpose and aim
• how the research is to be carried out: project organisation, time plan and the scientific methods to be used
• what is important about the planned research.

The abstract shall provide a summary guide to the purpose and implementation of the research. Please use wording to ensure that persons with another subject specialisation can understand the information.

The description may cover a maximum of 1 500 characters including blank spaces (approximately one third of an A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing).

Popular science description

Describe the project in such a way that a person who is not familiar with the subject can understand it. Describe what is to be done and why, and explain in what way the new knowledge may be important.

The popular science description is an important tool when we inform about the research funded by the Swedish Research Council. If we grant your application, we reserve the right to use the description for information purposes.

Note: The popular science description must be written in Swedish, unlike the rest of the application.

The description may cover a maximum of 4 500 characters including blank spaces (approximately one A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing).

Research description

Under this tab, please attach your research plan and describe any ethical considerations.

Ethical considerations

The application shall describe the ethical issues raised by the project. Please describe also how any ethical dilemma raised will be handled. Please justify why the research should be carried out against the background of the ethical issues identified. How do the questions and expected results measure up in relation to the ethical issues? Also state whether the research involves any handling of personal data, or experiments on animals or human subjects. If no ethical issues are raised, please state this.

Research plan

Please attach your research plan in PDF format. The research plan shall consist of a brief but complete description of the research task. The focus of the research plan shall be forward-looking, and it shall cover a maximum of ten page-numbered A4 pages in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing, including references and any images. You will not be able to register your application with an appendix that exceeds the stated maximum number of pages or is larger than 10 MB.

The research plan must include the following headings and information, listed in the following order:

research plan must include the following headings and information, listed in the following order:

• Purpose and aims. State the overall purpose and specific goals of the research project.
• State-of-the-art. Summarise briefly the current research frontier within the field/area covered by the project. State key references.
• Significance and scientific novelty. Describe briefly how the project relates to previous research within the area, and its importance in the short and long term. Describe also how the project moves forward or innovates the current research frontier.
• Preliminary and previous results. Describe briefly your own previous research and pilot studies within the research area that make it probable that the project will be feasible. State also if no preliminary results exist.
• Project description. Describe the project design, including the following items:

• Theory and method: Describe the underlying theory and the methods to be applied in order to reach the project goal.
• Time plan and implementation: Describe summarily the time plan for the project during the grant period, and how the project will be implemented.
• Project organisation: Clarify the contributions of yourself and any other researchers to the implementation of the project, including a description of competences and roles in the project.

Provide the following information also. If a heading is not relevant to your application, please leave it blank.

• Equipment. Describe the basic equipment you and your team have at your disposal for the project.
• Need for infrastructure. Specify the project’s need for international and national infrastructure. Specify also the need for local infrastructure, if depreciation costs for this are included in the application. Read more about research infrastructure supported by the Swedish Research Council Opens in new window..
• International and national collaboration. Describe your collaboration with foreign and Swedish researchers and research teams. State whether you contribute to or refer to international collaboration in your research.
• Other applications or grants. If you are applying for or intend to apply for other grants from the Swedish Research Council, the relationship between the projects shall be clarified. This applies also if you are receiving ongoing grants from the Swedish Research Council with grant periods that wholly or partly overlap with the grant you are now applying for. You should also justify why you are submitting one or several further applications. Describe also the relationship with other applications to or grants from other funding bodies for the same project idea (from you or another researcher).

Budget and research resources

Please state your activity level (per cent of a full-time equivalent) in the project. Your activity level as project leader must correspond to no less than 50 per cent of a full-time equivalent.

The grant is a standard amount and you therefore do not need to enter any budget applied for in the application form.

Explanation of the budget applied for

Describe briefly the primary costs you intend to cover within the framework for the grant budget. The description may cover a maximum of 4 000 characters including blank spaces (approximately one A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing).

Other financing

Please state any funding for the project received by you or another researcher, in excess of the amount requested in this application. Please state rounded amounts in SEK.

Publications

Under this tab, please attach your publications list in PDF format, drawn up according to the headings and instructions below. The list may cover a maximum of two A4 pages in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing.

The list shall start with the up to ten publications of greatest importance for your application, and you shall also state your total number of publications and list any other relevant scientific output.

1. Selection of publications. List the up to ten publications of greatest importance for your application. For each publication, please state how you contributed to it, and its relevance to the research project described. Highlight your name in bold in the author list.

2. Total number of publications. State your total number of publications under each relevant publication type in the following order:

• Peer-reviewed original articles
• Peer-reviewed conference contributions, the results of which are not included in other publications.
• Peer-reviewed edited volumes
• Research review articles
• Peer-reviewed books and book chapters
• Other publications including popular science books/presentations

3. Other scientific output, such as invited speeches, lectures, etc.

Note: Please only include articles or corresponding that were published or accepted for publication at the deadline for the call for project outlines. The author order in the publications list shall be identical to that of the published work. The application cannot be supplemented with publications after the deadline for the call.

