Starting your research career - DFG funding programmes and application procedures

Topics 1. What is, what does the DFG? 2. The DFG Funding Portfolio 3. Application and review procedures

What is the DFG? Germany s largest research funding organisation An independent association (not a government agency) devoted to the self-administration of Germany s sciences DFG members are the German universities and the large research performing organisations. The DFG s 2013 budget totalled 2.6 billion

How are decision-making bodies formed? Cooperation between scientific communities and committee members Executive Committee Senate Joint Committee Review Boards Executive Board Head Office Senate and Grants Committees Scientists and Academics General Assembly Election Members

The DFG s mission statement The DFG serves all branches of science and the humanities fosters scientific excellence through competition supports international cooperation in research advises political and social decisionmakers supports the transfer of knowledge between science and industry promotes early career researchers Funding in 2013, by scientific discipline Engineering Sciences 419.3 million (21.1%) Natural Sciences 477.4 million (24.0%) Humanities and Social Sciences 316.3 million (15.9%) Life Sciences 774.0 million (39.0%)

The DFG Funding Chain Appropriate funding options at each career stage Studies Doctorate Postdoc Period Achievement of eligibility for tenure Preparation for scientific mgmt position Professorship or other scientific mgmt position Emmy Noether Programme Heisenberg professorship Professorship in Research Unit Heisenberg fellowship Professorship in Clinical Research Unit Research Training Group fellowship Research fellowship (abroad) Research fellowship (abroad) Research fellowship (abroad) Research in a Research Training Group Research Training Group position Temp. principal investigator position (Germany) Temp. principal investigator position (Germany) Temp. principal investigator position (Germany) Student assistant in DFG project Position in DFG project Position in DFG project Position in DFG project Position in DFG project

Research Fellowship work abroad under the supervision of a qualified researcher learn new methods, concentrate on research Who? Where? How long? Postdocs (need to be integrated in the German system) Abroad, whole world max. 2 years How much? basic fellowship (approx. 17.000 p.a.), allowances, travel, publ. costs, (return stipend) Criteria? - scientific vita of the applicant - quality of the research project - reputation of hosting lab

Number of new research fellowships* by scientific discipline 2013 Natural Sciences 71 (25.3%) Engineering Sciences 16 (5.7%) Humanities and Social Sciences 35 (12.4%) Life Sciences 159 (56.6%) Total number of fellowships: 281 * not including return grants

Funding rates for research fellowships 2010 to 2013 100% Funding rate (by number) 90% 85.7 80% 70% 60% 50% 53.2 66.5 62.0 75.0 75.0 64.2 60.6 61.3 61.4 59.5 57.6 59.1 53.6 50.0 46.5 69.0 62.8 65.9 65.3 40% 30% 20% 10% % 2010 2011 2012 2013 Humanities and Social Sciences Natural Sciences Total Life Sciences Engineering Sciences

Destinations of DFG-funded postdoctoral fellows in 2013 Spain, 10 Austria, 9 Netherlands, 12 other countries, 52 Sweden, 15 Switzerland, 24 France, 26 Australia, 37 Canada, 42 USA, 401 Great Britain, 108

Research Grants Programme / Sachbeihilfe The classical DFG grant the most flexible grant programme no deadlines up to 6 years of funding per project (e.g. 2 x 3) covers personnel, consumables, travel costs, lab equipment, publication costs funding for your own position through optional module Temporary Position for Principal Investigator

Research Grants Programme / Sachbeihilfe Eigene Stelle Temporary Position for PIs Select your own research environment Who? Where? How long? Postdocs At a German research institute (host becomes employer) max. 3 years How much? - Salaried position (TV-L E13, approx. 40.000 p.a.) - additional personnel, consumables, travel costs, lab equipment, publication costs - applications from non-university-research institutions require 45% of financial participation from their institution

Emmy Noether Programme Fast track to a professorship Aims To enable young researchers to gain early scientific independance To (re-)attract outstanding early career researchers from abroad To provide an alternative path to the Habilitation Requirements excellent scientific achievements significant international experience and visibility 2 to 4 years after obtaining a doctorate (6 years after MD)

Emmy Noether Programme Starting an independent research group Who? Where? How long? How much? - very well qualified Postdocs (max 4 yrs. after PhD / 6 years after MD) - significant international experience (at least 1 yr.) - at a German university or research institute (host becomes employer) - option to negotiate with two or more potential host institutions - 5 years, evaluation after 3 yrs. - Salaried position as research group leader (TV-L E15, approx. 48.000 p.a.) - additional personnel, consumables, lab equipment, travel costs; publication costs etc.

