The ERC Starting Grant 2026 call has just closed, with over 4807 proposals submitted. With key changes announced for 2027, now is the time to plan ahead. ERC StG 2027 represents a strategic opportunity for early-career researchers.

ERC StG supports talented early-career scientists who have already produced excellent supervised work. Applicants should have already shown evidence of potential for research independence (e.g. one important publication as main author or without the participation of their PhD supervisor).

New from this call:
- The eligibility window has been extended from 7 to 10 years after the PhD. Researchers applying within 10 years from their PhD defence are considered eligible.
- Applicants may receive only 1 ERC Starting Grant and 1 ERC Consolidator Grant in their career.

ERC funds researchers with an excellent track record, which is assessed based on field norms, career stage & personal circumstances, prioritizing quality over quantity. List up to 10 key outputs showcasing your contribution to the SoA. Previous grants & publications are not automatically advantages.

ERC funds frontier research in any discipline. It welcomes proposals addressing new and emerging fields of research, or introducing unconventional, innovative approaches and scientific inventions. Applicants must demonstrate the ground-breaking nature, ambition and feasibility of their proposal.

Internal candidates without a professorial position and external ones must submit their candidature to servizio.ricerca@usi.ch by 7 January:

• eligibility form,
• CV + publication list,
• motivation letter,
• letter/s of support from USI professor/s.

The procedure lasts approx. 2 months.

Up to € 1.5M for a period of 5 years (pro rata for shorter duration) with an extra €1M possible for start-up costs, major equipment or facilities and other significant project-related costs (€2M for researchers moving to EU).
Budget must include 25% overheads. Co-funding is not required.

Proposals are evaluated by selected international peer reviewers and by discipline-specific panels in a two-step evaluation procedure. Selected applicants are invited for an online interview taking place in early summer 2027. Final results are expected in September 2027.

Check out the projects funded in the latest ERC call. The ERC database lets you filter by discipline and access project abstracts. A helpful way to identify the most suitable panel for your proposal.