Research Office – Open Calls

Our mission is to help researchers find the suitable call to carry out their project and to offer the best possible support in the application process and the pre-award phase in general.

SISSA researchers are very active in European and International competitive calls. The School manages over 100 research projects per year and has a longstanding experience in grant administration thus representing a welcoming research environment for foreign researchers.

Within the competitive field of the European Framework Programmes (Horizon2020 and Horizon Europe) the involvement of SISSA is substantial, in particular Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions, ERC, Research Infrastructure and FET Flagship.

The Research Funding Office is also responsible for the management of FVG regional programs linked to the European structural funds: European social fund (ESF) and European regional development fund (ERDF).

Regarding the National opportunities, we are qualified to provide support in the submission of well-known national projects: PRIN, Levi Montalcini, SIR, JPND; FVG MIT MISTI, Telethon, AIRC, etc.

Our expertise is not limited to National and European projects, we also offer support in the management of international grants such as AXA, HFSP, APS, MJFF, MS Alliance, NIH, SFARI, and many others.

With this respect, we internally promote the available funding opportunities within different funding programs (the Italian Government, the FVG Region, European, International as well as several private foundations – open worldwide). We support researchers in the proposal application and, once the project has been positively evaluated and considered for funding, we are in charge of the grant preparation phase, negotiating the Grant Agreement with the funding authority, or any other document needed as the Consortium Agreement or Preliminary Agreement with the other partners involved in the project.

The whole range of services necessary for the presentation of a research project is completed by the collaboration with the Valorisation and Innovation Office, with expertise in the protection of intellectual property, patents, industrial projects and partnerships with companies and the Grant Management Office in charge of financial issues.

  • Grant scouting of competitive calls: One of our priorities is to keep SISSA's researchers informed on all the relevant new opportunities to support their research ideas.
  • Training and consultancy: We help researchers to fully understand the call for proposal of a research project in order to comply with all required criteria to be successful in obtaining the funding.
  • Support during the application phase: Each funding program has its own rules and regulations, not often straightforward to understand, hence we support professors and researchers during the pre-award phase and the negotiation phase after the grant has been awarded.
  • SISSA funding incentives for ERC projects: financial incentives for SISSA PIs who apply to the ERC programmes.
  • Support and advice on Open Science practices: The new Horizon Europe framework program provides for the implementation of some Open Science practices already in the presentation phase of the project proposal. We advise researchers on mandatory and recommended practices for Horizon Europe projects. When the project has been awarded, the Research Office supports researchers in the drafting of the Data Management Plan. We also organize seminars and workshops for the training of our researchers on Open Science practices.
  • Transfer of research project to SISSA: The environment and Host Institution in which a research project is carried out is fundamental for its success. We help researchers and professors who wish to transfer their current project to SISSA to complete all the administrative procedures and negotiations with the previous Host Institution.
  • International research agreements: SISSA is by definition an international training and research center and as such has many interactions with other universities and international research institutions. We are in charge of the negotiation of general international cooperation agreements with international universities or specific agreements for the management of research projects.
  • Memberships and Scientific Associations: In addition to offering its researchers the suitable environment to foster the exchange of ideas, SISSA promotes networking as an active member of some of the most important scientific associations.

SISSA fully complies with the Gender Equality Plan (GEP) requirements established by the Horizon Europe Framework Programme. Since the Programme introduced the GEP as a mandatory eligibility criterion for all public bodies, higher education institutions, and research organizations participating in calls from 2022 onwards, SISSA has integrated these policies. The GEP aligns with the European Commission's broader strategy (EU Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025) aimed at promoting and implementing gender equality in research and innovation.

The GEP was officially approved by the Academic Senate and the Board of Directors in a joint session on December 14, 2021, and subsequently issued by decree No. 945/2021 dated December 22, 2021. SISSA’s current, full document is available here: Gender Equality Plan 2025–2027 (PDF).

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