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Eligibility conditions

 

Eligibility of applicants

  • Applicants must be in possession of a doctoral degree as of the date of MERIT’s call deadline. Researchers who have successfully defended their doctoral thesis but who have not yet formally been awarded the doctoral degree will also be considered to be eligible to apply.
  • A mobility rule will be applied to all categories of researchers. Fellows must relocate to the Czech Republic. Researchers must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the Czech Republic for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately before the call deadline.
  • The same rules apply to the 4 types of fellowships:
    • Standard: Researchers moving within Europe or coming in from other parts of the world.
    • Researchers at risk: Researchers with the status of refugees or researchers at all stages of their careers who are experiencing threats to their life, liberty or research career, and those who are forced to flee or have been displaced because of such threats.
    • Career restart: Researchers who wish to restart their research after a career break (e.g. after parental leave, working outside research, etc.).
    • Reintegration: Czech nationals or long-term residents who wish to return and reintegrate in a longer-term research position in the Czech Republic.
  • Permanent employees (employees having a contract for an indefinite period) of one of the hosting organisations are not eligible to apply for a MERIT fellowship to this hosting organisation.

 

Eligibility of applications

  • The applications must be complete and must consist of  the following:
    • Research proposal (mandatory Technical proposal template to be downloaded in the Template section) written in English, complete and uploaded to the MERIT online application system. Proposals that do not fulfil the eligibility criteria form (use of the Technical proposal template, font size, margins, spacing) will be ineligible. Excess pages (a 10-page limit for the research proposal) will be disregarded.
    • Endorsement for the feasibility of the applicant´s research project (see Guide for applicants, section 5.2).
    • CV of the candidate written in English and uploaded to the MERIT online application system (5-page limit, extra pages will not be counted).
    • All the online forms filled in: Eligibility form, Ethics Issues Table and Ethics self-assessment, if applicable, and Secondment form.
  • The applicants need to complete a compulsory online Ethics Issues Table in order to declare whether their proposed research activity deals with some ethics issues. If the research proposal raises one or more of the issues listed in the ethics issues table, an Ethics self-assessment must be completed.
  • The applicants must complete an online Secondment form and the name(s) of the secondment organisation must be indicated. The secondment can be carried out in the non-academic or academic sectors (private or public) in the Czech Republic or abroad. A list of more than 30 secondment opportunities is available on the MERIT website. Applicants can also suggest their own secondment.

Common mistakes

 

Make sure you avoid the most common mistakes that would make your application ineligible, therefore not accepted for evaluation!

The applications will not be accepted for scientific evaluation if:

  1. the applicant did not use the mandatory predefined template for the research proposal (see the Template section);
  2. the research proposal deviates from the template (all the predefined sections and subsections need to be kept and completed; the titles must not be modified);
  3. the proposed project is not feasible within the research group where the applicant applied (the applicant did not get the endorsement from the supervisor).

Application process

 

As an applicant, you must first identify a suitable Hosting organisation and the research group compatible with your expertise (see Research options). The supervisors or group leaders corresponding to each research group are listed on the MERIT website. You are welcome to contact the Hosting organisation if you want to learn more about the organisation´s research infrastructure, environment and supervisors.

Bear in mind that you must submit a concrete research project as part of you application. In order to present your research project, you need to use the Programme template downloadable in the Template section (Technical proposal template). Before you start preparing your proposal, please make sure that your project is feasible in the workplace of your choice. Therefore, you need to get the endorsement from the prospective supervisor.

Once your proposal is ready, click on Apply in the top right corner of this page and submit your application.

As part of assistance provided to the applicants, you can participate in the Info session for applicants and the Training for applicants How to write a competitive proposal.

Evaluation process

 

Phase 1 – written evaluation

For the written evaluation phase, specific selection committees will be formed of international and national peer-reviewers who will be interconnected to ensure the principles of equal opportunities and transparency. Three independent evaluators will be assigned to each admitted research proposal.

Evaluation criteria for written evaluation:

Excellence

Quality and pertinence of the project’s research and innovation objectives (and the extent to which they are ambitious and go beyond the state-of-the-art).

  1. Soundness of the proposed methodology (including interdisciplinary approaches, the gender dimension and other diversity aspects if relevant for the research project).
  2. Quality of the two-way transfer of knowledge between the researcher and the host.
  3. Quality and appropriateness of the researcher’s professional experience, competences and skills.

 

Impact

  1. Credibility of the measures to enhance the career perspectives and employability of the researcher and contribution to his/her skill development.
  2. Suitability and quality of the measures to maximise expected outcomes and impacts, as set out in the dissemination and exploitation plan, including communication activities.
  3. Sustainability of the candidates’ research project in the Region. Opportunities to continue the research through regional/international collaboration with relevant industry or academic sectors.

 

Implementation

  1. Quality and effectiveness of the work plan and assessment of risks.
  2. Relevance, feasibility and benefit for the research project objectives of the planned secondment. Quality of the secondment choice in terms of at least one of the following principles: intersectorality, interdisciplinarity or international mobility.

 

Those candidates that reach at least 75% in the written stage but a maximum of 30 candidates distributed among the fellowships will be invited for an interview.

Phase 2 – oral interviews

For the oral interview phase, an interview panel will be composed of international evaluators (including the evaluators of the proposal); an expert on gender/intersectional topics; the MERIT Programme Manager; an HR representative, or the Director of the corresponding host organisation. Oral interviews will be held online.

