05 Focus Projects

Focus projects offer the opportunity to work on research projects together with doctoral candidates and thus increase the chances of success for later acquisition of third-party funding.  If the quality of the applications is good enough, priority will be given to projects that establish international collaborations for the first time and on projects led by scientists in an earlier career stage who can thus gain experience in the independent management of research projects. Moreover, another goal of this funding line is to support the humanities.

The University of Bremen combines the call for proposals for Central Research Funding (ZF) 2023 with a content-related focus on far-reaching interdisciplinarity and the ability to overcome subject boundaries (research diversity). This stimulus is intended to stimulate new and innovative forms of collaboration. This can take place both within the areas currently designated as natural sciences and engineering or social sciences and humanities, or across these divisional boundaries. In this way, the university would like to bring its interdisciplinary strength to the fore.

WHO CAN APPLY? This funding line is aimed at new members of the University of Bremen: (Senior) Researchers and (Senior) Lecturers, junior research group leaders, lecturers and professors appointed for the first time can submit applications during their first three years at the University of Bremen. Temporary employees must be employed at the University of Bremen for at least the duration of the project applied for.

WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS? Innovative research project of high quality, suitable both for the integration of a new doctoral project and for the preparation of further third-party funding.

FUNDING CONDITIONS: A focus project includes a doctoral position for a period of three years as well as a research budget of up to EUR 3,000  per year. In financing the doctoral positions, the CRDF follows the DFG guidelines for the payment of doctoral candidates. The CRDF allocates either 75 % or 100 % positions. The PhD position includes a teaching load of 1,5 hours (75 %) up to 2 hours (100 %) per week (SWS), depending on the contract. Any previously approved focus project has to be fully completed before applying for a new one. Persons whose positions are funded by the CRDF funding line 04 “Independent Projects for Postdocs” are not eligible to apply. Applicants must have the permission to supervise doctorates. Please get in touch with the relevant Doctoral Committee in time, if neccessary.

PROCEDURE: The call for focus projects is open once a year. Funding is available for two focus projects with one doctoral position each. The two focus projects will be distributed equally between the natural sciences and engineering on the one hand, and the social sciences and humanities on the other hand.

The University's Research Funding Committees (BFK Nawi and BFK Sowi) decides on the applications on basis of external reviews.

Criteria for the assessment of applications

The Research Funding Committees and the Rectorate of the University of Bremen assess the applications based on the following criteria:

•  Originality of the project
•  Impact of the project (for example, socio-political, regional, transfer-relevant)
•  Convincing justification of the research question/hypotheses
•  Convincing reference to the state of research
•  Expected knowledge gain
•  Previous publications in the thematic area of the proposal (quality, number, significance taking into account peer review procedures,
   and sole or first authorship, if relevant in your discipline)
•  Plausible selection of methods/procedures and feasibility
•  Detailed and feasible work schedule and timetable as well as adequate financing plan
•  Soundness of the preparatory work
•  Suitability of the project as a basis for a doctoral project
•  Opportunities of the project for further third-party funding