Masaryk University Žerotínovo nám. 617/9, 601 77 Brno, Czech Republic T: +420 549 49 1111, E: info@muni.cz, W: www.muni.cz GAMU - Research Support Programme MUNI Award in Science and Humanities Call 2024 GAMU - Research Support Programme MUNI Award in Science and Humanities 2/7 Table of Contents Objective of support................................................................................................................................... 2 Candidate profile ....................................................................................................................................... 2 Submission of a proposal .......................................................................................................................... 3 Evaluation process .................................................................................................................................... 3 Funding rules............................................................................................................................................. 3 Grant implementation, interim and final report .......................................................................................... 4 Download links and documents................................................................................................................. 7 Contact ...................................................................................................................................................... 7 Objective of support The main aim of MUNI Award in Science and Humanities (hereinafter referred to as “MASH”) is to bring excellent and successful external researchers to Masaryk University and to offer them such conditions that they are motivated to stay, work for Masaryk University and to attain exceptionally high-quality research results on the long-term basis. Top research teams shall become a stable part of MU thanks to the employment of persons with transformation potential. A MASH holder shall be employed full-time at Masaryk University and the primary place of work performance shall be Brno. The holder of this prestigious grant shall be expected to represent Masaryk University and proactively contribute to the future direction of research conducted at MU for the entire duration of the grant holder’s engagement at MU, i.e. also after the completion of the MASH grant project. The call is open to applicants from all fields of Social Sciences, Humanities, Physical Sciences and Engineering, and Life Sciences. Candidate profile MASH is intended for applicants who were not employed by MU in their main employment for the period of 5 years preceding the deadline of the call. • An applicant is an ERC grant holder or a leading researcher in the R4 career stage according to the European Framework for Research Careers: o Has an international reputation based on research excellence in his field; o Demonstrates critical judgment in the identification and execution of research activities; o Makes a substantial contribution (breakthroughs) to their research field or spanning multiple areas; o Develops a strategic vision on the future of the research field; o Recognizes the broader implications and applications of their research; o Publishes and presents influential papers and books, serves on workshop and conference organizing committees and delivers invited talks. GAMU - Research Support Programme MUNI Award in Science and Humanities 3/7 Submission of a proposal The proposal form in pdf format including all attachments must be uploaded to PMIS no later than the closing date of the competition. The uploaded files will be submitted for evaluation. In the case of a nonMU applicant, the main contact person at MU for the application (e.g. head of department, project support officer, etc.) is entered as the proposer. The proposal is submitted after approval of the cover sheet in Project Management Information System (PMIS) at the relevant economic unit. Documents (machine readable pdf files): • The MASH form containing: • Current professional CV of the applicant • Description of the research plan • Motivation letter • Declaration of the ECU of its readiness to hire the applicant and create conditions for independent research on the prescribed form* • Optional annex: Decision on the award of the ERC or another prestigious individual grant / Evaluation Summary Report, or an evaluation of another individual grant project * The ECU’s declaration shall be part of the approval process at the main ECU in the PMIS – entered as an annex of the proposal for the cover sheet approval (by approving the cover sheet, the head of the ECU declares its readiness to hire the applicant and create conditions for independent research). The application shall not contain the budget – the applicant shall obtain a predetermined amount in this competition. The applicant shall submit all the documents in English. Additional information and documents may be requested during the evaluation procedure (e.g. the ERC application form, detailed specification of the applicant’s key requirements etc.). Evaluation process The submitted application shall be evaluated against the following criteria: Criterion Weighting in % Professional profile of the applicant based on the submitted CV (an ERC application is taken into account) 60 Research plan and its coherence with MU research 20 Potential asset for Masaryk University based on the submitted motivation letter 20 GAMU - Research Support Programme MUNI Award in Science and Humanities 4/7 Formal inspection shall be made by the RMU Research Office under the supervision of the Vice-rector for Research and Doctoral Studies. In this stage, the Vice-rector for Research and Doctoral Studies after consultation with selected experts from the university shall have the right to exclude applications that fail to meet the requirements for MASH applicants. 