Number of new Emmy Noether independent junior research groups by scientific discipline 2010 to 2013 20104 9 14 18 8 49 20113 7 25 23 3 58 20122 4 26 20 8 58 20131 4 17 20 7 48 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 Humanities and Social Sciences Natural Sciences Life Sciences Engineering Sciences

Emmy Noether Programme An insider s view Georg Mayer since 2010 Emmy Noether Research Group leader Univ. Leipzig 2009 Postdoc (DFG Return Stipend) Univ. Jena 2007 2009 Postdoc (DFG Research Fellowship) Univ. Melbourne 2003 2006 Research Associate (DFG-funded project) FU Berlin 2005 PhD (PhD Fellowship of German National Merit Foundation) FU Berlin 2001 Diploma in Biology (Student Fellowship of German National Merit Foundation) Univ. Bielefeld

Heisenberg Programme Pursuing ambitious research while preparing for a tenured professorship The Heisenberg Fellowship Who? - researchers with scientific standing sufficient for an appointment as a professor - excellent quality and originality of ongoing research Where? in Germany and abroad How long? Max 5 years (3+2) How much? - stipend - travel allowances - publication costs - day care allowance, health insurance allowance - often combined with individual grant proposal

Heisenberg Programme Pursuing ambitious research while preparing for a tenured professorship The Heisenberg Professorship Who? Where? - researchers with scientific standing sufficient for an appointment as a professor - excellent quality and originality of ongoing research - at a German university - participation in the host institution's professorial appointment process How long? Max 5 years (3+2) How much? - equivalent to the salary of an associate or full professor (W2 or W3) - host university must create a position and continue funding for the position from its own budget once DFG funding has expired

New grants for Heisenberg fellowships and Heisenberg professors* by scientific discipline in 2013 Heisenberg Fellowships Heisenberg Professorships Natural Sciences (18) Engineering Sciences (1) Humanities and Social Sciences (13) Natural Sciences (1) Engineering Sciences (2) Humanities and Social Sciences (4) Life Sciences (8) Life Sciences (13) Heisenberg Fellowships (40) Heisenberg Professorships (20) * New proposals 23 Titel der Präsentation / Name des Referenten (über Einfügen --> Kopf- und Fußzeile einstellen) Ort, Datum (über Einfügen --> Kopf- und Fußzeile einstellen)

DFG Head Office confidential The review process Individual grants Proposal Formal check Reviewer selection (written) Review Reviewers Project quality Applicants qualifications Aims & work programme Employment opportunities Planned allocation of funding Draft of funding recommendation Assessment Review Board Communication of funding recom Decision Joint Committee Assessment of reviewer selection Proposal and review Comparative merit and funding volume mendation Cross-subject comparison Decision letter, Reviewers recommendations Notification

Funding success rate* in the individual grants programme by scientific discipline 2010 to 2013 (in %) 100% Funding rate (by value) 80% 60% 40% 20% 28.6 31.2 31.9 32.4 31.0 26.9 27.9 26.2 27.8 27.3 22.4 23.9 25.0 26.4 22.8 23.6 22.8 20.7 21.8 22.5 % 2010 2011 2012 2013 Humanities and Social Sciences Natural Sciences Total Life Sciences Engineering Sciences * The funding rate was calculated by dividing the value of funding awarded by the total amount requested.

Who ensures scientific merit? The DFG s review boards These review boards are elected by scientists and academics from their respective communities monitor the selection of reviewers, make recommendations and comparatively assess all proposals and reviews in the individual grants programme are involved in panel reviews for coordinated programmes ensure that comparable high-quality standards and criteria are applied equally in all DFG programmes There are 48 DFG review boards with 606 members. Review board members act in an honorary capacity.

