Proposal Preparation Instructions and Proposal Template 	
Funding Initiative 
“Global Minds in DFG Consortia”	

These instructions apply to proposals submitted under the funding initiative “Global Minds in DFG Consortia”.

A proposal consists of the following three parts:
A.	Project Description
B.	Curriculum Vitae 
C.	Proposal Data and Obligations

The proposal is submitted by the applicant university/universities of the consortium (i.e. the Cluster of Excellence/Collaborative Research Centre, incl. CRC/Transregio) which will host the designated researcher for whom the funding is requested. If a non-university institution is to host the designated researcher, close coordination is expected between the applicant university/universities and the host institution. 

The three proposal parts A, B and C should be submitted as separate files. Only the authorised spokesperson of the host consortium may submit the proposal. The proposal documents must be submitted as “correspondence” to the consortium’s main proposal. All files must be submitted as PDFs without password protection and without access restrictions on reading, copying or printing. 
The proposal must be submitted via the proposal processing system:
elan.dfg.de

Document	File name	
Project Description	“GM_<reference number of the consortium [i.e. EXC xxx/CRC yyyy/TRR zzz]>_A_Proposal”	
Research Profile	“GM_<reference number of the consortium [i.e. EXC xxx/CRC yyyy/TRR zzz]>_B_Research_Profile”	
Proposal Data and 
Obligations	“GM_<reference number of the consortium [i.e. EXC xxx/CRC yyyy/TRR zzz]>_C_Data_and_Obligations”	

Please note that both the Project Description and the Proposal Data and Obligations form must be signed by all parties involved. 

Proposals must be submitted in English.

Applicants are kindly requested to ensure that the designated professor/fellow is registered in elan prior to the submission of the proposal and that their correspondence address is verified. Verification of an account usually takes 1-2 working days. 
A.	Project Description 
The project description must be structured as set out below and may not exceed 20 pages in length. The designated professor/fellow should contribute to the proposal by authoring sections 2 to 5, and section 8.

In sections 2 to 6, references can be provided to an unlimited number of the researcher’s own works and those of others that are publicly available. All publications are to be cited in the project- and subject-related list of publications (section 3).

If, in preparing the proposal, artificial intelligence (AI) has been used in the form of generative models for text and image creation, please disclose this fact in a scientifically appropriate manner in the proposal. For more information, see the “Research Integrity” portal.

Proposal under the funding initiative “Global Minds in DFG Consortia”
1	General data
1.1	Proposal type/module 
[ ] Professorships module

[ ] Mercator Fellows Global module
1.2	Applicant university/universities and host consortium
Managing university of the host consortium (EXC/CRC)	
<university>	
Further applicant universities	
<university>	
<university>	
Authorised spokesperson at the managing university	
<spokesperson>	
Host consortium (EXC/CRC) 	
<Reference number of Cluster of Excellence / Collaborative Research Centre>	
<Title of Cluster of Excellence / Collaborative Research Centre> 	
<start and end of current funding period (mm/yy – mm/yy)> 	
Host institution 	
<university or participating non-university research institution>	
1.3	Designated professor/fellow for whom the funding is requested: 
Title		
First name		
Last name		
Current position	If applicable, specify the end of the contract term.	
Current institution(s)/site(s), 
address, country		
elan identifier		
Identifiers/ORCID 	ORCID-ID: Applicants who have an ORCID ID are asked to provide it. Applicants who do not have an ORCID ID are invited to create one, though this is not a requirement.	
Nationality		

2	Description of the designated individual’s research plans, objectives and methods
In this section, an explanation is to be provided of the designated professor’s/fellow’s academic profile and the research they plan to carry out in the host consortium. The work planned for the entire funding period is to be presented, including details of the methods used and the objectives pursued, with reference to the current state of research. 

Concepts and starting points for quality-promoting measures that specifically contribute to the validity or plausibility of the research results are welcome here. (For more in-depth and subject-specific recommendations, see the “Research Integrity” portal.)

If the funding is being requested for a first-time professorship position, an explanation should also be provided of how the designated professor’s academic career to date has prepared them for a professorship or a comparable academic leadership position and how they plan to continue on this path. 
3	Project- and subject-related list of publications
This list should only contain the works cited in the proposal text. Both the researcher’s own works and those of others may be referenced; there is no limit to the total number of publications listed. Works which are not in the public domain are not considered publications and cannot be cited. An exception applies to papers by the researcher that have already been accepted for publication, in which case the manuscript and the editor’s confirmation of acceptance must be enclosed. A maximum of ten of the researcher’s own publications that are most relevant to the project can be highlighted in bold or some other way. Note that reviewers are not required to read any of the cited works. Reviews are only ever based on the text of the actual proposal.