Letter of support

Please attach a formal letter of support from an authorised representative of the HEI in question where the research will be conducted, such as the head of department or corresponding. The document may cover no more than two A4 pages, and must be in PDF format.

The applicant’s name shall be stated clearly, as well as the name and position of the person writing the letter of support. The letter of support shall be written in English, and shall include the two separate headings below, and the information requested under them

Research profile

Description of

• how the applicant’s research fits into the activities and future strategy of the HEI and the department
• how the applicant fits into the operation, with focus on research and educational merits
• the applicant’s scientific independence.

Employment

Description of

• the applicant’s employment format and financing of the employment over the next ten-year period
• the HEI’s career plan for the applicant over the next ten-year period.

By signing the application in Prisma, the administrating organisation confirms this undertaking.

Administrating organisation

Under this tab, please state the administrating organisation and project site. The administrating organisation is the organisation that administers the grant awarded and is responsible for it according to the conditions set. The project site is the organisational unit where the project is carried out. Normally, the administrating organisation and project site correspond to the HEI and the department where the project leader is employed.

To allow you to link your application to an administrating organisation, the organisation must have an approved account in Prisma. Please contact your administrating organisation and ask it to apply for an organisation account External link, opens in new window. with the Swedish Research Council if it does not already have one.

If your project site is not listed in Prisma, please contact the person responsible for the organisation account at your administrating organisation. You will not be able to finalise the registration of your application if the project site is missing.

Review panels

The scientific evaluation of your full application will be carried out by the same review panel that evaluated your project outline.

Review panels Opens in new window.

Participants

Here you as grant applicant may invite other participating administrators who can help you to input and edit information in your application. Please make sure you use the correct email address linked to the person’s Prisma account. You may invite participating administrators who do not already have an account in Prisma, but in order to participate in your application they must register their own personal accounts in Prisma. All participating administrators must accept the invitation before you can finalise the registration of your application.

Please note that you may not invite any participating researchers in this application.

CV

Under this tab, please upload your relevant CV information from your personal account in Prisma. As foreign experts are used in the evaluation of your application, please ensure the descriptive text in your CV is written in English.

The following information, where available, must always be included in your CV, taking into account the stated limitation in numbers:

• Education: First, second and third cycle higher education and specialist degrees.
• Work: Current employment (including whether permanent or not) and longer relevant employment, postdoctoral visits (also include as employment if relevant), research exchanges relevant to the research described and any longer interruptions in the research that have impacted on your opportunity to gain merits as a researcher.
• Merits and awards: Docentships/associate professorships, supervisees (postdoctoral and doctoral students; state the overall number of each category and list the 10 most relevant to you), up to 10 of your most relevant grants awarded in competition, up to 10 of your most relevant prizes and awards, and up to 20 other merits relevant to the application.
• Intellectual property rights: For example, patents and open access computer programs developed by you; state up to 10 of your most relevant.

Registering the application

The tab “Check and register” shows a summary of the fields in your application that require action in order to register it (such as mandatory fields not filled in or text fields with too many characters). The registration of your application is not finalised until you click on the “Register” button.

Please make sure you use the preview function before registering your application.

Note: If you have invited participating administrators in your application, they must accept the invitation before you can register the application. If an invitation is not accepted, it must be deleted.

The registered application can thereafter be found in your personal Prisma account in the tab “Applications and grants”, under the menu choice “Applications”. Until the deadline for the call, a registered application may be de-registered, amended and re-registered again as necessary.

It is your responsibility to ensure the application is complete, that is to say the application form is correctly filled in, the correct appendices are attached and the information requested has been provided according to the instructions. Please only submit material specifically requested. We do not accept any additional information after the deadline, except when specifically requested.

Signing

When you register the application, it is signed by you as project leader. To ensure the application is deemed complete and included in the review process, an authorised representative of the administrating organisation also has to sign the application. The representative is normally the head of the department where the research will be carried out, but this is dependent on your administrating organisation’s structure.

The applicant’s signature confirms that:

• the information in the application is correct and complies with the Swedish Research Council’s instructions
• secondary occupations and commercial ties have been reported to the administrating organisation and that nothing has emerged that breaches good research practice
• the applicant has not been found guilty of scientific misconduct during the last two years before the deadline of the call
• the permits and approvals required have been obtained before the research is started, such as permits from the Swedish Medical Products Agency or approval from an ethical review board or an ethical committee on animal experiments
• the applicant will comply with all other conditions applicable to the grant.

The signature of the administrating organisation confirms that:

• the research or research-supporting activity described can be given room at the administrating organisation during the period and to the extent stated in the application
• the applicant will be employed by the administrating organisation during the period covered by the application
• the administrating organisation approves of the budget in the application
• the applicant has not been found guilty of scientific misconduct by the administrating organisation signing during the last two years before the deadline of the call
• the administrating organisation will comply with all other conditions applicable to the grant.

The above points shall have been discussed by the parties before the representative of the administrating organisation approves and signs the application.

