The Seed Fund intends to support exploration and development of attractive and diverse activities and projects, to help secure either additional funds for a project or to carry out joint, ambitious and innovative ideas within the alliance.
Apply to Unite! Seed Fund 2024
Annually, there is one Unite! Seed Fund call for funding measures in Teaching & Learning and Research & PhD and bi-annual calls for funding measures in Student Activities.
The current application call is open from 15 January until 15 March 2024.
Required documents to apply:
Unite! Seed Fund Initiative
The aim of Unite! is to be an innovative, collaborative, inclusive and sustainable alliance. Through its ambition to realise excellence in education, research, and innovation by creating new opportunities, the alliance invites the entire Unite! community (Teaching staff, Teaching and learning units, Researchers and research Units, Students and student associations) to send proposals of collaborative projects for its second round of seed funding.The funding is open to all subjects and topics and aims to cater to in-person, hybrid, and purely digital formats.
- Teachers (Professors, academic staff)
- Teaching & Learning units
- Doctoral Researchers
- Early-career Researchers (e.g., Post-docs, Ad-hoc lecturer/professor etc.)
- Research Units (i.e., Doctoral Schools/programmes, Research centres, PhD communities etc.)
- Tenured Researchers (e.g., Professors, Associate Professors etc.)
- Under- and Postgraduate students (including PhD Students) can apply. They need to ensure student status until the end of the project.
- Student organisations/associations
- Units and service centres of Unite! Universities (such as sports unions, language centres etc.)
Personnel costs should be included with clear justification (e.g., organisational tasks, conceptualising, preparatory work, accrediting, applying, setting up conditions).
Travel expenses (sustainable modes of travel preferred, Erasmus+ mobility schemes should be used wherever possible).
Other costs that can be funded include material resources, research consumables, on-site/blended workshops, external service providers (e.g., moderators, language services). Acquisition of large technical equipment and replacement of standard equipment is excluded. A small budget should be planned in the expenses if you intend to use the Unite!'s Metacampus . For any questions, please contact the Metacampus support team metacampus@unite-university.eu.
In general, overhead costs cannot be included in the budget plan. In case this poses problems as to the internal regulations of your institution, please contact your Unite! Key Laison Officer (KLO) as well as the Unite! Seed Fund management at seedfund@unite-university.eu.
- Staff cost for teaching or grants/stipends for students are not funded.
- Costs for PhD or Post-doc stipends are not funded.
- Student grants or remuneration are not funded.
- Applications must comprise of research/academic staff or teachers or teaching units from at least three Unite! member universities.
- Only a max. of 50% of the funding can be allocated to one partner in the project.
- For the establishment of new study programs: Distinction from existing study programs, presentation of the complementary added value as well as a declaration that sufficient personnel and material resources are available for the implementation and execution of the new study program.
- Applications must comprise of at least students or student organisations from two Unite! Member universities.
- A single partner shall not receive more than 50% of the total funding.
- Letter of support issued by the dean of studies of the participating departments of the universities.
- If you are affiliated with ULisboa, it is mandatory for you to contact your Key Liaison Officers (KLO) for guidance as to the letter of support.
- Letter of support issued by the student organisations, department/unit heads wherever deemed necessary.
- You must contact your university’s Unite! Student Liaison Officers (SLO) and ask for guidance as to these letters of support. If you are affiliated with ULisboa, you must also include your Key Liaison Officers (KLO) .
More information
- For inquiries, interested candidates can email Konrad Löbcke or Dr. Anshika Suri at: seedfund@unite-university.eu .
- For Teaching and Learning & Research and PhD proposals, please contact your university’s Key Liaison Officers (KLO) for application form guidance on how to clearly present your ideas and follow proper regulations. If you are affiliated with ULisboa, contacting your Key Liaison Officer is mandatory.
- For Student Activity proposals, please contact your university’s Unite! Student Liaison Officers (SLO) for application form guidance on how to clearly present your ideas and follow proper regulations.