Download section

Important information

Important dates second call

Call opening 15 January 2024
Info session for applicants 12 March 2024, 14:00 CEST
Training for applicants (How to write a competitive proposal) 19 March 2024, 14:00 CEST
Deadline date extended until 21 April 2024, 23:59 CEST (GMT+2)
Eligibility check April 2024
Evaluation process May – August 2024
Results August/September 2024

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can apply to MERIT?

 
Any researcher in possession of a PhD degree (regardless of how many years ago the PhD was awarded) and who have not lived in the Czech Republic for more than 12 months over the last 3 years before the call deadline.

Do I need to find the research group/supervisor before applying to MERIT?

 
Yes. All the research groups and corresponding supervisors listed on the MERIT website are ready to host a MERIT fellow. Find out more about the supervisor’s profile and the related research group activities in order to make sure that your research proposal is in line with the research group activities, projects and infrastructure. After your own search, contact the supervisor or the MERIT Management Board to obtain endorsement regarding the feasibility of your project. Please note that the supervisors shall not be involved in the development of the content of your research proposal.

How do I get confirmation of the feasibility (endorsement)?

 
There are 2 ways to get such confirmation of the feasibility (endorsement): 1. The applicant contacts the prospective supervisor or the group leader of the chosen research group listed on the MERIT website (by email, phone or other mean), describe his/her research qualifications and experience and send an abstract of the proposed project. The supervisor should provide feedback to the candidate within 7 calendar days. If the prospective supervisor does not respond to the applicant´s request in 7 days, the applicant should contact the MERIT Management Board immediately. 2. The applicant contacts the MERIT Management Board at info@meritcb.eu, describe his/her research qualifications and experience, send an abstract of the proposed project and the name of the chosen research group/s or supervisor/s listed on the MERIT website. The Management Board will ensure the supervisor´s feedback regarding the feasibility of the research abstract. The research abstract will be anonymised. The applicants who prefer to avoid direct communication with the Host organisation can proceed this way. For more information see the Guide for applicants, point 5.2.

What kind of support can I get during the application process?

 
The Info Session and Training How to write a competitive proposal are planned for applicants within the second call. The dates of the sessions are 12th March (Info session) and 19th March (training). Register for both sessions in the section Events. In addition to these events, email or online consultations are offered to all candidates. If you are interested in such support, contact the Management Board at info@meritcb.eu.

What is the evaluation criteria for research proposals?

 

Phase 1 – Criteria for written evaluation (research proposals)

Excellence
  1. Quality and pertinence of the project’s research and innovation objectives (and the extent to which they are ambitious and go beyond the state-of-the-art).
  2. Soundness of the proposed methodology (including interdisciplinary approaches, the gender dimension and other diversity aspects if relevant for the research project).
  3. Quality of the two-way transfer of knowledge between the researcher and the host.
  4.  Quality and appropriateness of the researcher’s professional experience, competences and skills.
Impact
  1. Credibility of the measures to enhance the career perspectives and employability of the researcher and contribution to his/her skill development.
  2. Suitability and quality of the measures to maximise expected outcomes and impacts, as set out in the dissemination and exploitation plan, including communication activities.
  3.  Sustainability of the candidates’ research project in the Region. Opportunities to continue the research through regional/international collaboration with relevant industry or academic sectors.
Implementation
  1. Quality and effectiveness of the work plan and assessment of risks.
  2. Relevance, feasibility and benefit for the research project objectives of the planned secondment. Quality of the secondment choice in terms of at least one of the following principles: intersectorality, interdisciplinarity or international mobility.

Phase 2 – Criteria for oral interview

  1. Scientific discussion
  2. Communication ability
  3. Potential for leadership

Is it possible to update my application after submission, and would it be possible to submit additional material or correct any errors?

 
Yes. You can continuously update your application before submitting and edit as you see fit. In case you submit your application and after that you realize you need to edit or fix it, you can cancel submission of your application and edit it, but only before the call deadline. After the call deadline it will be no longer possible.

What document(s) can I present to prove I fulfil the international mobility rules?

 
During the application process, you don’t need to present evidentiary documentation. If you are selected, however, the number and types of documents you can submit is quite varied. The following would be valid: work contracts, permits, rental contracts, residence certificates, etc. Please note that each document you present must be an official document. And, if they are not in English, a copy of the original document must be provided and a translation into English must be attached.

How can I access the MERIT Application System?

 
The Online Application System is available on this link: Apply

Can I contact the supervisor of the research group that I am interested in to present a project proposal before applying?

 
Yes. You should contact the prospective supervisor in order to receive an endorsement with regard to the technical feasibility of your research project. In case the supervisor finds your research project not feasible within the chosen research group, you are not allowed to submit your application or must contact another research group- It is required to upload an email confirming feasibility/match of your project with the research group activities to the online application system. However, the future supervisor or the co-supervisor from the secondment organisation shall not give any scientific judgement of your proposal or be involved in the development of the content of your research proposal (an acceptable involvement will be only for the framing of the research topic and confirming the feasibility of the project within the research group).

Is it mandatory to submit a proposal with a research group that appears on the MERIT website?

 
Yes. To see the complete list of research groups you can follow this link.

Are applicants from all nationalities eligible to apply to MERIT?

 
Yes. MERIT welcomes applicants from all over the world, as long as they fulfil the eligibility requirements.
2 calls
30 fellowships
30 months