FWO-programmes
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FWO-programmes
The Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO) is the best-known Flemish funding body for basic research. The FWO has various programmes available to fund promising researchers, research projects, international mobility and partnerships. All scientific disciplines are eligible (unless stated otherwise). The allocation of funds in each case is based on an inter-university competition.
FWO Programme | Deadline |
|---|---|
PhD fellowship fundamental research & strategic basic research | 1 March* |
1 December* | |
1 April* | |
Applied Biomedical Research with a Primary Social finality (TBM) | April |
September | |
every 2 years in September | |
3 months in advance | |
3 months in advance | |
3 months in advance | |
Grant for participation in an international workshop or course | 3 months in advance |
3 months in advance | |
1 March, 1 June, 1 September, 1 December | |
* If this day falls within a weekend, the deadline moves to the next Monday.
PhD Fellowships Fundamental Research & Strategic Basic Research
A PhD Fellowship allows young researchers to prepare a PhD. There are two types of fellowships: fellowships fundamental research and fellowships strategic basic research.
Fundamental research in the context of a PhD fellowship stands for challenging and innovative research (at PhD level).
Strategic basic research in the context of a PhD grant stands for challenging and innovative research (at PhD level), which, if successful, may in the longer term lead to innovative applications (products, processes, services) with economic added value for specific companies, for a collective of companies, or a sector, or in line with the Flanders 2025 transition areas (socioeconomic benefits)
The eligibility criteria and the application procedure are the same for both types of fellowships.
What?
With this fellowship, young graduates (masters) can prepare a PhD at a Flemish university. The fellowship has a term of two years, renewable once by two years. A monthly scholarship and an annual fixed bench fee are provided.
Who?
In order to qualify for a fellowship, you need to have the following profile:
- At the start of the fellowship, candidates must be holder of a diploma at least equivalent to a master's degree following a bachelor's degree and awarded by the competent institutions in one of the countries of the European Economic Area or Switzerland.
- The master degree or equivalent diploma must have been obtained not earlier than 3 years before the closing date of the call.
- On 1 March 2021 (application submission deadline) you have 18 months scientific seniority at most.
- You have not previously received an FWO PhD fellowship (not even in part).
Please note that you can apply maximum two times for a FWO PhD fellowship.
Deadline?
The deadline for submission is 1 March (5 PM). If this date falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the closing date is moved to the following Monday at 5 PM.
More information?
Contact Hasselt University: research@uhasselt.be
Hasselt University contact person: Annelies Stockmans
Or on the website of the FWO:
Extra support?
The Directorate Research, Library and Internationalisation offers a support program for applicants who will apply with a UHasselt promoter. You can register for this support program via research@uhasselt.be.
Postdoctoral Fellowship
The postdoctoral fellowships of the FWO support researchers in building an independent, international research career.
Meer informatie?
Contact Hasselt University: research@uhasselt.be
Hasselt University contact person: Annelies Stockmans
FWO Website
Extra support?
The Directorate Research, Library and Internationalisation offers a support program for applicants who will apply with a UHasselt promoter. You can register for this support program via research@uhasselt.be.
Junior and Senior Research Projects
Research projects are initiated by the researchers. Two types can be awarded: junior and senior research projects. The objective of the FWO's Research projects is to advance fundamental scientific research. This happens on initiative of the researcher in all scientific disciplines.
More information?
Contact Hasselt University: research@uhasselt.be
Hasselt University contact person: Sarah Szyr
UHasselt intranet page
FWO Website
EOS
More information?
Contact Hasselt University: research@uhasselt.be
FWO Website
Strategic Basic Research (SBO) projects
The Strategic Basic Research (SBO) programme focuses on innovative research which, if scientifically successful, will create prospects for economic or social applications (e.g. a new generation of products, processes or services). SBO is thus aimed not at pure knowledge dissemination, but at the acquisition of new knowledge in dialogue between the research centres that carry out the research and the companies and social stakeholders that will subsequently translate the results into concrete applications. Out of this dialogue valorisation projects can be initiated. The SBO programme breaks down into two finality parts: an economic programme part for projects with primarily an economic finality and a social programme part for projects with primarily a social finality.
More information?
Contact UHasselt: research@uhasselt.be
Hasselt University contact person: Sarah Szyr
Contact FWO: sbo@fwo.be
UHasselt intranet page
FWO website
Extra support?
Potential applicants may request an exploratory discussion with the FWO staff. Please send an e-mail to sbo@fwo.be including a short abstract (max. 1 A4 page). The applicants should also provide a number of possible dates when this exploratory interview could take place. The information that is provided during this meeting should be interpreted as non-binding advice and no rights can be derived from this information.
The Directorate Research, Library and Internationalisation:
- Helps with process-related questions (e.g. questions about the application template, submission procedure etc.).