1st evaluation round Based on the standardized keywords specified in the proposal, the domain guarantor shall select from the internal database at least 3 evaluators for each application. Based on the evaluation reports, the domain guarantors, or an expert panel approved for the given domain by the Vice-rector for Research and Doctoral Studies shall prepare the ranking list in each domain (Life Sciences, Social Sciences and Humanities, Physical Sciences and Engineering). If there are ambiguities (e.g. an extremely high or low evaluation by one evaluator), the guarantors shall ask for additional information from the evaluator concerned. The domain guarantors in a meeting with the Vice-rector for Research and Doctoral Studies shall select candidates with the best evaluation in the respective domains, who shall be invited to the 2nd evaluation round. 2nd evaluation round Invited candidates shall be interviewed by the evaluation board, whose members are: Vice-rector for Research and Doctoral Studies, domain guarantors and invited experts. The candidates present their research plan proposal. The board suggests candidate for MASH based on evaluation reports of the previous rounds and the interview to award. The Vice-rector for Research and Doctoral Studies shall inform the MU management of the competition results. The MU Rector decides on the basis of the recommendation of the evaluation committee to award the grant. Funding rules For the period of the project implementation, a MASH holder shall be employed full-time at Masaryk University and the primary place of work performance shall be Brno. GAMU financial support shall be used toward the settlement of costs immediately related to the MASH holder’s research plan. GAMU - Research Support Programme MUNI Award in Science and Humanities 5/7 Annual budget: CZK 5 000 000 / calendar year1 Duration of funding: 5 years Eligible costs • Personnel costs (wages, bonuses, agreements to complete a job (DPP) and agreements to perform work (DPČ) of persons directly involved in the research activities necessary for the research plan investigation) • Scholarships • Consumables • Investment • Low-value tangible and intangible assets • Services • Local and international travel • Publication and application costs • Additional costs or expenses (projects may include a share in common operating costs corresponding to the Joint Operating Costs (JOC) coefficient for the given economic unit in the year concerned in accordance with MU Instruction for determining the proportion of administrative overheads and system of applying overheads to projects, as amended) Ineligible costs • Costs not eligible for institutional support toward long-term conceptual development (e.g. refreshments) The drawdown of funds must comply with the rules for the drawdown of funds of institutional support. The grant shall be provided as non-investment funds. Each economic unit shall arrange an exchange for investment individually. Purchase of investment and necessary transfers among the respective items of the eligible costs are possible after the consultation with the relevant finance office of the economic unit. The amount that has not been spent in the given year may be transferred to the Special Purpose Fund (SPF) in the maximum amount of 5% of the funds awarded for the year concerned. It applies that if the funds in the SPF are not spent in the following year, the beneficiary is obliged to return the funds not used. The SPF cannot be created in the last year of the project investigation. 1 If the employment starts or is terminated during the year, the amount shall be proportionately adjusted. GAMU - Research Support Programme MUNI Award in Science and Humanities 6/7 The approved financial support shall be allocated to a specific economic unit in the form of an adjusted schedule of institutional support in accordance with the Budget Implementation Schedule submitted by the investigator. The economic and administrative resources of the projects shall be identical to the economic and administrative resources of the units where the researcher and his/her team work (now or in the future), and these units shall also bear common operating costs of the project. Both the professional and administrative coordination of the project shall be the responsibility of the MASH grantee. Project implementation, interim and final report The project is implemented in three stages (months 1 to 36; 37 to 60). The investigator shall submit the Budget Implementation Schedule before the start of the project. The interim report / final report including an approved cover sheet must be entered in the PMIS always within 60 days after the end of the relevant stage. The interim / final report (in Czech or English) contains a list and a brief description of the achieved results. The interim report is assessed by the Vice-rector for Research and Doctoral Studies and the GAMU guarantor for the domain concerned. Interim and final report forms are accessible in the IS. In case of serious shortcomings in the performance of the project, as ascertained on the basis of the interim report, the project funding may be suspended by a decision of the Rector of MU. The project completion shall include a final public lecture in which the grantee shall summarize the main results of his/her engagement at MU so far, and outline the idea of a further career at the university (the final lecture is part of the GAMU final conference which is held in the last quarter of each calendar year). GAMU - Research Support Programme MUNI Award in Science and Humanities 7/7 Download links and documents GAMU website IS Document Server PMIS Directive Application Form Other documents Contact Grant office RMU Research Department Žerotínovo nám. 9 Brno 601 77 Iveta Nazarčuk nazarcuk@rect.muni.cz +420 549 49 3864