Grant for centre formation and collaboration within antibiotic resistance

Application procedure

For a person to access the call and start the application process, they must be authorised to create organisation applications on the organisation’s Prisma account, please refer to Prisma’s User manual for applying in calls for organisations. External link. If they will not be the project leader and responsible for completing the application, they must invite the project leader to the application once the process has been started (see under the heading “Applicant” below, and under the tab “Participants” in the application form).

Requirements to apply

The following requirements must be fulfilled in order for the organisation to be eligible to apply for the grant. We carry out checks, and reject applications that do not fulfil the requirements.

Focus and framework for the centre

Antibiotic resistance is a growing public health concern that leads to increased morbidity and mortality, as well as higher costs for society. Research and innovation are important components in efforts to manage and counteract resistance, and to preserve the possibility of effective treatment of infections in humans and animals. The grant is announced within the framework of the national research programme on antibiotic resistance.

The national research programme covers the following themes:

• Understanding the emergence and transmission of resistance
• Preventive measures and control of the spread of infection among humans and animals
• Preventive measures and control of the spread of resistance in the environment
• Improved and faster diagnostics of resistant infections in humans and animals
• Development of surveillance of antibiotic use, resistance, and healthcare-associated infections
• Access to effective medicines and vaccines

More information about the programme’s various themes can be found in the Strategic Research Agenda (in Swedish).

The grant is intended to provide support for academic interdisciplinary centres and for collaboration between actors in academia, regional or national activities and/or industry. It will promote the use of research data, expertise, education and infrastructure, as well as support networks and knowledge exchange between researchers and society. The grant can thus be used for key functions such as communication and coordination, or to promote collaboration between sectors and/or research topics, but is not intended for the financing of research expenses.

Applicants

The applicant for the grant must be a Swedish higher education institution (HEI) or another organisation that has been approved as an administrating organisation for grants from the Swedish Research Council.

The application shall include a named coordinator of the centre responsible for coordination and follow-up studies. The coordinator shall be employed by the administrating organisation at the start of and throughout the grant period and any further additional availability period. The employment must equal at least 20 per cent of a full-time equivalent. The coordinator does not have to be employed at the time of applying. A named representative of each participating HEI shall be listed (see instructions under “Organisational plan” below) and be included as participating researchers in the application.

Number of applications and previous grants

General information about overlaps between applications and grants

The application must not cover costs for purposes that are already funded by the Swedish Research Council or any other funding body. Overlaps with other grants or applications may impact on the grant amount awarded, or be a reason for us to reject the application.

Participating researchers

A representative of each organisation participating in the centre in addition to the applying HEI shall be included as a participating researcher in the application. The participants do not need to have a doctoral degree, but their competence must be crucial for the implementation of the centre's activities.

Participating researchers shall provide the necessary information themselves in Prisma, and upload these to the application.

Costs and grant amount

Grants can be applied for to finance costs related to programme activities, such as

• costs for administrative support, travel/workshops/events and subsistence of programme participants
• salary costs for the coordinator/administrator.

The grant may not be used for doctoral student salary, salary for participating researchers, or for scholarships.

The application can be made for up to 2 000 000 SEK per year, including indirect costs.

The grant amount includes cover of indirect costs as a percentage of the direct costs, according to the model used by the administrating organisation.

The Swedish Research Council assumes that the administrating organisation will cover any costs in excess of the amount received.

Contribution period

The grant period is 3 years, starting from January 2027. The first payment will be made during December 2026 at the earliest.

What must the application contain?

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.

International 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, except the popular science description, which must be in Swedish.

The information we request under each tab in the application form is described below.

Descriptive information

Abstract

The abstract shall include a brief description of the following:

• What is to be done: purpose and goal
• How the activities and operations will be conducted
• What is important about the planned activities

The text shall provide an overview of the centre's purpose and implementation. 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.

Popular science description

Describe the centre's activities 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 centre will support research and collaboration in the field of antibiotic resistance.

The popular science description is important when we inform about the research funded by the Swedish Research Council.

The text must be in Swedish and cover a maximum of 2 000 characters including blank spaces. This is approximately half an A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing.

Research description

Organisational plan

The organisational plan shall consist of a brief but complete description of the centre's activities. It may cover a maximum of 8 A4 pages in Arial, font size 11, with single line spacing and 2.5 cm margins, including references and any images. References can be stated either continuously or at the end of the plan. All sources must be reported with complete information, links alone are not enough.