- Acts as an intermediary between the researchers and FWO
- Acts as an intermediary when internal (TTO, PER, FIN) or external (ICL, etc.) consultation is necessary
- Helps with preparing the project budget
- Checks the final project budget
- Helps with administrative formalities relating to Hasselt University
- Submits the final proposal
Odysseus Programme
What?
The Odysseus programme provides outstanding researchers who have built up a career outside Belgium, a start-up funding in order to develop or to set up a research line during a five-year period a research group within a Flemish university, potentially in collaboration with (an)other Flemish research organisation(s), and become progressively more involved in the Flemish research landscape.
What makes this programme unique is the combination of a position at a Flemish university and sufficient project funding to establish their own research team. This symbiosis forms the ideal starting point to attract high level, international research to Flanders.
2 types of project funding based on the profile of the researcher:
- Odysseus Type I
- for researchers who are internationally recognized as pioneers in their field;
- research funding: from 400,000 euro to 1,000,000 euro per year (2,000,000 euro to 5,000,000 euro for the 5-year period).
- Odysseus Type II
- for postdoctoral researchers who have the potential to develop a leading international position;
- research funding: from 100,000 euro to 200,000 euro per year (500,000 euro to 1,000,000 euro for the 5-year period).
Who?
Only Flemish universities can nominate candidates with the FWO.
Conditions to be an eligible candidate:
- you shall have a main appointment of minimum 80% at a foreign institution on the date of the FWO deadline.
- you shall have been affiliated with a foreign institution, with an appointment of minimum 80%, for at least three years in the past five years preceding the FWO submission deadline. During this period abroad, you shall have had an appointment of maximum 10% in Belgium.
- you are only allowed to submit one application per Odysseus call.
Procedure when the call is open
STEP 1: Nomination by university (internal selection)
External candidates can contact the Directorate Research, Library and Internationalisation for more information on the application process. Please find here our brochure for external applicants (pdf, 188 KB) and the pre-application form that needs to be submitted.
STEP 2: Online submission to FWO (via web link provided by Directorate Research, Library and Internationalisation)
Final submission will be done by host institution itself.
More information?
Contact Hasselt University: Ellen Van Cutsem
FWO Website
Grant for a Short Stay Abroad
With this programme, the FWO aims to support young and advanced researchers in gaining research experience abroad for a short period of time.
What?
The FWO Grant for a short stay abroad covers travel expenses. For research stays with a duration of more than 7 days, the applicant also receives a fixed stipend of 66 euros per day. The grant is meant for a short stay of up to four weeks.
Who?
Candidates are affiliated to one of the following institutes and have an appointment of at least 50% for a period of at least one year preceding the start of the stay abroad.
- a university in Flanders
- a university hospital in Flanders
- a federal or Flemish scientific institute
- a hospital with an academic character recognized as research center in the Flemish Community.
As a PhD student, you have obtained a master degree in one of the member states of the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.
To be eligible, you also have at least 1 peer-reviewed publication, included in Web of Science or VABB-SHW.
Candidates with a FWO fellowship cannot apply for a grant for a short stay within Europe (they have a bench fee to cover this).
Application
Applications are written in English and must be accompanied of the invitation of the host institution abroad.
If you're not a member of the Independent Scientific Staff (Zelfstandig Academisch Personeel, ZAP), your application must contain the advice of the head of department/supervisor.
Deadline?
Applications need to be submitted at least three months prior to departure.
More information?
Hasselt University contact person: Ilse Das
FWO Website
Grant for a Long Stay Abroad
With this grant, the FWO supports researchers who wish to stay abroad for a long period of time in view of their research.
What?
The FWO Grants for a Long Stay Abroad cover one-off travel expenses and a fixed stipend of 66 euros a day. Researchers can use this grant to finance their stay abroad of more than 1 month, with a maximum of 6 months, without interruption. In case of multiple allocated grants maximum 6 months per term of 2 years (start date first allocated stay as reference date).
Who?
Candidates have an appointment of at least 50% at one of the following institutions:
- a Flemish university
- a Flemish university hospital
- a federal or Flemish scientific institute
- a hospital with an academic character recognized as research center in the Flemish Community.
As a PhD student, you have obtained a master degree in one of the member states of the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.
To be eligible, you also have at least 1 peer-reviewed publication, included in Web of Science or VABB-SHW.
Application
Applications are written in English and must be accompanied of the invitation of the host institution abroad.
If you're not a member of the independent scientific staff (Zelfstandig Academisch Personeel, ZAP), your application must contain the advice of the head of department/supervisor.
Deadline?
Applications need to be submitted at least three months prior to departure.
More information?
Hasselt University contact person: Ilse Das
FWO Website
Grant for Participation in an International Conference
With its Grants for participation in an international conference, the FWO stimulates researchers’ mobility and international contacts between research groups.
