Apply for research funding

Content on the page:

↳ Why apply for research funding?

↳ 1. Where can you apply for research funding?

↳ 2. How do you develop an external research proposal?

↳ 3. What other support can you get in connection with external proposal development?

Responsible: Dept. of Research Administration and Internationalisation; Published: 30.11.2024 Last updated: 13.12.2024

Kristiania aims to further develop research activities that will support educational operations and Ph.D. programs. Therefore, researchers must apply for external funding to cover operational and recruitment expenses and to enable national and international collaboration. Proposal development and external funding also contribute to higher quality in projects.

Kristiania also allocates internal funds to help develop research competence and pre-projects for larger external applications.

The Department of Research Administration and Internationalisation keeps track of funding opportunities and supports all applications for external research funding, as well as the implementation of successful projects. If you are planning an application, you should immediately contact your research advisor directly or send an email to forskadm@kristiania.no and inform your institute leader.

The responsibility for the scientific content of the applications and projects, as well as ensuring quality and adherence to good research ethical standards, lies with the deans of the schools.

 

1.1 External funding sources

An updated overview of external funding sources, including funders, themes, calls, deadlines, and guidelines, can be found here.

The overview is also available as a link under "Aktuelt for forskere" on the intranet.

The research advisors also send information to the pro dean R&D/AR and directly to researchers about new relevant calls.

Contact forskadm@kristiania.no if you have information about calls that are missing from the list.

1.2 Internal calls

Kristiania allocates internal funds aimed at developing research competence and competitiveness for external funds, and pre-projects that can form the basis for larger external applications.

• One-year R&D projects up to NOK 500,000

The call is published in the spring with a deadline in early June. Funds must be used during the upcoming calendar year. Read more on Kristiania's intranet under "Viktig informasjon til forskere." Previous calls are also available in the internal Teams room "Research Support," which is open to Kristiania employees.

The pro deans of R&D/AR must ensure that applicants meet the application deadline and the formal requirements set out in the call.

• Distribution of responsibility for internal applications:

Pro deans of R&D/AR must support the development of internal applications.

Your Head of institute allocates R&D time for application development and approves the use of other resources in the project.

The research administration handles the application processing and cannot support individual applicants beyond answering questions about the call. This follows the principle of equal treatment and transparency. For the same reason, the research administration must evaluate all applications equally based on the criteria in the call text.

Applicants should develop the competence to respond to the criteria set out in a call, in competition with other applicants. This requires careful reading and understanding of the criteria and addressing them in the application.

In this section:

↳ 2.1 Choose your project idea

↳ 2.2 Gradually increase ambitions

↳ 2.3 Contact the research administration as early as possible

↳ 2.4 The research advisor helps you develop the application

↳ 2.5 Follow the funder's application template

↳ 2.6 The project economist helps you with the budget

↳ 2.7 Do you want to involve users in your project?

↳ 2.8 Consider how peers will evaluate your application

↳ 2.9 Ensure high quality of the academic content in your application

2.1 Choose your project idea

To succeed in the competition for research funds, it is important that a research application builds on the existing knowledge base and a pre-project or other ongoing research activities. A project idea can be based on a knowledge need, method development, a hypothesis, or another idea. You can apply for funding for a new part of an ongoing project or develop a new project idea in connection with the application.

The research advisor and project economist should support all application development for external research funding. 

2.2 Gradually increase ambitions

Research competence is developed through systematic efforts over several years, and we recommend a gradual increase in the level of ambition. It is sensible to start with smaller applications and pre-projects, seek participation in larger projects as a partner and work package leader, and on this basis develop larger applications as a coordinator. It is important to further develop research competence and quality through collaboration with good research environments.

2.3 Contact the research administration as early as possible

Contact your research advisor as early as possible and as soon as you decide to apply. Internal deadlines are set, see below.

This is necessary to develop sufficient quality in the application, good dialogue with partners, sufficient time for anchoring, and so that the research administration can allocate resources. Application development requires use of resources from both the research group, the academic support apparatus, and the funder. Applications submitted must be of high quality and well-prepared.

