COST Action CA23121 – GENOA

Short-term scientific missions (STSMs) are exchange visits for COST action participants within their COST Action and outside of their country of work. STSMs are great opportunities for COST action members to share techniques and gain skills that may not be available at their home institution. STSM is conducted as an individual grant covering travel, accommodation, and meal expenses, for stays lasting from 5 to 90 days. Before applying, please check the rules for STSM applications within the GENOA COST action (document attached). For short guidance on how to submit STSM applications through the e-COST system, please check the STSM guide

Purpose of a Short-Term Scientific Mission

STSMs facilitate researchers and practitioners involved in  COST Action CA23121 to visit an institution, organisation or research centre in another participating COST Country or accepted International Partner Country (IPC) / Near Neighbour Country (NNC) institution, to foster collaboration and to perform empirical research supporting the COST Action.

Short-Term Scientific Missions benefit to:

i) STSM Grantee: receives funding for implementing a project with an international team and gains new knowledge or access to equipment or techniques not available in the home institution;

ii) STSM Host: receives an international partner in their institution and can develop long lasting collaborations. STSM travel grants are available for researchers actively participating in GENOA Working Groups (WG) activities and meetings. We particularly encourage participation from young researchers (<40 y) but not limited to. 

STSMs are targeted to support specific tasks and goals of GENOA, and calls for topical research will be published through the News & Views letter and the website.

Specifics

STSMs have a minimum duration of 5 days and must occur in their totality within a single granting period (which typically lasts from 1/10 to 30/09 of the next year), including the submission of the report.

The following funding conditions apply: 

  • STSM grants are capped at a total of € 4000, but lower maxima are at the discretion of the Review Committee, and may be negotiated with the candidate, depending on the available budget.

  • Up to a maximum of € 210 per day (depending on the host country) can be afforded for accommodation and meal expenses.

  • Travel costs are capped at € 600.

How to apply

GENOA announces specific calls for topical STSMs through its website and GENOA News & Views letter, which is sent to all WG members. Only applications supporting these specific calls will be considered. Each call has specific deadlines that need to be respected.

Interested parties are encouraged to contact the GENOA WG leader issuing the call and the Grant Awarding coordinator prior to submission, to ensure that the budget is still available.

THE APPLICATION PROCESS IS AS FOLLOWS:

All applicants must register on the  e-COST platform  – adding their bank account details to their profile. Instructions for how to prepare for submission can be found in the user guide.

All applicants must obtain a letter of invitation from the Host institution confirming that they can undertake the STSM on the given dates prior to submitting an application.

All applicants must complete, submit their STSM applications online within their e- COST profile at: https://e-services.cost.eu/activity/grants

The application will then be assessed by the STSM Committee using a standard score sheet (Evaluation criteria) against the perceived contribution that the proposed visit will make against the scientific objectives outlined in the Action’s Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)  (see also Annex to this document).

The STSM committee consists of the STSM Coordinator, the Action Chair/Vice Chair, one member from each WG1-WG5 and the WG leader/co-leader under which the STSM is organized.

The applicant will be formally notified of the outcome of their application by the Grant Awarding Coordinator within 3 weeks of application.

Within 30 days from the end date of the STSM or 15 days after the end of the Grant Period, whichever date comes first, the successful applicant must submit a report of the activities through the e-COST platform (as per the user guide), outlining the work carried out during the STSM, the main achievements and planned future follow-up activities.

Grantees should also submit a short video describing their STSMs. This will be shared with all members of GENOA.

The applicant is also responsible for acquiring an official acceptance letter / email confirmation of acceptance from a senior researcher affiliated to the Host institution formally accepting the scientific report. This formal acceptance of the scientific report has to be also sent to the STSM Coordinator.

Failure to submit the scientific report within 30 days from the end date of the STSM will effectively cancel the Grant.

Evaluation criteria

Each STSM proposal will be evaluated according to the following six criteria:

  • Connection to the objectives of GENOA (as per the topical call) (40%)
  • Scientific quality (25%)
  • Output (potential publications) (20%)
  • Involvement of inclusiveness target countries (ITCs) (5%)
  • Gender balance (5%)
  • Young Researcher (5%)