DFG Review Board Zoology - Fachkollegium Zoologie - Subject Area Members 203-01 Systematics and Morphology Matthias Glaubrecht / Stefan Richter 203-02 Evolution, Anthropology Judith Korb / Simone Sommer 203-03 Animal Ecology, Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research Katrin Böhning-Gaese / Helmut Hillebrand / Stefan Scheu 203-04 Sensory and Behavioural Biology Susanne Foitzik / Peter Kappeler 203-05 Biochemistry and Animal Physiology Thorsten Burmester / Jan-Peter Hildebrandt 203-06 Animal Genetics, Cell and Developmental Biology Thomas Bosch / Siegfried Roth 13 members >300 individual grant applications per year annual budget ca. 14 Mio. Euro p.a. ca. 25-30% funding rate

DFG Review Board Zoology Simone Sommer since 2014 Full Professor Univ. Ulm 2007-2013 Apl. Professor Univ. Potsdam 2006-2013 Head of Evolutionary Genetics Department Leibniz-Institute for Zoo- and Wildlife Research (IZW), Berlin 1998-2006 Assistant Professorship Univ. Hamburg 2004 Habilitation 1998 Postdoc (DAAD Fellowship) Washington University, St. Louis and Northwestern University, Chicago 1997 PhD (PhD fellowship, Landesgraduiertenförderung Baden-Württemberg) Univ. Tübingen Since 2008 Member of the DFG Review Board Zoology

A successful DFG proposal... is well prepared and refers to preliminary data or existing publications - give proof that you are able to deliver on the project is not overloaded - be realistic in what you can achieve, especially if it is your first grant proposal - start with smaller projects is specific but not lenghty - max 20 pages - provide all necessary information, but only that - less may be more is based upon clear hyoptheses - which are the specific questions you want to answer in your project

A successful DFG proposal... marks milestones and relates to bigger questions in the field - define the specific aims of your project - outline the long-term perspective presents a comprehensible experimental strategy with alternative options - show that the suggested experiments are feasible and doable - if you have never used the methods you would like to use in your project make sure that the reviewers trust you that you are able to use them! - tell what you will do if experiment A fails provides conclusive justification for requested funds - provide realistic calculations - be realistic in asking for personnel, you will most probably not be provided a whole group

Preparing your DFG proposal Dos Choose your host institution carefully - go to the place where you find the best environment for your research - be mobile Demonstrate your scientific independence and your specific expertise - convey that the ideas presented are YOURS not the ones by your boss - try to publish independently of your PhD supervisor Make your CV shine - enhance readability through a clear structure - explain any career breaks that may have affected your scientific track record, e.g. parental or sick leave, part-time work,

Preparing your DFG proposal Dos Allow for more time than expected - it takes on average 6 months from submission to decision Read the guidelines carefully - if you have questions, ask for advice: your colleagues and people at the DFG head office will be happy to help Consider your proposal from the reviewers perspective - be aware that only you know all details of your field of research this is not necessarily true for reviewers and the members of the Review Board - read the guidelines for reviewers - ask a friend or colleague to read your proposal before submission

Preparing your DFG proposal Don ts Get stuck in your PhD lab - take on new challenges - you will benefit from the experiences in a different lab - if you have really good reasons (scientific, personal) to stay, tell the reviewers and the Review Board. If you don t, they could think that you don t have good reasons! Apply without own publications - reviewers will not count papers and impact factors but expect that you demonstrate your capabilities to be PI on a project

Preparing your DFG proposal Don ts Ignore relevant literature - show that you are familiar with the present state of the art Change the author s sequence in references of your publication lists - no compromising in adhering to the Rules of Good Scientific Practice! Refer to co-operations that are not confirmed by the collaboration partner - name dropping does not help, attach statements by your collaboration partners Take reviewers critique personally - carefully look into the criticism (which may actually be true a tiny little bit ) - comment point to point on the reviewers critique when resubmitting your proposal

Thank you for your attention For more information on the DFG: www.dfg.de/en/ on DFG-funded projects: www.dfg.de/gepris/ on over 17,000 German research institutes: www.dfg.de/research_explorer/ Christoph Limbach, +49 (228) 885-2895, christoph.limbach@dfg.de