Please note the “Guidelines for Preparing Publication Lists” (DFG form 1.91):
www.dfg.de/formulare/1_91
4	Reasons for choice of host institution(s) and contributions to research profiles
In this section, a detailed justification is to be provided of the designated professor’s/fellow’s choice of the institution(s) at which they intend to conduct their research. How will the designated professor/fellow contribute to the host institution’s research foci and, in particular, to the research work carried out by the host consortium? To what extent will the designated professor/fellow contribute to teaching at the university? If applicable, what kind of technical infrastructure is available to support the research?
5	Personal motivation 
In this section, the designated professor/fellow should provide further insights into their motivation to receive funding under the Global Minds Initiative. If the Professorships module is applied for, they should also outline their mid- to long-term career plans within the German research system. 
6	Integration in the consortium, support by the host institution/s 
In this section, the host institution/s should provide information on the intended measures for integration of the designated professor/fellow in the research environment. This may include, but is not limited to, access to the core facilities, central resources and/or central funds of the host consortium, integration in and role within the host consortium’s governance structure, further support by the host institution/s, and, if the Professorships module is applied for, considerations regarding possible long-term perspectives after the end of the funding.
7	Requested funding 
Please list the requested funding in the table below, excluding the project allowance for indirect project costs. Include the total amounts of funding per year and category, and provide justifications for the amounts requested. 

Funding for staff: 
To calculate funding for staff, please use DFG form 60.12: 
www.dfg.de/formulare/60_12

Please note that funding for the designated professor/fellow can be requested up to the Professorship category. Funds for further staff can be requested up to the Postdoctoral category. 

Direct costs: 
This category comprises all other costs (e.g. funds for consumables, experiments, materials and supplies, travel, training measures provided by the host consortium, instrumentation costing less than €50,000 per item, etc.). 

Instrumentation:
In this category, please summarise instrumentation costing more than €50,000 per item. 

For the Professorships module, funding can be requested for a period of five years. The total funding requested may not exceed €3.5 million, excluding the project allowance. 

For the Mercator Fellows Global module, funding can be requested for a total of three years within a five-year period. The maximum amount of funding is €650,000, excluding project allowance. 

Funding for	<year1>	<year2>	<year3>	<year4>	<year5>	
	
Staff	Quantity	Sum	Quantity	Sum	Quantity	Sum	Quantity	Sum	Quantity	Sum	
<category, percentage>											
<category, percentage>											
Total											
	
Direct costs	Sum	Sum	Sum	Sum	Sum	
<category>						
<category>						
Total						
	
Instrumentation	Sum	Sum	Sum	Sum	Sum	
<category>						
<category>						
Total						
	
Grand total 						
(All figures in euros)

8	Other funded and proposed projects 
To be completed by the designated professor/fellow.
8.1	Are you currently receiving funding for a DFG project or are you collaborating on a DFG-funded project?
If so, please provide the reference numbers of the DFG projects for which you are already receiving funding or in which you are collaborating.
8.2	Are you already receiving funding from other sources for the research to which this proposal relates?
If so, please indicate the funding body from which you are receiving funds for your project (including the period and the amount of funding).
8.3	Have you submitted a proposal to another organisation for the research addressed in this proposal, or do you plan to do so? 
If so, please indicate the funding organisation and the expected date of the decision.

9	Signatures

place and date	signature	

	name
(Authorised spokesperson of the host consortium)	
place and date	signature	
	name
(Rector / President of the managing university)

place and date	signature	
	name
(Rector / President of other applicant universities)

place and date	Signature	
	name
(Rector / President of other applicant universities)

place and date	signature	
	name
(Researcher for whom funding is requested)

.	

This page must be signed by the Rector/President of the applicant university/by the Rectors/Presidents of all applicant universities, the spokesperson of the consortium and the researcher.

B.	Research Profile /Curriculum Vitae 
The proposal must include the designated professor’s/fellow’s academic curriculum vitae with a list of their most important scientific results. The template provided (DFG form 53.200) must be used for this purpose:
www.dfg.de/formulare/53_200_elan
To enable reviewers to assess an applicant’s scientific track record appropriately, the designated professor/fellow may indicate in their CV any circumstances that might have hampered their scientific work, for example, periods in which they were unable to work continuously due to childcare obligations or due to prolonged serious illness or disability.
Each academic curriculum vitae must include the list of the most important publications or published results of the designated professor/fellow in question. The information can relate to the person’s entire academic career; the publications need not be directly related to the proposed project. The list is to be divided into two parts and each part is to be numbered:
•	The first mandatory “Category (A) – Articles in peer-reviewed journals, contributions to peer-reviewed conferences or to anthology volumes, and book publications” may contain a maximum of ten publications.
•	The number of publications listed in the second optional “Category B – Any other form of published results” is likewise limited to a maximum of ten. This may include contributions to non-peer-reviewed conferences, articles on preprint servers, data sets, protocols of clinical trials, software packages, patents applied for and granted, blog contributions, infrastructures or transfer. You may also indicate other forms of academic output here, such as contributions to the (technical) infrastructure of an academic community and contributions to science communication.

Please note the “Guidelines for Preparing Publication Lists” (DFG form 1.91):
www.dfg.de/formulare/1_91
C.	Proposal Data and Obligations
Here, the applicant university/universities and the designated professor/fellow are asked to provide further information on the project and accept the required formal obligations. This information is to include a summary of the proposal in German and in English outlining the designated professor’s/fellow’s academic profile and the planned research work. Please use the template provided (DFG form 54.011) to provide the requested information:
www.dfg.de/formulare/54_011