1. European Research Council (ERC) Consolidator Grant 2013: Scheme Outline Deadline: 21st February, 2013 at 16.00 GMT Dr Barry Dixon – Research Facilitator (EU & Overseas) School of Arts & Humanities, School of Humanities & Social Sciences

2. What?Who? How?Assessment ERC Consolidator Grant

3. What is the European Research Council (ERC)? The ERC was established in 2007 by the European Commission and is currently funded through the EU’s 7 th Framework Programme (‘Ideas’) It’s goal is to support investigator-initiated ‘frontier’ research across all disciplinary fields Four types of grants are available: - ERC Starting Grants - ERC Consolidator Grants - ERC Advanced Grants - ERC Synergy Grants

4. What is the ERC Consolidator Grant? ERC Consolidator Grants are support researchers at the stage at which they are consolidating their own independent research team or programme. The aim is to fund projects carried out by individual teams which are headed by a single Principal Investigator (PI) and, as necessary, include additional team-members. The constitution of the research team is flexible. Consolidator Grants can be up to a maximum of €2,000,000 for a period of 5 years (pro rata for projects of shorter duration). However, in exceptional cases, an additional amount of up to €750,000 funding can be made available All projects should start within 6 months from the award of the grant The deadline is 21st February, 2013 at 16.00 GMT Note: The University Research Office will need 5 working days in order to check the application and provide the necessary supporting statement

5. What is the ERC Consolidator Grant? Scientific Excellence of both the project and of the applicant is the only criterion meaning… EUROPEAN ADDED VALUE THEMES INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

6. What?Who? How?Assessment ERC Consolidator Grant

7. Who can apply? Applicants must have been awarded their first PhD at least 7 and up to 12 years prior to the 07 th November, 2012 (the publication date of the call). Applicants can be of any nationality, of any age and can reside in any country at the time of application. The applicant need not necessarily be employed by the host institution at the time they submit. Applicants must spend at least 50% of their time on their project.

8. Who can apply? A competitive Consolidator Grant Principal Investigator must have already shown research independence. For example, it is expected that applicants will have produced several important publications without the participation of their PhD supervisor. Applicants should also be able to demonstrate a promising track-record of early achievements appropriate to their research field and career stage, including significant publications (the Early Achievements Track Record mentions 10) in major international peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journals, or in the leading international peer-reviewed journals of their respective field. They may also demonstrate a record of invited presentations in well-established international conferences, granted patents, awards, prizes etc.

9. The ‘Individual Team’ Concept In the majority of cases, applicants will work as the PI of a small team. The constitution of the team is flexible, though commonly includes postdocs, PhD students, senior researchers, technicians, and administrative support staff. Normally, Cambridge will be the only host institution but team members can come from any institution and, indeed, any country (including from outside the EU). The research team has a particular structure and should not be seen as another term for a consortium or network.

10. What?Who? How?Assessment ERC Consolidator Grant

11. How to apply? A proposal consists of administrative forms (Part A), a research proposal (Parts B1 and B2) and supporting documentation. Submission is accepted only via the web-based Participant Portal Submission Service (PPSS). The application procedure consists of a single submission stage. Strict rules apply for restrictions on submission of proposals (i.e. re-submissions, etc.) that must be checked before applying for a grant.

12. How to Apply? Part A (1-3) of the Application Form: Administrative Information Part A1: General Information on the Proposal and the Principal Investigator Part A2: General information on the Host Organisation Part A3: Budget (grants cover up to 100% of eligible costs and 20% of indirect costs) - Note: VAT is NOT an eligible cost

13. How to Apply? Part B (1-2) of the Application Form Part B1 - Extended synopsis of the proposal (max 5 pages) - CV (max 2 pages) - Early achievements track-record (max 2 pages) Part B2: The Scientific Proposal (max 15 pages) - A. State of the art and objectives - B. Methodology - C. Resources - D. Ethical and security sensitive issues

14. Part B1: Extended Synopsis (5 pages) Give a concise presentation of the proposal, making sure to include an opening that will grab the reviewer’s attention. This section should cover what is particularly “ground-breaking” about your proposal, including its feasibility (the ERC welcome “high risk/high gain” proposals, as long as it is within reason). You should address how the proposal will integrate within the state-of- the-art (including select references). As the first stage of assessment only includes Part A and Part B1, there should be nothing important in Part B2 that is not also contained here.

