European Research Council

European Research Council Palma de Mallorca, 16 October 2014 Jose Labastida Head of the ERC Scientific Department

Contents ERC basics ERC 2014 Work Program Spain at ERC 2

ERC basics 3

ERC basics What is ERC? An independent funding body set up by the EU in 2007 and led by scientists Funding excellent researchers of any nationality, to carry out frontier research in Europe, via annual competitions Scientific excellence is the sole criterion on the basis of which ERC frontier research grants are awarded Application can be made in any field of research Independent researchers of any age and any career stage can apply Substantial (and portable) easily handled grants International, top level peer-review 4

ERC basics ERC in the H2020 Structure The HORIZON 2020 main components: Excellent Science World class science is foundation of technologies, jobs, well-being Europe needs to develop, attract, retain research talent Researchers need access to the best infrastructures Industrial leadership Societal challenges Excellent Science: European Research Council Future and Emerging Technologies Marie Sklodoswka-Curie Actions Research Infrastructures 5

ERC basics Horizon 2020 Budget 77 billion ERC Budget 13 billion FP7 H2020 6

ERC basics ERC structure The European Commission Provides financing through the EU framework programmes Guarantees autonomy of the ERC Assures the integrity and accountability of the ERC Adopts annual work programmes as established by the Scientific Council The ERC Scientific Council 22 prominent researchers proposed by an independent identification committee Appointed by the Commission (4 years, renewable once) Establishes overall scientific strategy; annual work programmes (incl. calls for proposals, evaluation criteria); peer review methodology; selection and accreditation of experts Controls quality of operations and management Ensures communication with the scientific community The ERC Executive Agency Executes annual work programme as established by the Scientific Council Implements calls for proposals and provides information and support to applicants Organises peer review evaluation Establishes and manages grant agreements Administers scientific and financial aspects and follow-up of grant agreements Carries out communications activities and ensures information dissemination to ERC stakeholders

ERC basics ERC Scientific Council Members Prof. Klaus BOCK (Chemistry) Prof. Jean-Pierre BOURGUIGNON (Mathematics), ERC President Prof. Nicholas CANNY (History) Prof. Sierd A.P.L. CLOETINGH (Earth Sciences) Prof. Tomasz DIETL (Physics) Prof. Daniel DOLEV (Computer Sciences) Prof. Athene DONALD (Biological Physics) Dr. Barbara ENSOLI (Medicine) Prof. Pavel EXNER (Applied Mathematics & Mathematical Physics) Prof. Reinhard GENZEL (Astrophysics) Prof. Carl-Henrik HELDIN (Molecular Cell Biology) Prof. Timothy HUNT (Biology) Prof. Matthias KLEINER (Engineering) Prof. Eva KONDOROSI (Biology) Prof. Mart SAARMA (Biology) Prof. Nuria SEBASTIAN GALLES (Psychology) Prof. Nils Christian STENSETH (Ecology & Evolution) Prof. Martin STOKHOF (Philosophy) Prof. Anna TRAMONTANO (Biochemistry) Prof. Isabelle VERNOS (Molecular and Cell Biology) Prof. Reinhilde VEUGELERS (Economics) Prof. Michel WIEVIORKA (Sociology)

ERC basics After 7 years of existence Highly recognised by the research community 4 400 top researchers funded (65% are at an early-career stage); 64 nationalities represented Highly competitive (average success rate 12%) Working in 600 different institutions in 29 countries 50% of grantees in 50 institutions : Excellence attracts excellence Benchmarking effect: impact on national programmes and agencies; national funding for best "runners-up" Efficient and fast grant management 9

ERC basics Funding schemes Starting Grants starters (2-7 years after PhD) up to 2.0 Mio for 5 years Consolidator Grants consolidators (7-12 years after PhD) up to 2.75 Mio for 5 years Advanced Grants track-record of significant research achievements in the last 10 years up to 3.5 Mio for 5 years Synergy Grants 2 4 Principal Investigators up to 15.0 Mio for 6 years Proof of Concept bridging gap between research - earliest stage of marketable innovation up to 150,000 for ERC grant holders 10

ERC basics Data as of 21/8/2014 11

ERC basics ERC grant distribution to countries of HI StG, CoG and AdG 2007-2013 *) Host institution refers to the organisation with which the first grant agreement was signed 12

ERC basics ERC grant distribution per nationalities StG, CoG and AdG 2007-2013 13

ERC basics Mobility of researchers StG, CoG and AdG 2007-2013 Current host institutions; data as of 16/12/2013 14