What?
The grant can be used for attending conferences with a scientific character and only covers travel expenses.
Who?
Candidates are affiliated to one of the following institutes and have an appointment of at least 50% for a period of at least one year preceding the start of the grant.
- a university in Flanders
- a university hospital in Flanders
- a federal or Flemish scientific institute
- a hospital with an academic character recognized as research center in the Flemish Community.
As a PhD student, you have obtained a master degree in one of the member states of the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.
To be eligible for a grant for participation in a conference in one of the member states of the EEA, Switzerland or the UK, you must have at least one peer-reviewed publication (included in Web of Science or the VABB-SHW) as first or last author. For a grant for participation in a conference outside Europe, you should have three or more peer-reviewed publications out of which minimum 1 as first or last author.
Candidates with a FWO fellowship cannot apply for a grant for a short stay within Europe (they have a bench fee to cover this).
Application
Applications are written in English and you attach the official proof of acceptance of your presentation (poster or oral communication). If this official acceptance is not yet available 3 months before the departure date, you can provide FWO with the documents afterwards.
If you're not a member of the Independent Scientific Staff (Zelfstandig Academisch Personeel, ZAP), your application must contain the advice of the head of department/supervisor.
Deadline?
Applications need to be submitted at least three months prior to departure date.
More information?
Hasselt University contact person: Ilse Das
FWO Website.
Grant for Participation in an International Workshop or Course
In order to provide young researchers with a chance to specialise and to offer senior researchers the opportunity to deepen or pass on their scientific experience, the FWO provides Grants for attendance of a workshop or course abroad.
What?
These grants are meant for young researchers and senior researchers and covers travel expenses. For participation in a workshop or course abroad lasting more than seven days, the grant includes a fixed stipend of 66 euros a day.
Who?
Candidates are affiliated to one of the following institutes and have an appointment of at least 50% for a period of at least one year preceding the start of the grant.
- a university in Flanders
- a university hospital in Flanders
- a federal or Flemish scientific institute
- a hospital with an academic character recognized as research center in the Flemish Community.
As a PhD student, you have obtained a master degree in one of the member states of the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.
To be eligible, you also have at least 1 peer-reviewed publication, included in Web of Science or VABB-SHW.
Candidates with a FWO fellowship cannot apply for a grant for a workshop or course within Europe (they have a bench fee to cover this).
Application
Applications are written in English and must be accompanied of the acceptance letter for the workshop/course.
If you're not a member of the Independent Scientific Staff (Zelfstandig Academisch Personeel, ZAP), your application must contain the advice of the head of department/supervisor.
Deadline?
Applications need to be submitted at least three months prior to departure.
More information?
Hasselt University contact person: Ilse Das
FWO Website.
Grant for a scientific stay in Flanders
What?
With this new channel, Grant for a scientific stay in Flanders, the FWO expands its portfolio with a channel for individual incoming mobility so that foreign researchers, affiliated to a non-Belgian institution, can apply for a grant for a scientific stay in Flanders.
For whom is this an interesting channel? Researchers in Flanders who want to start or further develop a collaboration with a colleague abroad, and who want to bring this colleague for a short period of time to their own research facilities. The central question is always “What is the (scientific) added value for Flanders of bringing that particular researcher to Flanders?”.
Characteristics?
- A stay in Flanders of minimum 1 month and maximum 3 months without interruption.
- The grant includes (solely) for the beneficiary:
- Payment of one-off travel costs, round trip, place of work abroad – Belgium;
- Since the 1st of January 2020 FWO has a sustainable travel policy in place in all her funding channels. For more details, see here.
- Fixed daily allowance of EUR 66 (or max. EUR 1,650 /month).
- Payment of one-off travel costs, round trip, place of work abroad – Belgium;
- Announcement of results: via e-mail, to the applicant and the host researcher in Flanders.
- Procedure for booking journeys when travelling on a travel grant
Who?
- An application for a grant for a scientific stay in Flanders can only be made upon the official and specific invitation of a researcher (research group) in Flanders, that is the host researcher. This invitation must be uploaded in the online application form (see below under 'How does the application procedure work?').
- There are no nationality restrictions, as long as all the criteria set out in the regulations are fulfilled. However, please contact research@uhasselt.be – before preparing the application – to obtain more information on the specific modalities concerning some partners.
- The applicant for a grant for a scientific stay in Flanders:
- Holds a PhD by thesis or a diploma or certificate recognised as equivalent (see the regulations for detailed information);
- Has a remunerated appointment of at least 50% (salary or scholarship with a minimum appointment of 50%) at a non-Belgian research institution for the entire duration of the scientific stay in Flanders. Under no circumstances may the applicant have a remunerated appointment – regardless of the percentage of this appointment – at a university or research institution in Belgium.