15. Part B1: CV (max 2 pages) A standard academic CV, though it should particularly highlight your academic and research record It should also contain a ‘funding ID’, where you list your current research grants and any on-going applications for work relating to the project 2 pages is quite short so it should complement the Early Achievements Track Record

16. Part B1: Early Achievements Track Record (2 pages max) Highlight your 10 most representative publications, as well as any other major publications that do not include your PhD supervisor as co- author. List also any invited presentations to major national or international conferences/meetings. Note and explain any awards, prizes or fellowships. Feel free to include explanatory text in this section

17. Part B2: The Scientific Proposal (15 pages) This section should offer a suitable expansion of the key points raised in Part B1. You should go into more detail on the scholarly aspects of the project which demonstrate its importance (its “ground-breaking nature”), the potential impact it will have on the field(s), and on the research methodology. A.) State-of-the-art and Objectives Outline your objectives in such a way as can be reasonably understood by a non-expert academic. It should be clear to this non-specialist how and why your project is important, as well as the impact it will have on the field (making sure to refer to the most important works). If there are any particularly novel or unconventional aspects to your project, these should be outlined here. Ideally, a world-leading expert in your field should be able to look at this section of your application and consider the project unlike anything that has been attempted before.

18. B.) Methodology Your methodology should be clearly outlined with reference to intermediate and long- term goals. If your methodology includes novelty, such as the bringing together of people from different disciplines or approaches, you should be able to address how you will get these approaches to work together. This section should also address things like how you, as a team leader, will get your team as a whole working together. What type of meetings will you organise (supervisions for PhDs, working group meetings, workshops, seminars, conferences, etc…) and how often will they happen? Will your project have an Advisory Board? If so, who will they be, what will the Board’s function be, and how often will they meet? Are there major international networks in your field that you want to disseminate your results to? Ideally, you should be able to offer a yearly breakdown of main events/activities and goals that will show a review panel that you have thought about how you intend to spend the money.

19. C.) Resources This section will include a costing table that will offer the reviewers a more concise overview of your project costs. You will also, though, need to justify these costs. This will involve summarising your team and the role each one of them will play. For example, why have you asked for 3 Postdocs and not 2? Each team member must have a unique yet complementary role to play within the project as a whole that you must describe here. Similarly, you will need to justify any equipment, travel costs and dissemination costs. The more information you can give, the better.

20. D.) Ethical and Security-Sensitive Issues There is a table which asks a range of questions relating to these issues. If any of the cases stated apply to your project you will need to include a 2-page annex that outlines how you intend to deal with the issue. Note: It is very often the case that any project that involves interviews or fieldwork that takes place in certain countries will need to fill-out an ethical annex. Please check this carefully.

21. On-line Submission As previously mentioned, you will be applying via an on-line Participant Portal Submission Service (PPSS) which is found on the call page of the Research and Innovation Participant Portal: http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/page/home Or via the ERC web-site: ERC: European Research Council - Submit an ERC Grant Proposal: http://erc.europa.eu/step-step http://erc.europa.eu/step-step It is highly recommended that you register as soon as possible just to get the feel of the system.

22. What?Who? How?Assessment ERC Consolidator Grant

23. Assessment A single submission of an ERC Starting Grant proposal will be followed by a two-step peer review evaluation At the first step, Part A and Part B1 ONLY are assessed by peer review evaluation panels (ERC panels), which may be supported by additional remote reviewers Part B2 is only evaluated for the selected applications that make it through to the second round. This means that all relevant information relating to the project should be contained in Part B1 At the second step, applications will be sent for external peer-review. On the basis of these reports, selected applicants will be invited for interview in Brussels

24. Assessment As per the scheme guidelines: “In general, projects wholly or largely consisting in the collation and compilation of existing material in new databases, editions or collections are unlikely to constitute ground-breaking or "frontier" research in themselves, however useful such resources might be to subsequent original research. Such projects are therefore unlikely to be recommended for funding by the ERC's panels” The detailed elements applying to the excellence of the research project and the Principal Investigator(s) are: 1.Research Project: Ground-breaking nature, ambition and feasibility To what extent does the proposed research address important challenges? To what extent are the objectives ambitious and beyond the state of the art (e.g. novel concepts and approaches or development across disciplines)? How much is the proposed research high risk/high gain? Scientific Approach To what extent is the outlined scientific approach feasible (based on Extended Synopsis)? To what extent is the proposed research methodology appropriate to achieve the goals of the project (based on Scientific Proposal)? To what extent does the proposal involve the development of novel methodology (based on Scientific Proposal)? *This is new for the Consolidator scheme To what extent are the proposed timescales and resources necessary and properly justified (based on Scientific Proposal)?

