Seventh Research Framework Programme

What is FP7?
What is its budget?
What is its overall duration?
Which research areas does it cover?
How will citizens, researchers, industry and SMEs benefit from FP7?
Where can I find more information about European research?
All information can be found in the FP7 factsheet published on Cordis.

First calls of FP7 on Cordis

What you should know about FP7-a very short summary for life scientists

Main new elements compared to FP6:

  • Duration increased from 5 to 7 years (except for Euratom FP)
  • Annual budget increased significantly
  • New structure: Cooperation, Ideas (ERC), People, Capacities, Euratom and JRC activities
  • Basic research (~1 billion Euros per year): European Research Council
  • Funding of research infrastructures
  • Flexible funding schemes

FP7 Programme structure: Specific Programmes

Cooperation

32.4 bn Euro

Ideas/ERC

7.5 bn Euro

People/Marie Curie

4.7 bn Euro

Capacities

4.2 bn Euro

Joint Research Center (non-nuclear)
Joint Research Center (nuclear)
EURATOM Cooperation:

 

Each Programme (see above) has calls for the following Themes:

1. Health 6 bn Euro
2. Food, Agriculture, Biotechnology 1.9 bn
3. Information and Communication Technologies 9.1 bn
4. Nano Production 3.5 bn
5. Energy 2.35 bn
6. Environment 1.8 bn
7. Transport 4.18 bn
8. Socioeconomic Sciences and Humanities 0.61 bn
9. Security and Space 2.78 bn

 

1. Health Theme (sub topics):

-Biotechnology, generic tools and technologies for human health
-Translating research for human health
-Optimising the delivery of health care to European citizens


2. Food, Agriculture, Biotechnology Theme (sub topics):

-Sustainable production and management of biological resources from land, forest and aquatic environments
-Fork to farm: food, health and well being
-Life Sciences and biotechnology for sustainable non-food products and processes

 

Programme Cooperation - funding instruments

Across all 9 themes of the programme cooperation support will be implemented through the following funding instruments:

Funding instruments Description Calls

Collaborative Research -

    Collaborative Projects CP (former Integrated Projects and STREPs)

  • for object-driven and result-oriented research projects
  • duration ca. 1.5-5 years
  • ca. 2-10 Mio Euro

Health, deadline 13 Oct 2010 (two stages), 10 Nov 2010 (one stage), budget 628 Mio Euro

Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, and Biotechnology, 25 Jan 2010, budget 96 Mio Euro

 


ICT call, deadline 28 Sep 2010


FET Open scheme deadline 31 Dec 2012, budget 6 Mio Euro

 

Networks of excellence Noe

  • structuring and integrating research projects
  • duration ca. 4-5 years
  • ca. 7 Mio Euro

    Coordination/Support Action CA/SSA: Coordination or support of research activities (conferences, networking, studies, trans-national access to research infrastructure)

  • duration ca. 0.6-3 years
  • ca. 0.5-1 Mio Euro
Joint Technology Initiatives: European Technology platform ETP, Joint Technology Initiatives JTI
Coordination of Research Programmes: ERA-Net ERA-NET Calls 2009
International Cooperation EU-Russia Research and Development Cooperation, deadline 14 Sept 2010

 

Programme Ideas: European Research Council ERC

  • New understanding of basic research "Frontier Research": between basic research and applied research
  • high risky projects
  • new research areas
  • multi- and interdisciplinary projects

     

  • Definition of independence
    principle investigator has authority to
    -apply for funding independently of senior colleagues
    -manage the reserach grant and make appropriate decisions
    -publish as senior author
    -supervise team members
    -have access to reasonable space and facilites for conducting research

 

  • ERC Evaluation criteria
    -principle investigator's potential to become a world-class researcher (score 1-5): publishing in high quality peer reviewd journals, ground breaking science, initiator of new productive lines of thinking
    -quality of the proposed research (score 1-5)
    -research environment (pass/fall comment): transition to independence, host institution research and infrastructural environment, participation of other legal entities
    -7 evaluation panels for the life sciences (10 high level scientists each): neurosciences, molecular, cellular, development biology, genetics, genomics, bioinformatics