The organisational plan shall contain the following headings and information in the following order:

• Purpose and aims. Give an overall account of the centre's/collaboration's purpose and specific goals.
• Central theme. Briefly summarize the central theme or overall issue of the centre/collaboration. Indicate how the centre/collaboration uses new ways of combining theories, methods, expertise and/or data from different disciplines to open up new research approaches and innovative research and/or contribute to the emergence of new interdisciplinary/multidisciplinary research areas and actions.
• Organisational structure. Describe the centre's organisational structure, i.e. organisational plan with management and division of roles among the participating parties. Clarify how the participating organisations will contribute to supporting and realising the proposed activities. Describe and justify the participating organisations' skills and roles in the centre/collaboration, as well as other key functions that are important for the implementation of the activities. Also describe how the centre/collaboration works with gender equality aspects in its own management and organisation. Any deviation from a 40/60 gender ratio shall be justified.
• Format and timing for the programme activities. Describe the planned programme activities and other activities planned within the framework of the centre's activities, and describe how the selected activities contribute to the fulfilment of the centre's/collaboration's purpose and objectives. The report shall include the following points:
  • Components of the centre/collaboration, including how the strengths of each constituent party contribute to the overall aim and objective
  • Planned activities
  • Plan for involvement and communication with the surrounding community.
• Importance. Describe how the centre's/collaboration's activities are expected to contribute to the development of new interdisciplinary/multidisciplinary research areas that contribute to Swedish research continuing to be internationally leading.

Relevance

Describe how your project is relevant for the focus Antibiotic Resistance (see the definition in the introduction to the call text) and how the project promotes the development of this field.

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.

Description of merits

Describe how the merits stated in the coordinator's CV and list of publications and other research outputs confirm their competence as project leader and responsible for implementing the proposed activities.

The description may cover a maximum of 2 000 characters including blank spaces. This is approximately half an A4 page in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing.

Publications and other research outputs

The project leader’s/coordinator’s publications and other research outputs

Please attach the publication list drawn up according to the headings and information below. The list shall cover a maximum of 5 page-numbered A4 pages in Arial, font size 11, single line spacing and 2.5 cm margins.

Sort the outputs under each heading 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.

1. Selection of research outputs

List the 10 publications or other outputs that are the most important for confirming the project leader’s/coordinator’s competence as project leader and responsible for implementing the proposed activities. For each publication, please state how the researcher contributed to it, and its relevance to the centre described (maximum 4 lines per publication). Highlight the researcher’s name in bold in the author list.

2. Relevant peer-reviewed research outputs from 2018-2026

In this part, the outputs listed under Item 1 shall also be included if they were published during the period in question. Sort them with the researcher’s name highlighted in bold in the author list/corresponding under headings (type of output) in the following order:

• Original articles
• Conference contributions, the results of which are not included in other publications
• Edited volumes
• Research review articles
• Books and book chapters
• Artistic work
• Other outputs that do not fit under any of the headings above. Please note that intellectual property rights shall be shown in the CV section of the application.

3. Relevant non peer-reviewed research outputs from 2018-2026

In this part, the outputs listed under Item 1 shall also be included if they were published during the period in question. Sort them with the researcher’s name highlighted in bold in the author list/corresponding under headings (type of output) in the following order:

• Artistic work
• Publications including popular science books/presentations
• Preprints
• Other outputs that do not fit under any of the headings above. Please note that intellectual property rights shall be shown in the CV section of the application.

Participating researchers’ publications and other research outputs

If any participating researchers are included, you shall attach their lists joined up into one file.

The list for each researcher shall include the 10 publications or other research outputs that are the most relevant for the implementation of the activities 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.

The outputs may be of the following types and must be 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.

Peer-reviewed

• original articles
• conference contributions
• edited volumes
• research review articles
• books and book chapters
• artistic work
• other outputs

and

Non peer-reviewed research outputs

Budget and research resources

Personnel

State the activity level (per cent of a full-time equivalent) of all personnel active within the centre formation, that is, the project leader/coordinator, other researchers responsible for participation in the centre, doctoral students and other personnel.

Please also state the salary you are applying for, for the project leader/coordinator within the centre, both as a percentage of a full-time salary and as actual annual amounts (including social security contributions). Please state the amounts in Swedish krona, rounded to the nearest 1 000 SEK.

Other costs

Describe any other costs of the project (premises costs and running costs). Please state annual amounts in Swedish krona, rounded to the nearest 1 000 SEK.