ERC basics Distribution of ERC Grants vs. R&D Expenditure by Country of HI (ERC StG, CoG and AdG calls 2007-2013) 15

Country Higher-Education Institution No StG/CoG AdG Total LS PE SH UK University of Oxford 1 63 58 121 36 52 33 UK University of Cambridge 2 69 49 118 40 57 21 UK University College London 3 56 30 86 35 18 33 CH Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zurich) 4 35 46 81 25 53 3 CH Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) 5 44 36 80 23 55 2 IL Weizmann Institute 6 51 28 79 45 33 1 IL Hebrew University of Jerusalem 7 43 30 73 33 26 14 UK Imperial College 8 34 27 61 23 38 UK University of Edinburgh 9 24 21 45 10 21 14 BE University of Leuven 9 30 15 45 12 23 10 UK University of Bristol 10 18 21 39 8 25 6 DE University of Munich (LMU) 11 14 24 38 16 16 6 NL Radboud University Nijmegen 12 25 12 37 14 11 12 NL University of Amsterdam 12 20 17 37 3 10 24 NL Leiden University 13 20 15 35 1 16 18 NL Utrecht University 14 20 13 33 8 17 8 IL Technion - Israel Institute of Technology 14 25 8 33 9 23 1 CH University of Zurich 14 18 15 33 21 5 7 UK King's College London 15 22 9 31 12 5 14 IL Tel Aviv University 15 17 14 31 11 17 3 CH University of Geneva 15 14 17 31 19 9 3 FI University of Helsinki 16 16 14 30 21 7 2 SE Karolinska Institute 16 18 12 30 28 2 Country Research Organisation No StG AdG Total LS PE SH FR National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) 1 142 66 208 58 119 31 DE Max Planck Society 2 67 45 112 60 45 7 FR National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm) 3 39 18 57 54 1 2 FR French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission 4 34 9 43 7 35 1 ES Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) 5 25 15 40 15 20 5 FR National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Automatic Control (INRIA) 6 19 12 31 31 Top European Institutions hosting Established at by least the European Commission 30 ERC Grantees by funding Schemes StG/CoG 2007-2013 AdG 2008-2013 First legal signatories of the grant agreement Data as of 16/12/2013

ERC basics Publication from ERC funded projects Already over 20.000 papers acknowledging ERC support published in international, peer reviewed journals. * Thomson Reuters, WoS, End of 2012 17

ERC basics Developing a new generation of excellent scientists 2/3 of staff are people in the training phase of their career Analysis of 995 ERC projects 18 18

ERC 2015 Work Program 19

ERC 2015 Work Program Summary of main features Three ERC frontier research grants will be available under Work Programme 2015: Starting; Consolidator; and Advanced Grants ERC Principal Investigators will also continue to be able to apply for the Proof of Concept Grant, first introduced in 2011 Overhead: 25% Restrictions on applications will apply to the 2016/17 calls based on the outcome of the evaluation of the 2015 calls Publication in open access mandatory Applicants can opt-in in the H2020 pilot on open research data Reference date for eligibility windows in StG and CoG: January 1, 2015 Budget is not pre-fixed by scientific domain Update of panel titles, subtitles and descriptors 40% minimum commitment for CoG 20

ERC 2015 Work Program ERC funding schemes Starting Grants starters (2-7 years after PhD) up to 2.0 Mio for 5 years Consolidator Grants consolidators (7-12 years after PhD) up to 2.75 Mio for 5 years Advanced Grants track-record of significant research achievements in the last 10 years up to 3.5 Mio for 5 years Proof of Concept bridging gap between research - earliest stage of marketable innovation up to 150,000 for ERC grant holders 21

ERC 2015 Work Program ERC funding schemes Starting Grant (StG): nurturing the next generation research leaders. To support excellent Principal Investigators at the career stage at which they are starting their own independent research team or programme. Consolidator Grant (CoG): consolidating the next generation research leaders. To support excellent Principal Investigators at the career stage at which they may still be consolidating their own independent research team or programme. Advanced Grant (AdG): attracting and rewarding established independent research leaders. To support excellent Principal Investigators at the career stage at which they are already established research leaders with a recognised track record of research achievements. Applicant Principal Investigators must demonstrate the ground breaking nature, ambition and feasibility of their scientific proposal. 22

