Note! Deadline for this call is extended to April 7
Closed call
26 February - 07 April 2020
Exploratory workshop grant within educational sciences
The purpose of the grant is to support research into possible innovative research areas and creative research ideas within educational sciences.
The grant may be used for research collaboration to test new research questions, methods, analyses, perspectives, data material, etc. The Swedish Research Council rewards research of the highest scientific quality in national competition.
Support form: Research environment and collaboration support
Subject area: Educational Sciences
Focus: Undirected
Applicant: Individual researcher
Participating researchers: A minimum of 1 and up to 6 researchers must be invited to join the application
Grant period: 1–2 years
Grant amount: Maximum 200 000 SEK per year
Budgetary framework: A total of 800 000 SEK per year for 2 years, which means that at least 4 grants can be awarded.
Start of grant period: January 2021
Application period: 26 February 2020 (14.00/2 p.m.) – 7 April 2020 (14.00/2 p.m.)
Publication of grant award: No later than the beginning of November 2020
Please note
- You must describe whether sex and gender perspectives are relevant for your research and, if so, in which way you will use such perspectives, or why you choose not to do so. How sex and gender perspectives are managed in the research project will form part of the assessment of scientific quality. Read more under the heading “Research description” and on our website
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Specific instructions for the call
In addition to reading the specific call text, you also need to consult our Guide for applicants Opens in new window..
The following requirements must be fulfilled in order for you to be eligible to apply for the grant. We carry out checks and reject applications that do not fulfil the requirements.
Focus
The Swedish Research Council wishes to support exploration of possible innovative research areas and creative research ideas within educational sciences. The grant shall enable research collaboration to trial new research questions, methods, analyses, perspectives, data material, etc.
Applicant
The applicant for an exploratory workshop grant shall be an individual researcher. You shall be the project leader and have scientific responsibility, and the time you allocate shall be suited to the task and implementation.
You must hold a Swedish doctoral degree or an equivalent foreign degree, awarded no later than the deadline for this call. The degree award date we use is the date you fulfilled all the requirements for a doctoral degree, such as mandatory courses, oral defence and an approved doctoral thesis. For applicants with Swedish doctoral degrees, the award date listed in Ladok applies.
Grants from the Swedish Research Council shall be administered by a Swedish university or HEI or another Swedish public organisation that fulfils our criteria for administrating organisations Opens in new window.. Your organisation must therefore be approved as an administrating organisation for you to apply. The administrating organisation must sign your application in Prisma no later than 7 calendar days after the deadline for this call.
If you are awarded a grant, you must be employed by the administrating organisation at the start of and throughout the grant period and any additional availability period, unless the Swedish Research Council approves an exception from this requirement. The employment must equal at least 20 per cent of a full-time equivalent. You do not have to be employed by the administrating organisation at the time of applying.
Number of applications and previous grants
The requirements described in this section only apply to applicants and project leaders.
What grants may I apply for simultaneously from the Swedish Research Council?
You may only submit one application for this grant under this call. You may not apply for an exploratory workshop grant at the same time as applying for other grants for the same project concept.
What requirements apply if I already have a grant from the Swedish Research Council?
You cannot apply for the grant if you are already the project leader of an ongoing grant, that is to say where the grant period (payment period from the Swedish Research Council) overlaps the grant period of the grant the application relates to, with the same project concept. Please note that the availability period, that is to say the time during which you have the right to use your grant, is normally longer than the grant period. You can find information about the requirements for your ongoing grant in the “Approval of terms and conditions” you received from the Swedish Research Council.
Note: If you have been the project leader for previous grants from the Swedish Research Council that have ended, a final financial statement for all of these must have been submitted within the permitted time frame in order for you to apply for a new grant. Please contact your administrating organisation if you are unsure whether all your final reports have been submitted.
What applies for applications to or grants from other funding bodies?
If your application to the Swedish Research Council relates to the same project idea as a grant you have already been awarded by, or are applying for to another funding body, please describe this.
Participating researchers
You must include minimum 1 and maximum 6 participating researchers in your application. Participating researchers are other researchers with a doctoral degree or equivalent competence, whose scientific competence will be crucial for the implementation of the planned workshop. They do not have to be employed by a Swedish HEI.
Participating researchers shall provide the necessary information themselves in Prisma, and upload these to the application. Please describe any further participating partners and their roles in the project plan (see instructions under “Project plan” below).
