The results of the POLS call to support research mobility

The results of the POLS call, co-funded from the Norway Grants, are now in. Foreign researchers will receive more than 30.5 million PLN in funding for research projects to be carried out in Polish research centres.

POLS is a scheme designed to support researcher mobility, implemented in the form of small grants awarded to international researchers who wish to conduct their research in Poland. The arrival of both well-established and promising researchers with at least a PhD degree is expected to contribute to strengthening the research potential of Polish institutions. The grants (ranging from 100 to 200 thousand euro) can go towards the costs of research team salaries, equipment depreciation or purchase, materials and services, research trips and conferences, as well as other project-related expenses. The projects may take 12 or 24 months to complete. In justified cases, their duration can be extended, but they must all be completed before 30 April 2024.

The call attracted 99 proposals totalling more than 74 million PLN, 39 of which were recommended for funding: 21 in physical sciences and engineering (ST), 8 in life sciences (NZ) and 10 in the arts, humanities and social sciences (HS). In total, the winners will receive more than 30.5 million PLN, 85% of which will be funded from the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2014-2021 and 15% from domestic sources. The POLS call encompassed all disciplines of science, as specified in the list of NCN panels, with a special emphasis on polar research and social science studies. The final ranking lists of recommended projects feature three polar research proposals and ten social science projects.

The proposals were reviewed by international expert panels. Three panels were appointed, one for each group of sciences (HS, NZ, ST), and researchers from Poland and Norway were barred from the review process. Each project was evaluated by three experts. The final list of successful projects was approved by the “Basic Research” Programme Committee, while the funding decision was issued by the NCN Director.

“The Programme Committee appreciated the high quality of the proposals and considers the call a success, despite initial fears that it might be difficult to attract excellent international researchers to Polish research centres. At least ten more projects fully deserved to receive funding but, unfortunately, our budget proved insufficient”, says Professor Zbigniew Błocki, NCN Director.

The results of the POLS call

POLS is one of three calls funded under the third edition of the EEA and Norway Grants 2014-2021 within the framework of the “Research” programme, in which the NCN serves as the operator responsible for basic research, with an allocation of 40% of its budget of more than 129 million euro. The “Research” programme is designed to support Polish science by, for instance, giving it an international dimension, boosting the effectiveness of EU and ERC applications, and intensifying cooperation between science, business and society.

We also wish to announce that the decisions concerning submitted proposals, both those accepted and those rejected, will be dispatched today in electronic form to the address of the Electronic Inbox (ESP ePUAP) provided in the application from. Should you fail to receive your decision, please verify that the ESP address you provided is correct. If not, contact the person in charge of your proposal, as listed in the ZSUN/OSF system.