- Has at least one peer-reviewed publication.
- Only one grant for a scientific stay in Flanders can be granted per person and per calendar year.
- Must create (and/or update) an account on the FWO e-portal. It is important that the data in this profile is up-to-date, among other things for the payment of the FWO funding in case of approval.
- The host researcher:
- Is affiliated to UHasselt
- Must hold at least one of the appointments or be a holder of a research mandate as defined in Article 10 of the Regulations of the Research Foundation – Flanders governing fundamental research projects. An equivalent appointment (with PhD) of at least 50% at the non-university institutions stated above is also allowed.
- Per calendar year, the host researcher can receive only one researcher with a grant for a scientific stay in Flanders.
Application?
- Submission: by the candidate (applicant) theirself, online (via FWO e-portal) in English, at the latest three months before departure. If submitted correctly, the candidate (applicant) will immediately receive confirmation by e-mail. If not, please contact us at interprog@fwo.be. The host researcher will be informed of the submission via a notification e-mail.
- Note: the host researcher has to inform his own host institution of the submitted application (the planned incoming stay).
- It is mandatory to upload the following documents in the online application form (in the applicable sections):
- A short scientific CV;
- A letter from the candidate's (applicant's) own institution (employer) confirming that the candidate complies with Article 2 §2 of the regulations;
- A letter of invitation, signed by the host researcher, in which the exact period and necessity of the planned scientific stay are clearly explained, as well as the scientific added value for the research group in Flanders.
Note: The absence of (one of) the aforementioned documents immediately results in the inadmissibility of the application.
- Applications for a grant for a scientific stay in Flanders are submitted to the International Scientific Contacts Committee (CIWC). To find out when your application will be evaluated and when you will get the result, please consult this calendar (pdf, 149 KB).
- Please note that the International Scientific Contacts Committee (CIWC) does not meet in August.
- Advice, selection and evaluation criteria: You can find all the advice, selection and evaluation criteria for applying for a 'Grant for a scientific stay in Flanders' at the FWO here.
- If approved, the beneficiary is responsible for complying with all legal obligations in force concerning a stay in Belgium.
More information?
More information, such as general FWO regulations, Regulations on 'Grant for a scientific stay in Flanders', a scientific report form, a financial report form and a declaration for travel by car can be found on the FWO website.
The application form is available via the e-portal.
Contact Hasselt University?
E-mail: research@uhasselt.be and ilse.das@uhasselt.be
Sabbatical Leave
What?
The FWO wishes to support sabbatical leaves, in which a researcher wants to focus solely on their research, via a bench fee that can be used for expenses directly related to research activities performed during that sabbatical leave.
Expenses related to the replacement of the researcher are at the cost of the researcher's host institution.
A monthly maximum amount of 2,000 EUR to be used during the sabbatical leave for research expenses, including research stays at (inter)national organisations such as universities, research institutions, companies, NGOs, governmental organizations, … as long as it concerns (strategic) basic research and/or fieldwork abroad or in Belgium.
Consecutive period of minimally 3 – maximally 12 months, not extendable.
Submission deadlines: March 1st(5 pm), June 1st (5 pm), September 1st (5 pm) or December 1st (5 pm), always at least 3 months before the start of the sabbatical leave.
Who?
At the time of applying for a sabbatical bench fee, the researcher holds a ZAP position (salaried) of at least 80% at a university in the Flemish Community.
When applying, the researcher can present a declaration, signed by the rector (or equivalent) and the relevant head of department, in which the host institution officially approves the sabbatical and undertakes to relieve the researcher/applicant from their educational and administrative tasks for the entire period of the sabbatical to allow them to focus entirely on scientific research during their sabbatical leave.
The sabbatical bench fee:
- is personal and cannot be transferred;
- cannot be cumulated with a grant for participation in a conference, workshop/course, or short/long study visit abroad;
- can per person and civil year only be allocated one time;
- can be allocated for maximally 1 year per term of 3 years, to be counted from the start date of the first given sabbatical bench fee.
The applicant agrees with the Research Integrity Clause.
Application?
The applicant must submit their application for a sabbatical bench fee in English to the head of your host institution in due time.
The head of the host institution forwards this application in English to the FWO at least 3 months before the start of the sabbatical leave, taking the abovementioned fixed deadlines (see ‘Features?’ above) into account.
The application is evaluated by the International Collaboration Committee (CIWC).
More information?
Hasselt University contact person: research@uhasselt.be and ilse.das@uhasselt.be
FWO website.
Medium-Scale Research Infrastructure
More information?
Contact Hasselt University: Ilse Das
FWO Website
Large-scale research infrastructure
More information?
Contact Hasselt University: Ilse Das
FWO Website