Marie Curie Funding Opportunities not to be missed better odds for Galway than Moscow Flyer

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Marie Curie Funding Opportunities not to be
missed!! (better odds for Galway than Moscow
Flyer!) Dr Conor OCarroll Central
Universities Research Office Conference of Heads
of Irish Universities

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Irelands Current Record FP6

• Marie Curie accounted for 12m in the first
  round out of total income of 48m
• This compare to a total 25m in FP5 (25 of
  national total)
• 86 success rate in the Transfer of Knowledge
  Scheme (EU Average 40)
• 18 success rate in Early Stage Training scheme
  (EU Average 7)
• Highest success rates in Research Training
  networks

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Marie Curie - Major Features

• Lifelong research training
• Bottom Up programme
• All of the Sciences, Economic Human Social
  Sciences (Research Management Ethics for Host
  Driven Schemes)
• Marie Curie label generalised
• Opening of schemes to 3rd country nationals
• No age limit, but experience criterion

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FP6 the competition!

• EU Member States
• Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France,
  Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,
  Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, UK
• EEA Countries
• Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein
• Association Agreement Countries
• Israel, Switzerland
• Candidate Countries
• Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia,
  Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland,
  Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Turkey
• Third Countries
• all other countries, almost!

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Marie Curie Actions
Eligible Researchers
Level of Experience

• Early-stage Researchers
• at the beginning of their career
• lt 4 years of active research experience (e.g.
  researchers undertaking a doctoral degree)
• Experienced Researchers
• at least 4 years of active research experience
• or
• have obtained a doctoral degree. (For some
  Actions, researchers with more than 10 years of
  experience will not be eligible)

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Marie Curie Actions
Mobility Nationality Requirements

• not a national of the State in which they plan
  to be appointed and carry out their research
• Exceptions
• European researchers working outside the EU for 4
  years in the last 5 years.
• Return and Reintegration Mechanisms.
• Multiple nationalities (if not resided in the
  last 5 years)
• International Organisations
• has not been resident or worked/studied in that
  country for more than 12 months out of the 3
  years immediately prior to either the time of
  application (individual Actions), or the start of
  their work (host Actions).

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Marie Curie Actions

• Individual Driven Actions
• Researcher applies jointly with host
• Fellows stay depending on Action
• Fellows withdrawing cannot be replaced

• Host Driven Actions
• Host institutions/network applies for a number of
  fellows/researchers
• Hosts proposal is evaluated
• Selected host/network advertises fellowship
  position and selects fellows/researchers
• Contract duration with host, usually 4 years
• Fellows stay depending on Action (up to 3 years)

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Human Resources and Mobility (Marie Curie Actions)

Transfer of Knowledge

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Human Resources and Mobility in FP6


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Human Resources and Mobility (Marie Curie Actions)

Transfer of Knowledge

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Marie Curie Actions
Marie Curie Conferences and Training Courses

• To stimulate early stage researchers through
  participation of conferences and courses
• Encourage junior researchers to benefit from the
  experience of leading researchers
• Variety of Actions (including virtual ones)
• series of conferences, summer schools, lab
  courses etc. on a theme or linked themes
• support for junior researchers in larger
  conferences selected for their training interest
• Duration from several days to 4 weeks
• Success rate 1/10
• Largest discipline in 1st call Life Sciences
  (24)

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Human Resources and Mobility (Marie Curie Actions)

Transfer of Knowledge

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Marie Curie Actions
Marie Curie Transfer of Knowledge Actions

• Two Different Schemes under ToK
• Development Scheme
• The reinforcement of the research potential of
  host entities, with priorities to those in Less
  Favoured Regions of the EU and in the Associated
  Candidate Countries, in need of new areas of
  competence
• Priority funding for BMW NUI-Galway only Irish
  university in this region!!!!!
• Industry-academia Strategic Partnership Scheme
• The creation and development of real strategic
  and durable partnerships between the academia and
  enterprise, in particular SMEs, aiming at the
  establishment of lasting collaborations of mutual
  interest
• Deadline 19th May 2004

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Marie Curie Actions
Development Scheme

• To develop or reinforce research potential of
  institutes in need of new competencies
• Applications by research groups in need of
  developing new competencies
• All countries, with priority to Community
  LFRs/Associate Candidate Countries
• Host selects and recruits experienced researchers
  (2-24 months)
• Possibility to send own staff (2-12 months)
• to pre-determined institutions return
• Overall EU success rate in 1st Call 40
• Irish Success rate 6/7!!

