Research collaboration Brazil-Sweden: Grant for researcher exchange

Please refer to the application form in Prisma in parallel with reading the instructions below, which describe the call-specific contents of the application. More information on what to do in practical terms is available in our Guide for applicants Opens in new window..

Language

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

Sections of the application

The application form includes the following tabs:

• Descriptive information
• Research description
• Budget
• CV (Brazilian researchers)
• Publications
• Letter of Support
• Administrating organisation
• Participants
• CV all researchers

The information we request under each tab is described below.

Descriptive information

Abstract

The abstract shall include a brief description of the following:

• name, university and country of all the researchers proposed to take part in the exchange programme
• time (dates) for the visit/s
• relevance of the visit/s
• planned programme.

The abstract shall provide a summary picture of the research exchanges. 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. This is approximately one third of an A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing.

Research description

Ethical considerations

Describe the ethical issues raised by the research. Also describe the plan to address ethical dilemmas that may arise. 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? Please 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 justify this.

The justification may cover a maximum of 4 000 characters including blank spaces. This is approximately one A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing.

Sex and gender perspectives

Please state whether sex and gender perspectives are applicable in your planned research, 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 account for sex and gender perspectives in the research plan (see further instructions under “Research 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”, and thereby do not consider that sex and gender perspectives are applicable for your planned research, you do not need to justify your decision.

Research collaboration plan

The research collaboration plan shall consist of a brief but complete description of the researchers taking part in the exchange (both Swedish and Brazilian), the planned visits and the research projects (both Swedish and Brazilian) the visiting researchers will contribute to. It shall cover a maximum of 8 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:

• The researchers and their research: Present the visiting researchers and their research.
  • the name, title, current position and workplace for the visiting researchers
  • which competency the visiting researchers is expected to bring to the host departments
  • details on the length of the visit, and whether it is divided up and, if so, how
  • the department(s) or corresponding where the visiting researchers will be active, and the name of the representative (head of department or corresponding) of the department(s)
• Research project: Describe the type of research the visiting researchers will be conducting at the host departments, and whether it is part of a larger ongoing research project or a newly started project.
• Plan for department participation: Specify the planning of the visiting researcher’s participation at the host department and other departments in the receiving country.

Relevance for the call

Describe and motivate the expected contribution of the visiting researchers and how the described research relates to the focus of the call. See “how your application is assessed” for guiding questions.

Budget and research resources

The Swedish Research Council

For the Swedish part of the exchange, state how many person-months you are applying for.

Justification 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. This is approximately one A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing.

CNPq

For the Brazilian part of the exchange, state how many person-months you are applying for.

Budget

Here you shall attach the final budget submitted to the CNPq. The description may cover a maximum of 4 000 characters including blank spaces. This is approximately one A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing, and include the following information:

Running costs

State the costs for the nominated visiting researcher’s rental of housing, insurance and travel between Brazil and Sweden on separate lines. Describe also any project-related costs linked to the visit (according to amount limits under “Budget and research resources” above). Please state the amounts in Swedish krona, rounded to the nearest 1 000 SEK.

Justification of the budget applied for

Justify briefly each cost applied for in the budget stated. The description may cover a maximum of 4 000 characters including blank spaces. This is approximately one A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing.

CV (Brazilian researchers)

Please attach brief CVs with full address details (including email address) and current position

of all the Brazilian researchers participating in the exchange (Swedish participants shall use Prisma for entering CV’s). Each CV shall cover a maximum of 3 page-numbered A4 pages in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing and 2.5 cm margins. All the CV’s have to be merged into a single pdf-file.

The following headings shall be included, in the following order (leave any heading that is not applicable blank):

1. Higher education qualification(s): Year, subject and HEI.
2. Doctoral degree: Year, discipline/subject, HEI, title of the thesis and supervisor.
3. Postdoctoral positions: Year and location.
4. Qualification required for appointments as a docent: Year.
5. Current position: Appointment period, percentage of research in the employment.
6. Previous positions and periods of appointment: Type of employment and appointment periods.
7. Interruption in research: Here you can account for any longer interruptions in the active research time after the doctoral degree that has impacted on the ability to gain merits. Please state the scope of each interruption.
8. Supervision: PhD students and postdocs for whom the researcher has been the main supervisor; names and years.
9. Grants awarded in competition: Please state relevant grants; funding body, year, type of grant.
10. Other merits of relevance to the application

Publication lists (all participants in the exchange)

Attach all participating researchers’ (including the Swedish project leader’s) publications lists joined up into one file. The list for each researcher shall include the 10 publications that are the most relevant to the research described. Each list shall cover a maximum of 1 page-numbered 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. The publication lists of the applicant and the international project leader shall come first in the compiled document.

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.

