Early-career / starting

For researchers within ~3 years post-PhD (reference date 1 Jan 2026; PhD obtained between 1 Jan 2023 and 1 Sep 2026, extensions possible). Research must be carried out at an NWO-recognised institution in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Applications must be written in English. Part-time appointments below 0.4 FTE are not permitted.

Weave bilateral project funding between Switzerland (SNSF) and Slovenia (ARIS). Swiss applicants apply to SNSF as Lead Agency (max 48 months); Slovenian-led projects go via ARIS (max 36 months). Applicants may hold max two simultaneous SNSF project grants, one of which must be a Weave/Lead Agency project. Topics of concurrent grants must be clearly distinct.

Bilateral Switzerland–Slovenia joint research projects under the Weave Lead Agency procedure. Swiss applicants must be hosted at a Swiss institution and apply under SNSF project funding rules. Applicants may hold max 2 simultaneous SNSF project grants; one must be a Weave/Lead Agency/International Co-Investigator project. Topics of concurrent grants must be clearly distinct. Project start date must be the same in both countries.

For early-career oncology researchers within 5 years of PhD (extensions possible for clinical training or parental leave). Project leader must hold a PhD and be employed ≥0.5 FTE throughout. Covers all research phases from basic to implementation. Applicants must be affiliated with a KWF-registered institute (registration required ≥6 weeks before deadline). Proposals must be submitted exclusively to this call.

Open to researchers of any nationality, 0–10 years post-PhD (extensions possible for parental leave, illness, etc.), proposing frontier research in any field. Host institution must be a public or private research organisation in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe associated country. Single PI applies; no consortium required.

SNSF Ambizione lets early-career researchers run an independent project at a Swiss host institution (salary + project funds, up to 4 years). Requires a Swiss link (Swiss nationality/degree or 12+ months research in Switzerland).

Open to research-active clinical lecturers (or veterinary equivalent) based at UK administering organisations who hold a PhD or MD, a medical/dental/veterinary undergraduate degree, and are in higher speciality training. Covers directly incurred research costs (consumables, equipment); no salary, research assistants, PhD students, or postdoctoral staff. Administered by the Academy of Medical Sciences.

Supports life scientists who have been group leaders for less than four years at time of application. Provides financial support for networking, training opportunities, lab member support, and mentoring for four years. Open to researchers in Europe and beyond.

Supports group leaders establishing new laboratories in participating countries (Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Türkiye) to strengthen life sciences there. Grantees join the EMBO Young Investigator network. Host institution must be in one of the scheme's participating countries.

Free trial compute allocation (up to 500k core hours and 1000 GPU hours) for Flemish university/SOC/public knowledge institution researchers to test software and perform scalability benchmarks before a full Tier-1 Compute application. Apply by email to compute@vscentrum.be.

Three funding instruments (Veni, Vidi, Vici) tailored to various phases in researchers' scientific careers, enabling them to conduct independent research. Targets early- to mid-career researchers at Dutch institutions.

Open to all researchers at Polish scientific institutions. Autumn edition includes the LAP (lead agency procedure) path under Weave, enabling collaboration with foreign research teams from Austria, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg, or Belgium-Flanders.

Enables early-career researchers to carry out their own independent project and lead a research team in Switzerland. Applicants must have links to Switzerland. Open to all research disciplines. Project must be conducted at a Swiss institution.

Free trial of Tier-1 Cloud resources for Flemish university/SOC/public knowledge institution researchers. Apply by email to cloud@vscentrum.be and local VSC coordinator. No set deadlines.

Free trial of Tier-1 Data resources for Flemish university/SOC/public knowledge institution researchers. Apply by email to data@vscentrum.be and local VSC coordinator. No set deadlines.

For group leaders in Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovenia, and Turkey to visit scientists in other EMBC Member States for collaborative projects or joint grant proposal preparation.

German-based researchers may submit joint proposals with partners in Brazil, Colombia, India, Iran, Turkey, USA (two-sided review) or Austria, Belgium, Italy (South Tyrol), Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia, Switzerland (lead agency procedure). Applicant must be affiliated with a German institution. Complementary co-financing by the foreign partner organisation is required.

Early career research grant for young investigators in childhood cancer research. Part of ALSF's Early Career Research program aimed at engaging researchers early in their careers to foster long-term commitments to finding cures.

Post-doctoral contract (24 months, July 2026–August 2028) for researchers in humanities and social sciences (SHS only), aimed at preparing a competitive ERC Starting Grant 2028 application (submission October 2027). Host institution must be in France. ANR provides rapid selection, funding setup, and coaching support.

Supplementary measure for doctoral students and postdocs employed on SNSF-funded projects who need flexibility due to childcare responsibilities. Covers external childcare costs and/or salary of a support person to allow work-quota reduction. Postdocs must work ≥80%; Ambizione, PRIMA, Postdoc.Mobility return grant, and Doc.CH holders also eligible.

DFG Emmy Noether funds outstanding early-career researchers (≈up to 4y post-PhD with international experience) to lead an independent junior research group at a German institution. The German equivalent of NWO Vidi / ERC Starting tier.

2026 call restricted to humanities and social sciences (SHS) disciplines only. ANR funds a 2-year postdoctoral contract (July 2026–August 2028) to prepare a competitive ERC Starting Grant 2028 application (October 2027). Host institution must be in France. Proposals submitted in French.

For researchers who have recently obtained their PhD. Enables researchers to conduct research of their own choice. Applicants must be affiliated with a Dutch knowledge institution.

For recently PhD-awarded researchers in Social Sciences and Humanities. Enables researchers to conduct research of their own choice. Applicants must be affiliated with a Dutch knowledge institution.

For recently PhD-awarded researchers in Applied and Engineering Sciences. Enables researchers to conduct research of their own choice. Applicants must be affiliated with a Dutch knowledge institution.

For researchers who have recently obtained their PhD. Four domain variants: Science, SSH, AES, and ZonMw (Health R&D). Hosted at Dutch knowledge institutions. Enables researchers to conduct research of their own choice.

Open to researchers of any nationality with 2–7 years post-PhD experience (extensions possible for parental leave, illness, etc.). Host institution must be a public or private research organisation in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe associated country. Single PI applies; any field of research eligible. Proposals submitted via EU Funding & Tenders Portal.

DFG Heisenberg supports established researchers who have qualified for a professorship (habilitation or equivalent) to continue at a German institution — the senior career bridge above Emmy Noether. Excludes existing permanent W2/W3 professors.