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Marie Curie Actions
Development Scheme

• Total 4 year contract
• Commission fully covers salary costs plus
  contribution to research/admin costs
• e.g. postdoc in NUI-Galway would receive 50-55k
  salary plus annual travel costs home.
• Senior researcher would receive 70-75k
• University gets about 18k for research/admin/over
  heads

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Marie Curie Actions
Development Scheme

• Number of postdoc/senior researchers will depend
  on the size of the research group
• Average size of a ToK in the first round was
  65-72 researchers months 3 postdocs over 4 years
• The Commission will not fund a proposal with a
  single postdoc there are individual fellowship
  schemes for this purpose

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Marie Curie Actions
Industry-Academia Strategic Partnership Scheme

• To create or develop true strategic and durable
  partnerships
• Application by Industry and academia partners
  from at least 2 different countries
• Co-ordinating host from industry or academia,
  with one or more partners from the other sector
• Funding of exchange of experienced researchers
  amongst staff members, in both directions (2-24
  months)
• Includes SMEs, spin-offs, start-ups
• Only 30 proposals in 1st round!

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Human Resources and Mobility (Marie Curie Actions)

Transfer of Knowledge

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Marie Curie Actions
Excellence Promotion and Recognition

• To promote excellence in European research
• Marie Curie Excellence Grants (Teams)
• To set up or extend teams of the highest level
• Up to 4 years duration
• Leading edge or interdisciplinary research
• Team Leader profile is key to success
• Deadline 18th May 2004
• Success rate 1/10 in 1st call
• Similar to SFI schemes

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Marie Curie Actions
Excellence Promotion and Recognition

• To promote excellence in European research
• Marie Curie Excellence Grants (Teams)
• Grant in range of 800k to 1.6m
• Covers usual project costs (PhD/postdoc salary,
  equipment, consumables, travel,
• Can cover salary cost of Team Leader
• 20 overhead

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Marie Curie Actions
Excellence Promotion and Recognition

• To promote excellence in European research
• Marie Curie Excellence Grants (Teams)
• Exception to all other schemes on mobility of
  Team Leader
• Team Leader can be Irish,
• Could be already in host (lt1 year prior to
  deadline)
• Move from other Irish institution
• Team members subject to usual mobility rules

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Lessons from 1st Round

• Variation in research experience of funded
  researchers from 2-14 years past PhD
• We pressurised the Commission to change scheme so
  as to eliminate those with too much experience
• The clear aim now is to support emerging
  researchers

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Excellence Grants the Team Leader

• a researcher who has early in her/his career
  the potential to reach a high level of
• excellence so as to enable her/him to attain
• more rapidly independence in research.

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Marie Curie Actions
Excellence Promotion and Recognition

• To promote excellence in European research
• Marie Curie Prizes
• Prizes for excellent researchers who have
  benefited from Marie Curie Actions
• Deadline 18th May 2004

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Human Resources and Mobility (Marie Curie Actions)

Transfer of Knowledge

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Marie Curie Actions
Reintegration Grants (continuous call)

• To support integration of a stable research
  career following a period of mobility
• Following a 2-year Marie Curie fellowship
• EU and Associate Country fellows
• Reintegration of country of origin or elsewhere
• Obligation for host to offer minimum 2-year work
  contract and research project
• Following a stay outside Europe
• European researchers who have been outside Europe
  for 5 years
• Success rate gt 90

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Marie Curie Proposal Writing

• Science is not the whole story

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Marie Curie

• Dos and Donts
• Read the Guide for Proposers (application form!)
• http//fp6.cordis.lu/fp6/calls.cfm
• Note that there have been updates!
• Follow the instructions to the letter!
• Use common sense!
• Electronic submission get your password in
  time!