Letter of support

Please attach a formal joint letter of support from the Swedish and the Brazilian administrating organisations. The document may cover no more than 2 A4 pages, and shall be written in English. The purpose of the letter is to ensure that a strategic discussion has taken place within and between departments, which includes long term benefits for both sides.

Download the template for the invitation from the administrating organisation here Word, 57.4 kB, opens in new window. (Word, 57.4 kB)

Participants

Here you as applicant may invite the Brazilian international project leader, other participating researchers, and any administrators to your application.

The international project leader should be distinguished from other invited participating researchers by marking them in the table in the application form. You must assign full editing rights to the international project leader.

CV’s (all researchers)

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.

Brazilian researchers

Brazilian participants shall only provide information on their doctoral degree (if applicable) and current employment. The complete cv information should be uploaded in pdf-format under the tab CV-Brazilian researchers (described above).

Swedish researchers

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 evaluated in competition with the other applications on the basis of the following evaluation criteria. The purpose of the call is to either form new collaborations, or to strengthen existing ones, between researchers/research groups in Sweden and Brazil.

Evaluation process

Your application is evaluated by an international review panel with members nominated by the Swedish Research Council and CNPq.

Your application may also be reviewed and graded by external reviewers if needed. The appointed review panel will then meet to discuss and prioritize the applications taking into consideration (when applicable) the statements from the external reviewers.

After the panel has made their recommendation a decision is made by the Director General of the Swedish Research Council and the President of CNPq on which applications to fund. All applications will receive grades on all evaluation criteria as well as a written remark. In cases where applications are given the same overall grade, the “relevance” criterion will be decisive.

Evaluation criteria and guiding questions

The evaluation of the scientific quality of your application is made based on four basic criteria (Scientific quality of the proposed research, Novelty and originality, Merits of the applicants, Feasibility). The purpose of using several components is to achieve a multi-faceted evaluation. The criteria are assessed on a seven-grade scale, except for feasibility, which is assessed on a three-grade grade scale.

In addition to the basic criteria, your application is also evaluated using an additional criterion Relevance on a 7-grade scale.

For each criterion, there are guiding questions to support the evaluation of your application. These can also function as guidance for you when you write your application.

Scientific quality of the proposed research (1–7)

Guiding questions:

• To what extent can the proposed exchange, based on the included collaborators, define new, compelling scientific questions within its scientific area?
• Is the overall description of the exchange sufficiently clear, convincing and compelling, for example in the definition of research questions, description of planned activities and impact of the research collaboration?

Novelty and originality (1–7)

Guiding questions:

• Does the exchange combine scientific expertise and capacity in a novel way in relation to the research area?
• Does the exchange propose a line of research with clear progression and novelty in relation to previous research in the field or will the exchange add details to existing knowledge?

Merits of the applicant (1–7)

Guiding questions:

• Do the applicants in the exchange have sufficient research experience, expertise, level of independence and scientific network for the implementation of the proposed collaboration?
• How significant are the academic achievements, the impact and other qualifications of the applicants from a national and international perspective seen in relation to the research area and the applicant´s career age?
• Is the team´s collective competence/representation of relevant expertise in relation to the proposed research?

Feasibility (1–3)

Guiding questions:

• Is the proposed plan in general, including time schedule and methods, optimal for the proposed collaboration and the research therein?
• Does the exchange aim to establish long-term research collaboration and contain a realistic plan for how to raise funds for such collaboration?
• Does the proposed exchange include the availability and accessibility of relevant personnel, skills, equipment, facilities/infrastructures and other necessary resources?

Overall grade (1–7)

The above subsidiary criteria are weighed together into an overall grade, which reflects the review panel’s joint evaluation of the application’s scientific quality.

Relevance to the call: motivation for the expected contribution of the visiting researchers (1–7)

Applications financed within the framework of the Researcher exchange programme Sweden-Brazil shall be relevant based on the focus of the call.

Guiding questions:

• Is the visit a continuation of a previous collaboration or a start of a new collaboration and research project? Does the researchers in the exchange have key roles in the research project?
• Do the visiting researchers contribute with specialist competence not present in the research project and/or the host institution? Does the visit contribute to an interdisciplinary research environment?
• Do the visits contribute to defining new, compelling scientific questions within the scientific area of the call? Does the exchange have the potential to substantially increase the knowledge within the scientific area of the call? (For example novel concepts or theories, new directions for research and advancement of the field).
• Do the visits have the potential to create lasting collaborations within the research area of the call?
• Is the research project in which the visiting researchers will take part scientifically significant? Does the project extend or challenge current understanding, opinion or practice in the advertised field?
• To what extent does the research project contribute to tackling global challenges relating to the scientific area of the call?
• How does the visit and proposed research strengthen Swedish and Brazilian research within the area of the call in a broad sense?