Brussels, 11 April 2024
The European Research Council (ERC) has announced the names of 255 research leaders in Europe set to be awarded ERC Advanced Grants. The funding is amongst the EU’s most prestigious and competitive, providing leading senior researchers with the opportunity to pursue ambitious, curiosity-driven projects. The new grants worth €652 million in total are funded by the EU’s research and innovation programme, Horizon Europe.
Iliana Ivanova, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, said:
“To all the new ERC grantees, my heartfelt congratulations! These grants will not only support leading researchers in pushing the boundaries of knowledge, but also create some 2500 jobs for postdoctoral fellows, PhD students and other research staff across Europe. This investment nurtures the next generation of brilliant minds. I look forward to seeing the resulting breakthroughs and fresh advancements in the years ahead.”
The announced grants will support cutting-edge research in a wide range of fields, from life sciences and physical sciences to social sciences and humanities. The successful candidates proposed to host their projects at universities and research centres in 19 EU Member States and countries associated to Horizon Europe.
Among the EU countries, the highest numbers of grants will be hosted by institutions in Germany (50), France (37), and Netherlands (23). Among the laureates, there are Germans (50 researchers), French (31), Britons (28), Italians (22) and citizens of other 28 nations. The competition attracted 1,829 proposals, out of which nearly 14% were selected for funding. Estimates show that the grants will create 2480 jobs in the new grantees’ teams.
You will find more information in the ERC press release and more information on statistics here.
ERC on Advanced Grants
The President of the European Research Council Prof. Maria Leptin said:
“Congratulations to the 255 researchers who will receive grants to follow their scientific instinct in this new funding round. I am particularly happy to see more mid-career scientists amongst the Advanced Grant winners this time. I hope that it will encourage more researchers at this career stage to apply for these grants.”
Projects selected for funding
The new grants will support cutting-edge research in a wide range of fields, from life sciences and physical sciences to social sciences and humanities. How to get rid of harmful chemicals in our bodies? Can the protective layer around our heart help fix heart problems? Why do infants learn languages so fast? These are only some of the questions that will be addressed by the new grantees.
See more research examples
Facts & figures
The successful candidates proposed to host their projects at universities and research centres in 19 EU Member States and associated countries, notably in Germany (50 grants), France (37) and the Netherlands (23). Among the winners there are Germans (50 researchers), French (31), Britons (28), Italians (22) and citizens of 28 other nations.
This competition attracted 1 829 proposals, which were reviewed by panels of internationally renowned researchers. Nearly fourteen percent of proposals were selected for funding. Estimates show that the grants will create 2 480 jobs in teams of new grantees.
The ERC Advanced Grants target established, leading researchers with a proven track-record of significant achievements. In recent years, there has been a steady rise in mid-career researchers (12-17 years post-PhD), who have been successful in the Advanced Grants competitions, with 18% securing grants in this latest round.
See more statistics and the full list of winners.
Applicants based in the UK
The statistics and list of successful candidates are provisional. The European Commission and the UK Government have reached an agreement on the association of the UK to Horizon Europe. However, the association applies only for calls for proposals implementing the 2024 budget and onwards. For the Advanced Grants and other calls from the 2023 ERC Work Programme, the UK-based applicants who were eligible to apply under the transitional arrangement may receive EU funding only if they transfer their proposed project to an eligible host institution.
About the ERC
The ERC, set up by the European Union in 2007, is the premier European funding organisation for excellent frontier research. It funds creative researchers of any nationality and age, to run projects based across Europe. The ERC offers four core grant schemes: Starting Grants, Consolidator Grants, Advanced Grants and Synergy Grants. With its additional Proof of Concept Grant scheme, the ERC helps grantees to bridge the gap between their pioneering research and early phases of its commercialisation. The ERC is led by an independent governing body, the Scientific Council. Since November 2021, Maria Leptin is the President of the ERC. The overall ERC budget from 2021 to 2027 is more than €16 billion, as part of the Horizon Europe programme, under the responsibility of European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, Iliana Ivanova.
Source – EU Commission and ERC