Note: The authorised representative of the administrating organisation must sign the application in Prisma no later than one week (seven calendar days) after the call deadline date in order for the application to be considered further in the review process.

When you have registered your application and the call closes (at 14.00/2 p.m. on the deadline date of the call), the registration of your application is automatically finalised.

Your registered application is automatically forwarded to the representative of the administrating organisation for signature in Prisma. The application must be signed by the administrating organisation no later than one week (seven calendar days) after the deadline. You will receive an email when the application has been signed.

Thereafter you will find information about the status of the application, registration number and signature of the application in your account in Prisma, under the tab “Applications and grants”.

Decision

Shortly after the grant decision has been made, a notice of the grant awards will be published on the Swedish Research Council’s website. You will thereafter find a notice of the decision and a final statement on your application in your personal account in Prisma, under the tab “Applications and grants”. The statement consists of gradings and written comments.

The EU ABS Regulation and due diligence declaration: As from 12 October 2015, users of genetic resources (genetic material of actual or potential value) and traditional knowledge relating to genetic resources, obtained after 12 October 2014, shall comply with the EU ABS Regulation (No 511/2014) by making a “due diligence declaration”. This applies only to grant recipients. Due diligence entails the user being able to show that the genetic resource was obtained according to applicable legislation in the country in question and that the possible benefit of the genetic resource will be allocated in a reasonable and equitable way.

Exceptions apply to research into: the human genome, plant genetic material included in Appendix 1 External link, opens in new window. to the international agreement on plant genetic resources, pandemic influenza virus and genetic material obtained from international waters. If you have any questions about the regulations and due diligence, please contact Naturvårdsverket External link, opens in new window..

The scientific evaluation of the application is carried out by active researchers. These peer reviewers evaluate the application in competition with the other applications on the basis of the evaluation criteria set by the Swedish Research Council.

If an application is not completed according to the instructions, this will be weighed into the evaluation.

Review panels Opens in new window.

The Swedish Research Council’s conflict of interest policy Opens in new window.

The Swedish Research Council’s gender equality strategy Opens in new window.

Scientific quality is the basic criterion for how the Swedish Research Council allocates grants for research. The Swedish Research Council also promotes gender equality and mobility in research.

The purpose of the grant is to give the most prominent junior researchers the opportunity to consolidate their research and broaden their activities as independent researchers. Within the framework of the call, the Swedish Research Council wishes to support researchers who have a scientifically interesting research idea, and who can convert and conduct the research task and thereby move the frontiers of research forward, or fill in existing gaps in knowledge.

Evaluation organisation

Applications that fulfil the eligibility criteria for the grant will be assessed by three review panels in the respective area of science, consisting of international reviewers with broad skills. Statements from external experts may be used in part of the process. A Swedish Chair leads each review panel’s work.

The review panels review and prioritize the applications and submit a suggestion for decision to the Swedish Research Council.

As an applicant you suggest in what review panel your application should be assessed. You will do so in the application form by entering the review panels, in order of preference, of which you would like to scientifically assess your proposal.

The applications will be assessed in a two-step process, where the applicant in the first step submits an outline application which is assessed in full by the review panels. All outline applications will receive an overall grade. Applicants whose outline application has the highest rating is accepted for further review in the second step, thus will be invited to submit a full application. In this step the full application is evaluated according to the Swedish Research Council’s assessment criteria below.

Assessment criteria

Evaluation of applications is done with the help of the Swedish Research Council’s fundamental assessment criteria: Novelty and originality, Scientific quality, Merits of the applicant, and Feasibility. The applicant's potential to become an international leader within his/her research field will also be assessed.

Novelty and originality (1-7)

Guiding questions:

• Does the project have the potential to significantly advance the frontiers of the research field or fill in clear knowledge gaps within the research field?
• Does the project contain entirely novel ways and methods to approach scientific issues?
• Does the project generate or explore new research areas?

Scientific quality of the research (1-7)

Guiding questions:

• Is the proposed project relevant in terms of its research questions, the proposed solutions, and in relation to frontiers of research in the field?
• Is the proposed research scientifically important?

Merits of the applicant (1-7)

Guiding questions:

• Are the researcher’s scientific merits adequate in relation to the research field that the application concerns, and that are necessary in order to realize the research task?
• Of what merits are the scientific qualifications and production relative to the career age and previous active research time?

Feasibility (1-3)

Guiding questions:

• Is the choice of research methods, access to equipment, and research infrastructure adequate for the research project topic?
• Regarding the project as a whole, is the competence in place to carry out the research task?

Applicant's potential to become an international leader within his/her research field (1–7)

Guiding questions:

• Is the researcher internationally recognized and a leader in her/his research field, or show the potential to become so?
• Is it likely that the applicant will develop further as a researcher in the coming six-year period?
• Does the researcher have the ability to establish a creative research environment through her/his research leadership?

Overall grade (1-7)

The sub-criteria set up for the evaluation will be balanced together in an overall grade (1-7) that reflects the review panel’s joint assessment with special emphasis on the purpose of the grant type.