 

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Funding instruments Description Calls

Starting Grants StG

(1 call per year)

  • for researcher at the beginning of the independent research career
  • less than 8+3 years from PhD award (minimum 2 years)
  • set up of a new research team or strengthen others that have been created recently
  • funding for a period of 5 years
  • project executed in an EU Member state or Associated Country
  • grant: ~100.000-400.000 Euro/year (~200 grants/call)

Call for proposals for ERC Starting Independent Researcher Grant deadlines 09 Nov 2010, budget 661 Mio Euro

 

Advanced Investigator Grants

(1 call per year)

  • for researcher with more than 10 years postdoc experience
  • ~200 grants per year
  • ~3 Mio Euro/grant
  • funding for a period of 5 year

Call for proposals for ERC Advanced Grant

budget 590 Mio Euro

 

Programme People, Marie Curie Actions


Definition - early stage researcher: less than 4 years active research experience (after graduating from university) plus 1 year, when necessary for the completion of the initial training


Definition - experienced researcher: more than 4 years of active research experience or those with a PhD


What is meant by mobility:

  • The researcher must not be a citizen of the country in which s/he plans to move and carry out research
  • Exception: The researcher was active in third country for at least 3 years out of the last 4
  • The researcher has not lived, worked or studied in the host country for more than 12 months out of the three years immediately prior to the time of application

 

Activities Description Calls

Host driven actions=Marie Curie Networks ITN

(former: Research Training Networks, Early StageTraining, Series of Conference, Marie Curie Chairs)

  • institutions apply for funding and announce fellows positions afterwards

 

 

 

 

 

 

International Research Staff Exchange Scheme IRSES: this new action will provide support to research organisations to establish or reinforce long-term research co-operation through a coordinated joint programme of exchange of researchers for short periods.

Marie Curie Initial Training Networks deadline 26 Jan 2011, budget 318 Mio Euro

Researcher's Night deadline 24 Sep, budget 3 Mio Euro

IRSES-Marie Curie International Research Staff Exchange Scheme

Co-funding of Regional, National and International Programmes (COFUND)

 

 

Individual driven actions

  • individual researchers apply together with the host institution

Intra European Career Development Fellowships IEF: research experience>4 years or PhD, funding for 12-24 months, continuation in the same area is not supported

Intra-European Fellowships (IEF) deadline 17 August 2010, budget 95 Mio Euro
International Incoming Fellowships IIF: research experience>4 years or PhD, coming from third country, funding 24-36 months, which includes 1st phase (12-24 months in Europe) and 2nd phase (12 months) in the country of origin

International Incoming Fellowships (IIF) deadline 17 August 2010, budget 28 Mio. EUR

International Outgoing Fellowships IOF: research experience >4 years or PhD, funding 24-36 months, which includes 1st phase (12-24 months) in a third country and 2nd phase (12 months) in Europe International Outgoing Fellowships (IOF) deadline 17 August 2010, budget 28 Mio. EUR

Reintegration Grants ERG: funding 24-36 months, also applicable for researcher salary, submission of proposals until 6 months after the end of the initial fellowship

European Reintegration Grants (ERG) deadline 7 September 2010
Industry-Academia Partnership
  • cooperation between institutions of both sectors from at least 2 EU Member States or Associated Countries (funding 3-4 years)
  • coordination from industry or academia
  • exchange of researchers between 2 sectors (2 months-2 years)
  • organization of seminars and workshops and participation herein
  • special allowance for aquisition of small devices for SMEs (<10% of total budget)
IAPP deadline 7 Dec 2010, budget 80 Mio Euro
Marie Curie Awards
  • aims at expressing public recognition of research excellence of a researcher who has benefited from EC mobility
  • 5 prizes per year, awarded to individuals, candidates can apply directly or can be nominated