If the application relates to more than one HEI, one contact person per participating HEI shall be invited as a participating researcher.
Costs and grant amounts
The grant may be used for costs relating to the workshop, for example meetings and travel. The grant must not be used for salaries, research expenses or scholarships.
The maximum amount you may apply for is 200 000 SEK per year, including indirect costs.
Grant period
The grant period is 1–2 years, starting in January 2021. The planned activities shall be carried out during the grant period. The grant amount will be paid out as annual payments.
The first payment will be made during January 2021 at the earliest.
In conjunction with the scientific reporting following the end of the grant period, you must also report how the research idea can be developed further.
Please refer to the application form in Prisma in parallel with reading the instructions below, which describe the call-specific content of the application. More information on what to do in practical terms is available in our Guide for applicants Opens in new window..
Language
We prefer that you complete your application in English, but you may also use Swedish.
Sections of the application
The application form includes the following tabs:
- Descriptive information
- Research description
- Budget and research resources
- Publications
- Administrating organisation
- Participants
- CV
The information we request under each tab is described below.
Descriptive information
Abstract
In the abstract, please describe in brief the following:
- What is to be done: purpose and aims of the workshop
- How the workshop shall be implemented/conducted: project organisation and time plan for the planned workshop activities
- What is important about the planned workshop
The abstract shall provide a summary picture of the purpose and implementation of the workshop. Please use wording to ensure persons with another subject specialisation can understand the information.
The description may cover a maximum of 1 500 characters including blank spaces. This is approximately one third of an A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing.
Popular science description
Describe the workshop 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. Explain also 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.
The description may cover a maximum of 1 500 characters including blank spaces. This is approximately one third of an A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing.
Note: The popular science description must be written in Swedish, unlike the rest of the application.
Thematic classification
Educational sciences are classified in thematic areas. Please indicate which subtheme best describes the project's focus. An overview of all areas and themes can be found at the following link "Thematic areas of educational sciences
Excel, 13.3 kB.".
Research description
Sex and gender perspectives
Please state whether sex and gender perspectives are applicable within the framework for the planned workshop, and justify your decision. Please note that we are not asking for information about the composition of the research team (men/women). Read more about sex and gender perspectives in research content Opens in new window..
The following applies:
- If you answer “Yes”: Justify your answer, and describe also how you take account of sex and gender perspectives in the research plan (see further instructions under “Project plan”). If you have stated that sex and gender perspectives are applicable, but still choose not to include them in your research plan, you will need to justify this here.
- If you answer “No”: Please justify your answer.
Project plan
The project plan shall be forward-looking and consist of a brief but complete description of the workshop. It shall cover a maximum of 4 page-numbered A4 pages in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing and 2.5 cm margins, including references and any images.
The plan must include the following headings and information, listed in the following order:
- Purpose and aims: State the overall purpose and specific aims of the workshop.
- Research idea: Summarise the research idea and the research questions planned to be in focus for the workshop, how sex and gender aspects will be included in the project idea (where applicable), and describe briefly your own and others’ previous research within the research area. State key references.
- Significance and scientific novelty: Describe briefly how the research idea of the workshop shows innovative thinking in relation to previous research within the area, and its importance to educational sciences research in the short and long term.
- Work plan: Summarise the planned work including the following sections:
- Implementation and time plan: Describe briefly the planned workshop activities and provide a time plan. The description of the implementation shall include the workshop activities and how they relate to the overarching research idea. The time plan shall provide an overview of the work on planning, proposed dates and locations for the various workshop activities, any travel, and how the results from the workshop activities are proposed to be used further (for example preparations/planning of joint research applications, information dissemination, etc).
- Project organisation: Clarify how you and the participating researchers will contribute to the implementation of the workshop. Describe and explain the competences and roles of the participating researchers in the workshop(s), and also any other researchers or corresponding who are important for the implementation of the workshop.
Budget and research resources
Costs
Describe the various costs of the workshop that you intend to cover using the grant. Please state the amounts in Swedish krona, rounded to the nearest 1 000 SEK.
Total cost of the project
Prisma will automatically add up your budget items in a table. The total amount you are applying for shall also include indirect costs. You will have to add these to the table yourself. Here you can also add any additional costs that the project entails (for which you are not seeking funding under this call).
Please contact your administrating organisation if you have any questions abut what constitutes indirect and direct costs.