25. Assessment 2. Principal Investigator(s): Intellectual capacity, creativity and commitment Has the PI demonstrated the ability to propose and conduct ground-breaking research and has his/her achievements typically gone beyond the state-of-the-art? Has the PI provided abundant evidence of creative independent thinking? Would the ERC Grant contribute significantly to the establishment and/or further consolidation of the PI's independence? Is the PI strongly committed to the project and demonstrates their willingness to devote a significant amount of time to the project (based on Scientific Proposal)?

26. Tips for Part B1 (the Principal Investigator) In the CV and Early Achievements Track Record, make sure to sell yourself as well as to make sure to explain your achievements for reviewers from outside your subject area and indeed your country. For example, if you have received an award, give an explanation as to what it was for and, if applicable, how prestigious it is (how many people applied for it, how many are given per year, etc…). Explain too, anything that is UK specific, and avoid using subject-specific acronyms. Similarly, if you have been published in the leading journal in your field, you could add this line of explanation to the document. Your Early Achievements Track Record should in some ways tell the story of your career, particularly if you have had any career breaks and/or had an unconventional career-path (this way you can be fairly assessed). This part of the application is where you can stand out from others, so should be taken advantage of. Anything that helps you stand out academically could be included.

27. Tips for Part B2 (the Research project) Provide a clear, concise work-plan which covers intermediate goals and project objectives. Explain what each team member is doing (and their background/recruitment profile). Clearly explain how you will manage and disseminate your project Explain how the research will open up new opportunities for the field(s) Make sure to offer an appropriate justification of all the resources you will need for the project. There should be a clear link between the costs and the research/methodology Consider what excites you about the research and convey this in the application.

28. Review Panels Social Sciences & Humanities Panels SH1 Individuals, Institutions and Markets: Economics, finance and management SH2 Institutions, Values, Beliefs and Behaviour: Sociology, social anthropology, political science, law, communication, social studies of science and technology SH3 Environment, Space and Population: Environmental studies, geography, demography, migration, regional and urban studies SH4 The Human Mind and Its Complexity: Cognitive science, psychology, linguistics, education SH5 Cultures and Cultural Production: Literature and philosophy, visual and performing arts, music, cultural and comparative studies SH6 The Study of the Human Past: Archaeology, history and memory

29. Success Rates Call Applications Received Of Which Cambridge Specific EvaluatedFundedSuccess Rate Starting Grant 2007 9,1678,7872993.4% 10% Starting Grant 2009 2,5032,39224510.2% 14% Starting Grant 2010 2,8732,76743615.8% 32% Starting Grant 2011 4,0804,00548512.1% 37% Starting Grants total 18,62317,9511,465

30. Going forward Who to contact In the first instance you should inform your Departmental Administrator and Head of Faculty/Department of your intention to apply. Your HoD will need to approve your application before it gets to the Research Office so the sooner they are made aware the better. Your Faculty/Department will have a Research Grant Administrator who will be able to assist you with the budget and all financial aspects of the application. Again, the sooner you make contact the better for them, as they can manage their time. I would be happy to answer questions, offer feedback on drafts of your application, and discuss any aspect of your project and application. The University Research Office will need 3-5 working days to check and approve your application. Of course, the earlier you submit to them the better, to allow time for any potential issues to be resolved. If you feel your application might bring up particular issues (equipment, HR issues, etc…), you can always contact them for clarification before formal submission. Once they have checked your application they will provide you with the letter of institutional support required to complete your application.

31. Going Forward All info available here: http://erc.europa.eu/starting-grantshttp://erc.europa.eu/starting-grants Ask questions or discuss your proposal with me: bd336@cam.ac.ukbd336@cam.ac.uk General questions can also be addressed to the UK’s National Contact Point for the ERC at: erc-uk@bbsrc.ac.ukerc-uk@bbsrc.ac.uk

32. Questions ?