Pompeu Fabra University organized a seminar on opportunities for funding the 2015 work programme in calls by the European Research Council (ERC), which included various information sessions and a workshop on preparing proposals, in the Ciutadella Campus Auditorium this morning.

The Infoday, which could be followed live via the UPF website, addressed one of the three cornerstones of Horizon 2020 (the new European framework programme for research and innovation): Excellent Science.

This area aims to raise the level of excellence in basic science in Europe and to ensure a steady stream of high quality research to ensure long-term competitiveness in Europe.

Information sessions, a researcher's experience and a workshop

The seminar, which was aimed primarily at researchers preparing proposals for future calls, began with a welcome by Àngel Lozano, vice-rector for Research at UPF and the representative of AGAUR, who introduced the participants in the seminar.

In his speech, the vice-rector said that Pompeu Fabra University offers the maximum support to its researchers wishing to participate in the ERC competitive processes, and can assist them in all procedures that need to be followed.

Afterwards, Núria Sebastián, vice-president of the Scientific Council of the European Research Council and Professor of Basic Psychology in the Department of Information and Communication Technologies at UPF, gave a talk on "The ERC Programme: an opportunity to promote excellent research".

" If you have a good idea, go for it, believe in it," emphasized Núria Sebastián at the end of her speech, in which she reiterated her encouragement for the researchers attending the event to participate in future calls by the ERC. "You are all potential candidates to obtain grants from the ERC, which aims to find people with value to take European research forwards to the forefront of excellence," she said.

Based on in-depth knowledge of the ERC, she explained the philosophy and principles that govern the institution, and reviewed various aspects of it, such as its independence, organization, the selection process involved in its calls, its evaluation of proposals, the budget for grants and the countries that have excelled in previous calls.

Esther Rodríguez, a member of ERC's National Contact Point at the European Office of the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, outlined the ERC's Work programme and calls for 2015. She focused on the more practical aspects, such as the requirements for participation, the schedule, the various procedures to be followed, the phases of the evaluation process, and how proposals can be improved in order to be more successful.

Jan Eeckhout, ICREA-UPF researcher in the Department of Economics and Business, was the last speaker to take the lectern, and he explained his experience as a recipient of two ERC grants: a Starting Grant and an Advanced Grant.

After explaining what his research involves, he reviewed the positive factors of participating in calls of this type: "You need to consider the benefits and improvements for your own scientific career, the progress involved in a process of long-term production".

The UPF researcher highlighted other aspects of this process, such as the high level of research that it involves, the support provided by the host institution (which he considered very important), the feedback from experts in the field who can help improve the research, and the network of contacts and the wide range of collaborators grant recipients work with.

A workshop on preparing proposals, led by Esther Rodríguez, concluded the seminar, which was supported by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT), the European Office and the Agency for Administration of University and Research Grants (AGAUR).