Specialized Research Groups

Target group

The program is aimed at consortia of three to twelve outstanding researchers from all scientific disciplines working at one or more Austrian research institutions.

Specialized Research Groups funding is aimed at all disciplines and interdisciplinary teams, including art-based basic research.

Funding goals

Research collaborations between researchers often result in the most outstanding research. In fact, many research questions can only be adequately pursued by teams. For this reason, the program’s main objective is to fund excellent research in collaborative research formats, where multiple participating researchers working in one or more locations pursue a common research goal. The aim is to strengthen cooperation between researchers, research institutions, and different disciplines.

Funding period and funding amount

• €3 to 9 million for 60 months
• One follow-up application for a second funding period (48 months) can be submitted.

Requirements

• Consortium of three to twelve active researchers with outstanding research records by FWF standards
• Balanced gender distribution in the consortium; at least one third of the consortium should be made up of the underrepresented gender

Approval

• Decision by the Scientific Board based on international peer review
• Decision on pre-proposal in the spring of the year following submission
• If the pre-proposal is approved, applicants are invited to submit a full proposal.
• Funding decision on full proposals usually made at the last Scientific Board meeting of the same year, after a hearing with international reviewers

Funding institution

Austrian Science Fund (FWF) (partly financed with funds from the Fonds Zukunft Österreich)

Find out more

Application Guidelines with more detailed information will be published in late May 2025.