SNSF Starting Grants (SNSF StG) play a key role in the career of early-stage researchers. With a success rate of just 10%, applicants must translate scientific excellence and groundbreaking ideas into a compelling and convincing proposal.

SNSF StG enables researchers to lead their own research project and team at a Swiss research institution. Applicants must demonstrate clear evidence of scientific independence, such as publications as main authors and/or independent from their PhD supervisor.

• 2-8 yrs after PhD + min. 2 yrs of research work, or 5-12 yrs after MD + min. 2 yrs of research work + min. 3 yrs of clinical work,
• CH nationality or PhD from CH institution or min. 2 yrs of research work at a CH institution,
• Excluded if already significant third-party funding and/or team.

External and internal candidates must send eligibility form, CV + publication list, motivation letter & letter/s of support from USI professor/s to Servizio Ricerca (servizio.ricerca@usi.ch) by 13 January 2027 to obtain the institutional support. The internal procedure lasts approx. 2 months.

The grant covers the PI’s salary + CHF 1 million for a 5-year project, funding personnel (PhD students, postdocs, research assistants) and research costs (travel, conferences, Open Research Data, equipment). Additional funding is reserved for excellent female applicants.

• One resubmission allowed
• Parallel ERC applications allowed; no double funding
• No overlapping SNSF applications (except NRPs/NCCRs)
• Ambizione applicants (3 Nov 2026) excluded from StG 2027
• Lead Agency, Weave and ICCS grants compatible

The evaluation process has 2 phases. First, SNSF panel members rank proposals based on their ground-breaking nature and scientific approach. Top-ranked proposals advance to phase 2, where international peer reviewers assess them and candidates are invited for an interview.

Browse through past-approved projects, filtering by discipline and year. Abstracts are also available.