ERC 2015 Work Program Principal investigator profile and commitment for StG PI Profile: Any current place of work but working or moving to work in Europe (EU member state or FP7 Associated Country) Any nationality or age Over 2 and up to 7 years of experience after PhD Potential for independence and evidence of maturity Good track-record of early research achievements, appropriate to their research field and career stage PI Commitment: Minimum 50% of PI working time on ERC project Minimum 50% of PI working time in a EU Member Sate or Associated Country 23

ERC 2015 Work Program Principal investigator profile and commitment for CoG PI Profile: Any current place of work but working or moving to work in Europe (EU member state or FP7 Associated Country) Any nationality or age Over 7 and up to 12 years of experience after PhD Independence and evidence of maturity shown Promising track-record of early research achievements, appropriate to their research field and career stage PI Commitment: Minimum 40% of PI working time on ERC project Minimum 50% of PI working time in a EU Member Sate or Associated Country 24

ERC 2015 Work Program Principal investigator profile and commitment for AdG PI Profile: Any current place of work but working or moving to work in Europe (EU member state, FP7 Associated Country) Any nationality or age Strong leadership profile (impact, recognition, ) Excellent track record in recent years (achievements during the last 10 years) PI Commitment: Minimum 30% of PI working time on ERC project Minimum 50% of PI working time in a EU Member Sate or Associated Country 25

ERC 2015 Work Program Funding Starting Grant (StG): Up to 1.5 million for a period of 5 years (pro rata for projects of shorter duration). Up to 0.5 million additional Consolidator Grant (CoG): Up to 2.0 million for a period of 5 years (pro rata for projects of shorter duration). Up to 0.75 million additional Advanced Grant (AdG): Up to 2.5 million for a period of 5 years (pro rata for projects of shorter duration). Up to 1.0 million additional additional to cover (a) eligible "start-up" costs for Principal Investigators moving from a another country to the EU or an Associated Country as a consequence of receiving the ERC grant and/or (b) the purchase of major equipment and/or (c) access to large facilities. 26

ERC 2015 Work Program Evaluation of proposals: panel structure Life Sciences LS1 Molecular & structural biology & biochemistry LS2 Genetics, genomics, bioinformatics & systems biology LS3 Cellular and developmental biology LS4 Physiology, pathophysiology & endocrinology LS5 Neurosciences & neural disorders LS6 Immunity & infection LS7 Diagnostic tools, therapies & public health LS8 Evolutionary, population & environmental biology LS9 Applied life sciences & biotechnology Social Sciences and Humanities SH1 Individuals, institutions & markets SH2 The social world, diversity, institutions and values SH3 Environment, space and population SH4 The human mind and its complexity SH5 Cultures & cultural production SH6 The study of the human past Physical Sciences & Engineering PE1 Mathematics PE2 Fundamental constituents of matter PE3 Condensed matter physics PE4 Physical & analytical chemical sciences PE5 Materials & synthesis PE6 Computer science & informatics PE7 Systems & communication engineering PE8 Products & process engineering PE9 Universe sciences PE10 Earth system science 27

ERC 2015 Work Program Proposal structure PART A online forms Info on Proposal, PI, HI and overall budget Annexes submitted as.pdf Statement of support of HI If applicable: explanatory information on ethical issues; copy of PhD (StG, CoG); document for extension of eligibility window (StG, CoG) PART B1 submitted as.pdf Extended Synopsis 5 p. CV 2 p. Track Record 2 p. Funding ID beyond the 2 page limit for the CV Explanatory comment if interdisciplinary Optional template for the CV PART B2 submitted as.pdf Scientific Proposal 15 p. Template for the budget Read the Information to Applicants 28

ERC 2015 Work Program Role of the host institution Is located in an EU Member State or an Associated Country Hosts the PI for the duration of the project Is a legal entity: university, research center, business research unit, etc. Is committed to ensure that the PI may: o o o o Apply for funding independently Manage research and funding project Publish independently as senior author Have access to reasonable space and facilities Signs Grant Agreement Overhead: 25% 29

ERC 2015 Work Program Features of ERC grants No constraints on eligible costs as long as they are for the execution of the project Rules of the HI apply High flexibility: aims of the project can be modified through amendments to the grant agreement Grants have a light reporting along the project life-time: financial report every 18 months, scientific report at mid-term and end of the project Grants have 25-40% pre-financing PI is empowered to manage the research activity and the funds of the project Grants are portable 30