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Marie Curie Actions
Preparing a proposal

• Infopack http//fp6.cordis.lu/fp6
• The Call Text
• The Guide for Proposers (containing the proposal
  submission forms)
• The Work Programme of the HRM Activity
• Also
• The Handbook for the corresponding action
• The brochure a rough guide to the Marie Curie
  Actions
• http//europa.eu.int/comm/research/fp6/mariecurie
  -actions/indexhtm_en.html

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http//europa.eu.int/comm/research/fp6/mariecuri
e-actions/home_en.html
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Marie Curie Actions
Proposal Submission Forms

• A proposal has two parts
• Part A
• Set of forms on administrative information about
  the proposal and the proposers (pre-prepared
  form).
• Part B
• Free-text description of the research project.
• Series of headings and explanatory notes based on
  the evaluations criteria.

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Part A easy!

• Basic details abstract, name, address etc
• Head counts not budget estimates
• Slightly different forms for different schemes
  use the right ones

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Part B the who, what, why and how?

• Scientific content may be only 15!
• Training, training, training..
• Practical details how is the project going to
  be managed and implemented?
• Is it relevant to the European Research Area and
  the needs of researchers?

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Marie Curie Actions
Proposal Submission Forms

• Part B
• Address the issues in a clear, concise fashion.
  It is the basis on which the evaluators will
  referee the proposal!
• Recommended length in numbers of pages not
  mandatory, but
• Think of the evaluators avoid excessive length,
  being repetitive, padding out with unnecessary or
  irrelevant material
• References to web pages will not be taken into
  account as part of the proposal during
  evaluation.

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Evaluation Criteria/ Proposals Part B 1.
Scientific Quality of Project 2. Quality of
Research Training 3. Quality of Host 4. Quality
of Researchers (Individual actions
Excellence) 5. Management and Feasibility 6.
Relevance to the objectives of the
Scheme/Activity 7. Added Value to the Community
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Marie Curie Evaluation of Proposals

• Evaluation by competent experts in the field
• Need to address all of the issues to maximise
  scores
• Total score for a proposal is 100
• Some areas require a minimum score (threshold)
• In many cases the science scores less than 50!
• You must focus on the objectives of the activity
  to be successful
• Look carefully at the score matrix

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Evaluation Weightings Thresholds
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Evaluation Weightings Thresholds
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Transfer of Knowledge Development Scheme

• Key Points to remember
• Need to expand R D activities into a new
  complimentary area not just a continuation of
  current activities
• Require highly qualified postdoc/senior
  researchers
• Overall the research group gains transfer in!
• Embedding this new expertise and capability in
  the group after the 4 years of EC funding

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The EU bits

• Lisbon Objective to create a European Research
  Area (ERA)
• Barcelona Target EU RD spend average should be
  3 of GDP by 2010
• http//europa.eu.int/comm/research/fp6/mariecurie-
  actions/researchers/research_en.html
• RESEARCHERS IN THE EUROPEAN RESEARCH AREAONE
  PROFESSION, MULTIPLE CAREERS http//europa.eu.in
  t/comm/research/fp6/mariecurie-actions/pdf/careerc
  ommunication_en.pdf
• A MOBILITY STRATEGY FOR THE EUROPEAN RESEARCH
  AREA - http//europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/com/cnc/20
  01/com2001_0331en01.pdf
• First Implementation Report - http//europa.eu.int
  /comm/research/fp6/mariecurie-actions/pdf/implemen
  t.pdf

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Hands-on Assistance

• Guidance and advice on schemes to match your
  needs
• One-to-one meetings
• Assistance with proposal writing particularly
  the EU bits
• Proposal review by NCP, prior to submission
  proven to increase chances of success

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More Information

• CHIU Research Office
• conor.ocarroll_at_chiu.ie
• siobhan_at_chiu.ie
• http//europa.eu.int/comm/research/fp6/mariecurie-
  actions/home_en.html