Other funding
Please state your or any other researcher’s funding for the workshop over and above what is applied for in this application. Please state the amounts in Swedish krona, rounded to the nearest 1 000 SEK.
Publications
Applicant’s publication list
Please attach your publication list drawn up according to the headings and information below. The list shall cover a maximum of 1 A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing and 2.5 cm margins.
Please sort the publications in reverse chronological order, so that the latest publication is at the top of the list. Please only include articles or equivalent that are published or accepted for publication at the time of applying. The author name order shall be identical to that of the published work. The application cannot be supplemented with publications after the deadline for the call.
Relevant publications. List the 10 publications of greatest importance to your application. Describe how you contributed to each publication, and its relevance to the workshop described (maximum 4 lines per publication). Highlight your name in bold in the author list.
The publications shall be of the type Peer-reviewed original articles, conference contributions, edited volumes, research review articles, books and book chapters, and other publications including popular science books/presentations.
Participating researchers’ publication lists
Attach all participating researchers’ publications lists joined up into one file. The list for each researcher shall include the 10 publications that are the most relevant to the workshop described, and shall cover a maximum of 1 A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing and 2.5 cm margins. The name of the researcher in question shall be highlighted in bold and also be included in the page header of each list.
Please only include articles or equivalent that are published or accepted for publication at the time of applying. The author name order shall be identical to that of the published work. The application cannot be supplemented with publications after the deadline for the call.
The publications shall be of the type Peer-reviewed original articles, conference contributions, edited volumes, research review articles, books and book chapters, and other publications including popular science books/presentations.
Administrating organisation
Please state the administrating organisation and project site.
Participants
Here you shall invite participating researchers and any administrators to your application.
CV
Under this tab, please upload your relevant CV information from your personal account in Prisma. Participating researchers must upload their own CV information to the application.
The following information (where available) must always be included in each CV:
- Education: First, second and third cycle higher education and specialist degrees.
- Work: Current employment (including employment form) and longer relevant employment held, postdoctoral visits (also included 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 merit as a researcher.
- Merits and awards: Docentship/associate professorship, supervisees (postdoctoral and doctoral students; state the number of persons in each category and list the names of the up to 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
Scientific quality is the fundamental criterion when the Swedish Research Council allocates grants to research. Your application is assessed in competition with the other applications on the basis of the following assessment criteria.
Assessment process
Your application is assessed by a specialised subject review panel where the members are Nordic researchers.
At least three members review and grade your application individually. The entire review panel then meets at a review panel meeting to discuss and prioritise the applications, and finally to make a proposal for a decision to the Committee for Educational Sciences. The committee decides which applications will be awarded funds. All applications receive a final statement that reflects the review panel’s discussion and overall assessment of the scientific quality of the application.
Review panel Opens in new window.
Assessment criteria and guiding questions
The assessment of the scientific quality of your application is made based on four basic criteria (scientific quality of the project, novelty and originality, merits of the applicant, and feasibility). The purpose of using several criteria is to achieve a multi-faceted assessment.
For each criterion, there are guiding questions to support the panel members’ assessment of your application. These can also function as guidance for you when you write your application. In addition to the basic criteria, your application is also assessed using an additional criterion, relevance to the call.
Scientific quality of the project (1–7)
Guiding questions:
- Are the purpose and aims of the workshop clear and well justified?
- Is the research idea for the workshop clear and well justified?
- How are issues relating to sex and gender perspectives justified and handled in the research plan?
Novelty and originality (1–7)
Guiding questions:
- Is the exploratory feature described clearly?
- In what way can the workshop contribute to innovative research and scientific added value?
Merits of the applicant (1–7)
Guiding questions:
- In what way does the applicant have good merits within the subject area?
- Are the participating researchers clearly justified?
- What is the composition of junior and senior researchers, and is it well justified?
Feasibility (1–3)
Guiding questions:
- Is the workshop as described in the plan reasonable to conduct in relation to the budget?
Relevance to the call (1–3)
Guiding questions:
- Does the application relate to an exploratory workshop within educational sciences?
- Is the application relevant to the call in other respects?
Overall grade (1–7)
The subsidiary grades shall be weighed together into an overall grade according to the following principles:
- The assessment of the scientific quality of the application is crucial for the overall assessment.
- A prerequisite for being awarded a grant within educational sciences is that the proposal is feasible, and that the applicant has solid and relevant competence for the purpose.
- Novelty and originality shall be weighted heavily in the overall assessment.