ERC 2015 Work Program Evaluation of proposals: main features Goal of the evaluation: select the best frontier research proposals Only evaluation criteria: excellence Method: peer review Structure: 25 panels distributed in 3 scientific domains (10 Physical Sciences, 9 Life sciences and 6 Social Sciences and Humanities) Each panel consists of 1 panel chair and 12-16 panel members What makes ERC evaluation exceptional? Peers Review procedure 31

ERC 2015 Work Program Evaluation of proposals: peers Panel members: typically 375 / call High-level scientists Recruited by ScC from all over the world: ~14% from outside Europe About 12-16 members plus a chair person Referees: typically 2000 / call Evaluate only a small number of proposals Similar to normal practise in peerreviewed journals US (7%) Other (7%) EU and Associated Countries (86%) 32

ERC 2015 Work Program Evaluation of proposals: review procedure STEP 1 STEP 2 Remote assessment by Panel members of section 1 PI and synopsis Remote assessment by Panel members and reviewers of full proposals Panel meeting Panel meeting + interview (StG and CoG) Proposals retained for step 2 Feedback to applicants Ranked list of proposals Right balance between generalist + specialized review Appropriate treatment of interdisciplinary proposals Good cost-benefit ratio 33

ERC 2015 Work Program Excellence is the sole evaluation criterion Evaluation of excellence at two levels: Excellence of the Research Project Ground breaking nature Potential impact Scientific Approach Excellence of the Principal Investigator Intellectual capacity Creativity Commitment 34

ERC 2015 Work Program Ranking and scoring: Step 1 In Step 1 proposals are ranked by the panels on the basis of the marks they have received and the panels' overall appreciation of their strengths and weaknesses. Proposals will be retained for Step 2 based on the ranked list and the determined budgetary cut-off level. Applicants will be informed on the score attained by their proposal: o o o A: is of sufficient quality to pass to Step 2 of the evaluation,. B: is of high quality but not sufficient to pass to Step 2 of the evaluation. C: is not of sufficient quality to pass to Step 2 of the evaluation. In addition, applicants will be told the ranking range of their proposal out of the proposals evaluated by the panel. 35

ERC 2015 Work Program Step 1 feedback to applicants A proposal receive no evaluation report and PI is informed that the proposal has passed to Step 2 and in the case of StG and CoG is invited to the interview B proposal will receive Individual Assessment Reports and Panel Comment Report plus 10% ranking slices starting from the cut-off point between A and B e.g. ranking range 33% - 42% C proposal will receive Individual Assessment Reports and Panel Comment Report plus simply the top and the bottom percentage positions (applicant will be subject to resubmission limitations) e.g. from 68% to 100% Applicants will receive in addition a cover letter informing them of the cut-off point to pass to Step 2 (in percentage) for the panel e.g. only 33% best proposals were able to pass to Step 2 36

ERC 2015 Work Program Ranking and scoring: Step 2 In step 2 proposals are ranked by the panels on the basis of the marks they have received and an overall appreciation of their strengths and weaknesses. Proposals will be recommended for funding based on the ranked list and the funds available. Applicants will be informed on the score attained by their proposal: o o A: fully meets the ERC's excellence criterion and is recommended for funding if sufficient funds are available. B: meets some but not all elements of the ERC's excellence criterion and will not be funded. In addition, applicants will be told the ranking range of their proposal out of the proposals evaluated by the panel. 37

ERC 2015 Work Program Step 2 feedback to applicants A proposals within panel budget at meeting (funding for sure) will receive Individual Assessment Reports, Remote Referee Reports and Panel Comment Report plus the percentage of group e.g. top 45% A proposal outside panel budget at meeting (i.e. not funded for sure) will receive Individual Assessment Reports, Remote Referee Reports and Panel Comment Report plus its individual ranking position with a 2% ranking range e.g. 52-54% B proposal will receive Individual Assessment Reports, Remote Referee Reports and Panel Comment Report plus the top and bottom of group e.g. between 58% and 100% Applicants will receive in addition a cover letter informing them of the cut-off point for funding (in percentage) at meeting e.g. only 45% best proposals were funded with the funds available at the time of the panel meeting 38

ERC 2015 Work Program 2015 Resubmission restrictions Resubmission rules for 2015 applicants: Those who receive B (Step 1 or Step 2) have to wait out one year to apply again Those who receive a C will have to wait out two years to apply again 39

ERC 2015 Work Program ERC Call Calendar ERC calls Budget Call Opening Submission Deadline(s) Starting Grants ERC-2015-StG 430 M 7 October 2014 3 February 2015 Consolidator Grants ERC-2015-CoG 585 M 13 November 2014 12 March 2015 Advanced Grants ERC-2015-AdG 630 M 10 February 2015 2 June 2015 Proof of Concept ERC-2015-PoC 20 M 7 November 2014 DL1: 5 February 2015 DL2: 28 May 2015 DL3: 1 October 2015 40