Total cost of the centre

Prisma will automatically add up your budget items listed in a table. The total amount applied for shall also include indirect costs. These shall be added to the table by the applicant (project leader/coordinator). Here the applicant (project leader/coordinator) can also add any additional costs that centre entails (for which you are not seeking funding under this call).

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.

Other funding

Please state any other funding of centre over and above what is applied for in this application. Please state the amounts in Swedish krona, rounded to the nearest 1 000 SEK.

Administrating organisation

Please state the site of the centre.

Participants

Under this tab, the person invited to be the coordinator may in turn invite participating researchers and participating administrators to the application.

CV

Under this tab, the coordinator shall upload the relevant CV information from their personal account in Prisma. The information/merits shall confirm the coordinator’s competence as project leader and responsible for implementing the proposed activities. If there are any participating researchers they must upload their own CV information to the application.

The following information, where available, must always be included in the respective CV, according to the stated limitation in numbers:

Education

First, second and third cycle higher education and specialist degrees.

Work

• Current employment (including information on employment format)
• Longer relevant employment
• Post-doctoral visits (state also as employment if applicable)
• Researcher exchanges of relevance to the research described
• Any longer interruptions in the research that have impacted on your opportunity to gain merit as a researcher.

Merits and awards

• Docentship/associate professorship
• Persons supervised (postdoctoral and doctoral students; state the number of persons in each category and list the names of the maximum 10 most relevant)
• Relevant grants received in competition (list maximum 10)
• The most relevant prizes and awards (list maximum 10)
• Any other merits of relevance to the application, such as invitations to lecture, leader assignments, representative assignments, membership of scientific associations and similar.

Intellectual property rights

For example, patents and open access computer programs developed; state up to 10 of the most relevant.

How your application is assessed

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.

Evaluation process

Your application for Centre support within Antibiotic Resistance 2026 is evaluated by a review panel where the members are researchers who are active in Sweden and internationally.

At least three members review and grade your application individually. If extra competence is needed, your application might also be evaluated by an additional, external, reviewer. The entire review panel (not including any external reviewers) then meets at a review panel meeting to discuss and prioritise the applications, and to make a proposal for a decision to the Scientific Council for Medicine and Health.

Review panel

To allow for more in-depth discussions of applications with higher quality and a reasonable chance of being funded, not all applications are discussed in detail at the review panel’s meeting. The applications that are not discussed thoroughly are those that the panel members during their individual review have assessed having the lowest quality among the panel’s applications. Following the grant decision, all applications receive a final statement that includes the review panel’s grading of the application. The applications that have been discussed in more detail at the panel meeting receive an individual final statement which, in addition to the grades, also contains a summary of the review panel’s discussion and joint assessment of the scientific quality of the application.

Here you will find a more comprehensive description of the Swedish Research Council's assessment of applications

Evaluation criteria and guiding questions

The evaluation of the scientific quality of your application is made based on four basic criteria (Novelty and originality, Quality and potential of the collaboration, Competence and organisation, 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 scale.

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

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

Novelty and originality (1-7)

• To what extent does the proposal have the potential to open the door for new pioneering research approaches, multidisciplinary investigations, and cross-sectorial collaboration?

Quality and potential of the collaboration (1-7)

• Is the definition of aims and objectives of the collaboration sufficiently clear, convincing and compelling?
• To what extent can the collaboration lead to knowledge transfer and better exchange between research groups, scientific disciplines, national, regional or private sector stakeholders, and society?
• To what extent can the collaboration support the utilisation of resources such as research data or infrastructures?
• Does the proposal contain plans for sustaining the collaboration beyond the proposed duration of funding?

Competence and organisation (1-7)

• Is the team's combination of competences and roles relevant in relation to the proposed objectives?
• To what extent does the proposal demonstrate capacity and plans for monitoring effects and realisation of value from the collaboration?

Feasibility (1-3)

• To what extent is the design of the centre/programme activities realistic, including the time plan?
• To what extent does the organisation and management of the collaboration ensure its successful implementation?
• To what extent is the collaboration, through its organisation and activities, adequately designed to deliver its proposed objectives?

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 (1-3)

• Is the proposed collaboration relevant to antibiotic resistance, e.g. in the following aspects:
  • mechanisms for emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance;
  • prevention and control of infections and resistance among humans, animals or in the environment;
  • diagnostics, treatment or monitoring of infections, including access to medicines and surveillance of antimicrobial use?