ERC Synergy Grant

A group of two to maximum four Principal Investigators (PIs), working together and bringing different skills and resources to tackle ambitious research problems.

ERC Synergy Grants are intended to foster research at the intellectual frontiers by enabling a small group of two to four Principal Investigators, referred to as a 'Synergy Grant Group', and their teams, to bring together complementary skills, knowledge, and resources in new ways to jointly address ambitious research problems.

The aim is to promote substantial advances at the frontiers of knowledge, to cross-fertilize scientific fields, and to encourage new productive lines of enquiry and new methods and techniques, including unconventional approaches and investigations at the interface between established disciplines. This should enable transformative research to become a benchmark on a global scale.

Who Can Apply?

Applicants Principal Investigators must demonstrate the synergies, complementarities and added value that could lead to breakthroughs that would not be possible by the individual Principal Investigators working alone.

Synergy Grant Groups should enable new types of joint effort to allow for new combinations of skills and disciplines, or the bringing together of researchers from different institutions, sectors, countries or parts of the world.

The Synergy Grant Group must be made up of a minimum of two and a maximum of four Principal Investigators. One of the Principal Investigators must be designated as the Corresponding Principal Investigator.

At any one time, one Principal Investigator per Synergy Grant Group except the Corresponding one can be hosted or engaged by an institution outside of the EU or Associated Countries.

Applications are expected from a group of innovative and active Principal Investigators with competitive track records as appropriate to their career stage and each must present as part of the proposal an early achievement track record or a 10-year track-record whichever is most appropriate for their career stage.

Size of ERC Advanced Grant:Synergy Grants may be awarded up to a maximum of € 10 million for a period of 6 years. Up to an additional € 4 million in total can be requested in the proposal to cover the specific additional extraordinary costs.

Expected time commitment of the Advanced Grant Principal Investigator:Principal Investigators funded through an ERC Synergy Grant shall spend a minimum of 30% of their working time on the ERC project. Principal Investigators funded through an ERC Synergy Grant shall spend a minimum of 50% of their working time in an EU Member State or Associated Country, except for a Principal Investigator hosted or engaged by an institution outside of the EU or Associated Countries.

Principal Investigators shall ensure a sufficient time commitment and presence throughout the course of the project to guarantee its proper execution.

It is expected that Principal Investigators will be able to start their project within six months of receiving an invitation letter from the ERC.

Further information - Synergy Useful Links