• All researchers currently employed at the University of Siegen who have already submitted an ERC application under Horizon Europe that has not been proposed for funding are eligible to apply. It does not matter whether the ERC application to be optimized was originally submitted together with the University of Siegen or another host institution.
• Funding is available for resubmissions of applications in the ERC sub-programs Starting Grant (StG), Consolidator Grant (CoG), Advanced Grant (AdG), ERC Plus Grant (PlusG) and Synergy Grant (SyG). The ERC Proof of Concept (PoC) is not part of this funding.
• The ERC application not proposed for funding must have received at least an "A not invited" rating in the first evaluation stage for StG, CoG, AdG and Synergy Grants. In the case of PlusGs, the applicant must have reached the 2nd evaluation stage.
• If the researcher has already submitted several ERC applications within Horizon Europe, the resubmission may refer to all previous applications, provided that the criteria set out in this call are met, the new ERC application addresses the scientific topic from the original application and this topic still has the necessary degree of novelty for a new ERC application.
• Applicants may only apply for one ERC Success Fund grant for each eligible proposal.

The following funds can be applied for as start-up financing for the planned resubmission to optimize ERC applications:

• Personnel funds:
  • Costs for supporting activities of academic staff and assistants. For applicants without their own chair, the short-term financing of their own position can be considered in justified exceptional cases.
  • Replacement costs for professors (if agreed with the Schools and the Rector)
• Material resources: consumables, e.g. for preparatory work, travel expenses, costs in the course of application meetings, translation and editing costs, conference fees, etc. Costs to third parties for individual coaching, structured advice or participation in fee-based training/workshops are also possible.

Costs must be demonstrably directly related to the optimization of the ERC application.

15,000 euros are available per year in this funding module. The aim is to divide the funds between several application projects. However, it is also possible to allocate the entire funding to one project.

Applications must be submitted electronically to the Prorectorates for Research, Infrastructure and Networking and comprise two documents:

1. Data sheet with binding confirmation that the application will be submitted
2. Application according to application template ( max. 5 pages)

Please use only the template provided for your application. Incomplete applications and applications that deviate from the templates cannot be considered.
The application template includes the following sections:

1. ERC original application to be optimized
2. Evaluation Summary Report (ESR) of the ERC original proposal
3. Detailed financing plan (max. 2 pages) with a breakdown of the requested optimization costs by cost category (personnel costs, material costs, subcontracting, etc.), purpose and time frame

Funding is awarded on a first come, first serve basis and is subject to the conditions set out in these guidelines. However, funding can only be provided for ERC applications whose EU application deadline is a maximum of 8 months in the future. If the above-mentioned eligibility criteria are met, applications submitted to the ERC Success Fund will only be reviewed with regard to the appropriateness of the funding requested. Applications that have already been received will also be considered. The Prorectorates for Research, Infrastructure and Networking decides whether adjustments to the funding plans are necessary and agrees these with the applicants.