Spain at ERC 41

Spain at ERC Evolution of the number of applications with Spanish HI * 799 = 354 StG + 445 CoG 42

Spain at ERC Evolution of the % of applications with Spanish HI * * 10,7% in StG and 12,4% in CoG 43

Spain at ERC Evolution of the number of grants with Spanish HI Total: 236 grants * * It includes StG2013 (14) and CoG2013 (20) 44

Spain at ERC Evolution of the % of grants with Spanish HI * * It includes StG2013 and CoG2013

Spain at ERC Success rates of applications with Spanish HI Scheme Submissions Funded Succes rate Total Spain Total Spain Overall Spain 2007 StG 9167 567 299 23 3,3% 4,1% 2008 AdG 2167 134 282 14 13,0% 10,4% 2009 2010 2011 2012 StG StG StG StG 2503 2873 4080 4741 227 234 350 454 245 436 486 566 19 25 27 26 9,8% 15,2% 11,9% 11,9% 8,4% 10,7% 7,7% 5,7% AdG AdG AdG AdG 1584 2009 2284 2304 96 130 129 216 245 271 301 321 12 13 15 15 15,5% 13,5% 13,2% 13,9% 12,5% 10,0% 11,6% 6,9% StG 3329 354 300 14 9,0% 4,0% 2013 CoG 3673 445 312 20 8,5% 4,5% AdG 2408 294 284 13 11,8% 4,4% Total StG + CoG 30366 2631 2644 154 11,1% * 6,3% * Total AdG 12756 999 1704 82 13,4% 8,2% Grand Total 43122 3630 4348 236 11,9% 7,0% * * * Excluding 2007 46

Spain at ERC Top host institutions in Spain 236 grantees at 61 research institutions in Spain StG+CoG AdG CSIC UPF UB CRG ICFO ICIQ CREI CNIO IRB UAB UAM UPV EHU CNIC UZ USC CIMNE UN UV 8 10 9 8 5 2 4 3 2 5 3 4 3 3 3 3 5 1 4 1 4 1 4 1 1 3 2 2 3 1 3 3 25 10 4 15 ERC Starting, Consolidators and Advanced grant calls 2007 2013 Current host institutions; data as of 10/12/2013 47

Spain at ERC Distribution of grants by domain and panel ERC Starting and Advanced grant calls 2007 2013 Life Sciences Panel Total Spain % LS1 Molecular & structural siology & siochemistry 188 6 3,2% LS2 Genetics, genomics, bioinformatics & systems biology 179 12 6,7% LS3 Cellular and developmental biology 160 12 7,5% LS4 Physiology, pathophysiology & endocrinology 180 14 7,8% LS5 Neurosciences & neural disorders 214 7 3,3% LS6 Immunity & infection 174 7 4,0% LS7 Diagnostic tools, therapies & public health 215 14 6,5% LS8 Evolutionary, population & environmental biology 156 7 4,5% LS9 Applied life sciences & biotechnology 106 7 6,6% 1572 86 5,5% 48

Spain at ERC Distribution of grants by domain and panel ERC Starting and Advanced grant calls 2007 2013 Physical Sciences and Engineering Panel Total Spain % PE1 Mathematics 239 12 5,0% PE2 Fundamental constituents of matter 243 16 6,6% PE3 Condensed matter physics 216 14 6,5% PE4 Physical & Analytical Chemical sciences 186 10 5,4% PE5 Materials & Synthesis 239 20 8,4% PE6 Computer science & informatics 220 8 3,6% PE7 Systems & communication engineering 139 4 2,9% PE8 Products & process engineering 189 15 7,9% PE9 Universe sciences 138 5 3,6% PE10 Earth system science 151 2 1,3% 1960 106 5,4% 49

Spain at ERC Distribution of grants by domain and panel ERC Starting and Advanced grant calls 2007 2013 Social Sciences and Humanities Panel Total Spain % SH1 Individuals, institutions & markets 142 19 13,4% SH2 The social world, diversity and common ground 183 3 1,6% SH3 Environment,space and population 86 3 3,5% SH4 The human mind and its complexity 182 9 4,9% SH5 Cultures & cultural production 89 3 3,4% SH6 The study of the human past 130 7 5,4% 812 44 5,4% 50

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