The internal deadlines are:

• Applications to Horizon Europe: at least 6 (preferably 9) months before the application deadline.
• Applications to the Research Council of Norway (and similar schemes with a budget frame over NOK 4 million): at least 3 months before the application deadline. This also applies to applications with rolling deadlines (e.g., FRIPRO); at least 3 months before the planned submission date.
• Applications to other funding sources and in cases where Kristiania is a partner in another institution's application: at least 1 month before the application deadline.

2.4 The research advisor helps you develop the application

The research advisor helps you find suitable calls, read and interpret the guidelines in the call text, discuss collaboration opportunities, read and provide feedback on the application and language. The research advisor also supports the anchoring of the application and obtaining the project owner's signature. The project leader is responsible for submitting the application.

2.5 Follow the funder's application template

A research application must respond to a call from the funder and must follow the funder's application template. It is important to address all the criteria in a way that makes it clear to the funder that the project will meet the funder's requested knowledge needs.

2.6 The project economist helps you with the budget

The budget is an important part of the application and says a lot about the degree of realism, planning, and feasibility. A correct budget is a prerequisite for being able to carry out a project and collaborate with partners without problems.

Projects that are insufficiently funded impose costs on Kristiania and there is a risk of demands for repayment if the results do not match the project description.

The project economist must be involved early to ensure that the budget includes all necessary costs, that it is in line with planned activities, is realistic, and correctly distributed among partners. The project economist also familiarises themselves with the funder's guidelines that must be followed. This may include which expenses can be covered and any need for co-financing from the institute. This must be anchored by your leader from the start.

All applicants are encouraged to take advantage of opportunities to apply for externally funded recruitment positions at Kristiania, such as Ph.D., postdoc, or research assistant positions.

There is a distinction between contribution research and commissioned research, which corresponds to the purchase of a service by a client.

2.7 Do you want to involve users in your project?

It is recommended to include users in a reference group that can help identify relevant research topics and knowledge needs, in addition to identifying barriers to research and implementation and assisting with communicating and disseminating the project's results.

2.8 Consider how peers will evaluate your application

The application should clearly show the project's relevance in a larger context. It should show the status of state of the art and needs, the project's goals and sub-goals, and a concrete description of the methods. It must be possible for peers to assess whether the choice of methods is well thought out and suitable for providing clear answers and results. The application must normally include a work plan with work packages that address the goals and contain planned activities and timelines.

The project's organisation and task distribution must be explained, a plan for scientific publication and for academic and popular science dissemination must be developed, and opportunities for further use of the results and expected societal effects must be outlined. The application must explain how laws and regulations will be complied with, ethical reflection, and how the project addresses the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. 

2.9 Ensure high quality of the academic content in your application

The academic content of the application must be discussed in the school, in the research group, and with other colleagues, and with partners. The school has the overall responsibility for ensuring the quality and feasibility of the planned project.

In this section:

↳ 3.1 Individual plan for application development

↳ 3.2 Accelerator pilot

↳ 3.3 Routines and tools

↳ 3.4 Courses

3.1 Individual plan for application development

The Department of Research Administration and Internationalisation offers several measures to promote application activity. Contact your research advisor who will help you with the following:

Find suitable calls, identify application deadlines, identify measures for competence development, discuss networking opportunities, help with applications for application development support to the Research Council of Norway, follow up on application development towards the deadline.

3.2 Accelerator pilot

Kristiania has established a pilot for an upcoming accelerator program. Candidates in schools who have previous experience with larger external applications, and who are motivated and can develop a larger external application, are identified by the Pro Deans of R&D/AR. Admission to the pilot was decided by the rectorate in May 2024. The candidates now receive intensive follow-up in application development, and the group serves as a meeting place for interdisciplinary discussions of project ideas and new collaboration opportunities across schools.

A more long-term accelerator program for external applications will be developed during the fall of 2024, based on the experiences with the pilot.

3.3 Routines and tools

The Department of Research Administration and Internationalisation has developed a detailed routine for application follow-up, showing which tasks should be followed up in which order and by whom, as well as other involved parties. The routine and associated tools are available in the Teams room "Research Support" (under the channel "Tools").

3.4 Courses

The Department of Research Administration and Internationalisation also offers several relevant courses. If you have suggestions for new course topics, contact forskadm@kristiania.no.