CAWP Project Advisor:
Kaja Stopmór-Lesiecka,
phone: 12 663 38 87,
e‑mail: kaja.stopmor@uj.edu.pl
Announcing institution:
Foundation for Polish Science
Purpose of the call for proposals:
The programme is directed to young researchers, at the outset of their career, who have already achieved some success in their field. The stipends serve as recognition of the scientific attainments so far by these young scholars and as an incentive for further growth by enabling them to devote themselves fully to their research.
Prospective call entrants are persons who meet all of the following conditions:
- they are doctoral students or doctors in Poland or carry out R&D activities* in Poland at an entity whose statutory objectives include research or development;
- they have a track record in research;
- are no older than 30 years in the year of submitting proposals (at the moment this means people born in 1991 or later).
This age limit may be extended:
- for women who have given birth to a child or to persons acting as guardians to children – 1 year per child,
- on account of a leave from research activity (up to a 2-year extension), see details in the terms and conditions of the START programme and the Guidelines on drawing up proposals,
- the aforementioned reasons for extending the age limit shall not be cumulative.
* R&D (research and development activities) is creative work carried out systematically with a view to enlarge the amount of knowledge, including knowledge of the human being, culture and society as well as to find new applications for this knowledge.
They include three types of tasks:
- basic research (theoretical and experimental work carried out in pursuit of knowledge rather than specific applicable results);
- applied research (research carried out in pursuit of new knowledge for specific applications);
- experimental development (work consisting in applying of the existing knowledge to development of new products, services and processes, or improvement of the existing ones).
Information and terms of call:
- One may be awarded the START scholarship only once.
- The scholarship is awarded for a period of 12 months.
- The scholarship may be used towards a freely chosen goal. The FNP requires the grantee to carry out research in the period of receiving the scholarship.
- Under the START programme, honours are also conferred on candidates whose research achievements have received the highest notes from reviewers, and have been found outstanding.
- Under the programme, the FNP may award a supplementary travel grant for short study visits to one or two research centres abroad. Those study visits should serve the purpose of initiating cooperation and learning the methods of research work at those centres. The aforementioned persons will be selected form among the candidates who have expressed their will to benefit from such a visit in the scholarship proposal, and have attached required documents (see details in the terms and conditions of the START programme and in the Guidelines on drawing up proposals).
- The principal criterion in review of proposals is the quality of research and originality of the candidates’ research achievement, evaluated based on the documents attached to the proposal. Significant bearing on the note will also have the candidate’s research plans for the year to come, described in the proposal.
Additional information on call:
- Proposals submitted in the START funding proposal will also be consider in the Professor Barbara Skarga Scholarship Competition, for a given year’s laureates of the programme. The winner of the competition may be a person who boldly moves across frontiers between domains in their research, opening up new perspectives and creates new values in scholarly investigation. The scholarship paid to such a person will be increased.
- The FNP awards also distinctions to outstanding candidates whose research achievements were assessed the highest by the call reviewers in three fields: humanities and social sciences, life and medical sciences, and physical sciences and technology.
- As part of the START programme, the Prof. Adam Sobiczewski Fund has also been established. Its aim is to co-finance selected scholarships of the highest-ranked START programme laureates working in the fields of science: theoretical physics, mathematics and astronomy.
- From 2022, for the first time under the START programme, a scholarship with distinction named after prof. Wacław Szybalski will be granted, awarded to an outstanding young scientist conducting research in biotechnology, genetics or molecular biology.
Deadline for applications:
22 November 2021
Form of submitting applications:
The procedure of proposal submission has two stages:
- On line registration of candidates: sending in electronic versions o the proposal, publication and other required annexes to the address: wnioski.fnp.org.pl/.
- Sending a printout of the proposal with all signatures and attachments as required (publication texts excluded) to the address of the Foundation for Polish Science.
JU internal regulations:
Pursuant to the Order no 56 of JU Rector 11 July 2016 on: The procedure for drawing up and implementing projects funded from external sources at Jagiellonian University persons interested in entering the call are asked to submit at the CAWP:
- by 8 November 2021, a draft proposal, for the purposes of review and verification of formal eligibility (as a pdf file) the address of the call assistant at the CAWP),
- by 15 November 2021, a proposal printout alongside annexes as required. The proposal should be signed by the candidate, their academic supervisor and the head of JU organisational entity (i.e. dean or director / head of other organisational entity).
Information on approval of the proposal by JU authorities will be delivered by a call assistant at the CAWP. Signed complete proposals in paper version will be sent by the CAWP to the FNP.
Please note:
Doctoral students interested in applying in the START programme who have been granted extension of their programmes, as well as persons with doctoral degree not affiliated with Jagiellonian University by means of an employment contract, civil-law contract, or acting part in research or projects should seek permission to submit the proposal with JU Vice-Rector for Research. A letter requesting the aforementioned permission should be approved by the author's academic supervisor and head of JU organisational entity (i.e. dean or director / head of other organisational entity). Only upon approval by JU Vice-Rector for Research can a proposal be submitted in the call.
Out of concern for the quality of the submitted proposals, especially in terms of meeting formal requirements, you are encouraged to consult your proposals and to deliver the documents to the CAWP well ahead of the above mentioned deadlines.
More information: