Individual Grants Programme
Researchers who have completed their academic training (as a rule, those who hold a doctorate) are eligible to submit project proposals with a defined thematic focus and project duration.
The DFG and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) have agreed to offer a joint programme to fund clinical trials within the framework of two complementary, coordinated funding measures. Both measures will follow the same proposal procedure and be subjected to scientific review according to international standards and quality assurance.
The Emmy Noether Programme supports young researchers in achieving independence at an early stage of their scientific careers. Young postdocs gain the qualifications required for a university teaching career during a DFG-funded period, usually lasting five years, in which they lead their own Independent Junior Research Group.
The Heisenberg Programme aims to promote and maintain young outstanding and highly qualified researchers to give them incentives for continuing their careers in science and research.
Research grants offered in the individual grants programme are the central form of the research funding provided by the DFG. A research grant can be used to fund staff, scientific instrumentation, consumables, travel as well as most of the other financial requirements of a research project. The DFG requires the institution at which the project will be carried out to supply the necessary core support and resources.
The DFG and the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) have initiated a joint funding program. The NIH-DFG Research Career Transition Awards will enable young scientists to pursue research over a consecutive period of five to six-years, beginning at one of the NIH institutes in the USA and continuing at a German research institution.
This programme enables outstanding researchers with a proven scientific track record to pursue exceptionally innovative, higher-risk projects.
Research Fellowships promote highly qualified young researchers. A fellowship is a personal, non-transferable award and is limited to a maximum of two years.
Scientific networks offer young researchers the opportunity to engage in scientific exchange and cooperation on topics of common interest. A network consists of a group of people, who, over a defined period of up to three years, will work on a common research topic to attain a specific outcome. Network members may include young as well as senior researchers from Germany or from abroad. This international programme component serves to strengthen the ties to the international research community.
At its meeting on 25 October 2007, the DFG’s Joint Committee resolved to do away with the deadline stating that proposals may only be submitted from applicants within the first six years following receipt of their doctorate. Applicants are thus able to submit proposals for a temporary position in conjunction with a proposal for a research grant in Germany.