Marie Curie Awards deadline 26 April 2007, budget 250,000 Euro

Programme Capacities

 

Activities Calls
Research Infrastructure: support of existing infrastructure Research Infrastructures, deadline 23 Nov 2010

Research for the benefit of SMEs: collective and cooperative Research

(see also article on EurActiv.com "FP7 made simpler for SMEs")

SMEs Call deadline 8 Dec 2010, budget 92 Mio Euro

SME Associations Call 1 deadline 8 Dec 2010

Coordination and Support Actions Call 1 deadline

Regions of Knowledge: support of "regional research-driven clusters"

Regions of Knowledge: Analysis, mentoring and integration of research actors deadline 9 Dec 2010, budget 8.8 Mio Euro
Regions of Knowledge: Facilitating the emergence of new clusters and mutual information deadline 24 April 2007, 14 March 2008, budget 800 000 Euro

 

Research Potential

Unlocking and developing the research potential in the EUs convergence regions and outermost regions deadline 24 April 2007, 14 March 2008, budget 29 Mio Euro

Providing evaluation facilities for research organisation in the EUs convergence regions and outermost regions deadline 24 April 2007, 14 March 2008, budget 1 Mio Euro

International Co-operation deadline 24 April 2007, 11 Sept 2007 budget 8 Mio Euro

Support for the coherent development of research policies/OMC-Net deadline 26 June 2008, budget 4.5 Mio Euro (An information day regarding the issue of bottom-up policy coordination in general and the OMC-NET call in particular will be held on 22 January 2008 in Brussels, Centre de Conférence Albert Borschette (CCAB – 3A), Rue Froissart 36)

 

Science and Society Science in Society
events, deadline 25 Nov 2010, 
call, deadline 20 Jan 2011

Activities of International Cooperation INCO-specific horizontal support actions:

  • -identification of S&T priorities
  • -support of participation
  • -coordination of national programmes with third countries

Activities of International Cooperation INCO, ERA-NET, Plus deadlines 15 Mar 2011, budget 17 Mio Euro



How to apply:

It is inevitable and absolutely necessary to download and read the Work Programme, Call, Guide for Applicants (what do they want?), Guide for Evaluators (selection criteria!) and the Application forms



Further important information sources for the policy behind the calls:

IPTS (Institiute for Prospective Technological Studies)

The Institute’s main activities therefore relate to providing strategic support for the conception and development of EU policies. Its core competence is the ability to work at the intersection between the socio-economics of an issue and the science and technology involved.

European Research Advisory Board (EURAB)

EURAB is a high-level, independent, advisory committee created by the Commission to provide advice on the design and implementation of EU research policy. EURAB is made up of 45 top experts from EU countries and beyond. Its members are nominated in a personal capacity and come from a wide range of academic and industrial backgrounds,as well as representing other societal interests.

EURAB delivers advice and opinions on specific issues either at the request of the Commission or on its own initiative. The board is free to cooperate with organisations and institutions interested in European research, to create working groups on specific themes and to consult with other experts who could enrich its reflection.

External Advisory Groups (EAG) FP6: The AGs will give the Commission advice on the overall strategy to be followed in the development in the various research activities, as well as on the creation of the European Research Area (ERA). The AGs are run by the relevant Commission services, which in addition provide the scientific secretariat and take care of all practical arrangements.

European Cooperation in the field of Scientific and Technical Research COST: summary of 39 actions to be launched in 2007 can be found on the website.

EurActiv.com is the independent media portal fully dedicated to EU affairs. EurActiv has an original business model, based on five elements (corporate sponsoring, EurActor membership, advertising, EU projects, and content syndication). It is well funded and the content usage is free.

European Research Portal and Enquiry feature (=Europe direct)

Ask your questions about any aspect of European research in general—and the EU Research Framework Programmes in particular. Responses take three working days on average. For more complex or specific queries, responses may take longer. Useful FAQ section.

The EU in your country representations of the European Commission in your country