SULSA – RHEINLAND-PFALZ COLLABORATION FUNDING

This funding aims to support research collaborations between Scotland and the Rheinland-Pfalz region of Germany.

Scope of Prize

This funding aims to support the development of PhD and Postdoctoral Researchers with building their international networks, research outputs and technical skills and knowledge. This fund has been jointly created by Scottish Government, the State Government of Rheinland-Pfalz, and SULSA to support research collaborations between Scotland and the Rheinland-Pfalz (RLP) state of Germany.

Eligibility and Conditions
  • The lead applicant must be a PhD student or Postdoctoral Researcher at a SULSA university or institute. Proposals must include at least 1 co-applicant from an institute or university within the RLP state of Germany. The co-applicant can either be a) a PhD student or postdoctoral researcher who will take part in a bilateral exchange or b) the supervisor hosting the lead applicant.
  • Proposed projects must include travel of a researcher from a Scottish university or institute (the lead applicant) to Rheinland-Pfalz in Germany to undertake a collaborative research project. Bilateral mobility funding is also available so the co-applicant may be a PhD student or Postdoctoral Researcher who will travel to a Scottish university or research institute. However, due to the nature of this funding, we encourage the majority of the research costs to be spent in Germany.
  • Co-applicants in Germany must be employed/enrolled at a university or institute within the Rheinland-Pfalz state – you can see a map of German universities and Universities of Applied Sciences by location or expertise at researchmap.de
  • The contracts/studentships of all applicants must be valid for the duration of the research project
  • Research projects must fall within the life sciences or biotechnology field
  • Funding can be used for
    • Travel, subsistence and accommodation (mobility) for the Scottish-based or RLP-based researcher to travel to the host RLP institution or Scottish university or research institute
    • Research costs including consumables and facilities access to be used at the RLP or Scottish institution. We encourage the majority of research costs to be incurred in RLP.
    • Running a workshop/seminar during the visit
  • Mobility funding cannot account for more than 1/3 of the full costs (maximum of €3,400)
  • A maximum of €10,000 can be applied for
  • Visits can be a minimum of 1 week to a maximum of 6 months
  • SULSA recommends co-applicants draw up a collaboration agreement


Funding Information and Conditions

  • The collaborative aspect of the project must be clearly justified
  • Your project must be completed within 12 months of being awarded, or (if less) the duration of your contract at your host institution.
  • You must have your application signed by your PI to demonstrate their support.

 

 
Additional Information

Eligible Institutions
Please find a list of eligible institutions in the RLP region. You can also use Research Map to search all German universities by discipline/keyword.

Judging Criteria

Applications will be reviewed by an international panel and will be judged on:

  • Feasibility of project with reasonable milestones
  • Opportunity for career progression/benefit to researchers
  • Opportunity to learn new skills and share knowledge (away and at home)
  • Quality of science and potential impact of findings
  • Opportunity to leverage further funding

 Key Dates

  • Call Opens: To be confirmed
  • Information Session: To be confirmed
  • Application Deadline: To be confirmed
  • Applicants Informed of Outcome: To be confirmed
  • Funding End Date: To be confirmed


Submitting Your Application
Please submit your application (merged into a single PDF) to jill.inkster@glasgow.ac.uk at SULSA by 5pm on date to be confirmed.

Notification of Outcome
Successful applications will be notified by email by date to be confirmed.

Payment of Funds
Mobility funding will be transferred to the home institute of the applicant(s) travelling whilst research costs will be transferred to the host institute. Funds must be spent by date to be confirmed.

Awardee Reporting
You must provide the SULSA administration with project updates and outcomes when requested for reporting purposes. A proof of spend report must be submitted by this date. An update will be requested at 9 months and a written report will be requested at 3 months post award ending. The lay person summary of the project will be used as a case study to showcase outcomes. Reports and other outcome information will be shared across the 3 funders (Scottish Government, the State Government of Rheinland-Pfalz, and SULSA). If this project leads to a published article, or leverages grant funding, or any other outputs please contact SULSA administration to make them aware.

Applicant Reporting
After awarding SULSA will circulate a demographic survey to all applicants of this funding call. The information is collected anonymously and is used internally by SULSA to understand the diversity of our applicants and identify areas for improvement. This information will not be shared with reviewers and will be held in accordance with SULSA’s privacy policy.

 

 

Online Information Session (2023)

Previously Funded Projects
  • Mr Angelo Joshua Victoria (University of Edinburgh): Research exchange to University of Kaiserslautern for project ‘Producing the natural cyanobacterial chromophore, phycoerythrobilin, in the highly productive marine strain, Synechococcus sp. PCC 11901’
  • Dr Aida Cardona-Alberich (University of Edinburgh): Research exchange to Institute of Molecular Biology (Mainz) for project ‘Identifying common therapeutic targets for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) through multi-omic analysis of cellular models of TDP-43 pathology’
  • Ms Inga Schmidt (University of Aberdeen): Research exchange to University of Applied Sciences Kaiserslautern for project ‘Comparative study of molecular phenotypes along the gut-brain axis in two different mouse models of Parkinson’s disease’
  • Dr Louis Dwomoh (University of Glasgow): Research exchange to Johannes Gutenberg University for project ‘Investigating the effect and underlying mechanism of M1 muscarinic receptor activation on disease pathology in the 5XFAD Alzheimer’s disease model mice’

Check out Johannes Gutenberg Universities article on the above projects. 

Additional Support for Scotland-Germany Collaborations

Connect with researchers in Germany today via International Coffee Break at RIS!

The aim of this scheme is to drive the establishment of new international collaborations between Scotland and Germany via short, informal coffee breaks conducted over video call. 

***************************

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the German Research Foundation (DFG) have considerable funding available for collaborative academic research and a strong interest in working with Scottish researchers. Learn more via our Scotland-Germany Research Collaborations page.

How to Apply

This call is now closed. Opening date for 2024 is yet to be confirmed. 

If you have any questions about this call please contact Alison.Hughes@glasgow.ac.uk