ČVUT Starting Grant 2026: Call for Proposals - Public web - Czech technical university in Prague

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ČVUT Starting Grant 2026: Call for Proposals

ČVUT Starting Grant
The ČVUT Starting Grant supports excellent early-career researchers with strong international experience in establishing independent research groups at the Czech Technical University in Prague. It combines competitive funding with a clear institutional commitment to develop the next generation of research leaders. The program is designed to serve as a springboard toward major international funding, such as ERC or equivalent schemes.

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OVERVIEW

The ČVUT Starting Grant (StG) is a competitive scheme for excellent early-career researchers with substantial international experience who want to establish an independent research group at the Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU). It is open to researchers currently at CTU as well as to researchers from other institutions in the Czech Republic and abroad. Our aim is to fund up to ten new research groups in the inaugural 2026 call, across all research fields represented at CTU.

The grant is structured to support real independence. It funds research projects for up to three years, with the possibility of an exceptional extension, and provides annual funding of up to CZK 4,000,000 (approx. EUR 160,000). A co-funding model between central and host-unit resources ensures institutional commitment, while applicants are not expected to secure formal host-unit commitments before applying (host matching and institutional commitments are confirmed after selection). A one-time relocation package of up to CZK 250,000 is further available to support mobility and start-up needs.

The scheme also includes built-in flexibility, including the project start date within a 12-month window and reasonable carry-over of unused funds.

What makes ČVUT StG distinct is its two-phase design: proposals are first ranked through a comprehensive evaluation process, and selected projects then enter post-selection host matching and negotiations. These negotiations ensure a clear and realistic framework for project implementation, including the PI’s employment and career-path arrangements, and are documented in the grant agreement. Funded PIs are expected to use the project as a springboard to major international funding: most notably by preparing an ERC Starting/Consolidator Grant (or equivalent) within one year after the ČVUT StG project ends.

If you are ready to launch a research direction with strong institutional backing, ČVUT StG is designed for you.

KEY DATES

  • Call opens: 02 February 2026
  • Submission deadline: 30 March 2026 (23:59 CET)
  • Shortlist decision announced by: 14 April 2026
  • Panel interviews: 11–15 May 2026
  • Results announced by: 29 May 2026
  • Post-selection negotiations concluded by: 30 June 2026
  • Project start window: start within 12 months of signing (earlier preferred; justified exceptions)

FUNDING

Annual cap and budget logic (2026 call)

  • Annual cap: CZK 4,000,000 (approx. EUR 160,000) per project per year (total eligible costs; CTU Future Fund + host unit combined).
  • Applicants submit budgets as total eligible project costs. The co-funding split is not part of the proposal and is confirmed after selection.

Eligible cost categories

Use the scheme categories and overhead rule:

  • Personnel (including PI salary; team salaries; student employment and/or scholarships)
  • Operational costs / services / travel
  • Investments (capital expenditure)
  • Overheads (up to 20% of eligible direct costs; base excludes investments)

Child/dependent-care costs

Eligible as reimbursed documented costs of formal childcare or dependent-care services required to enable project work by the PI or project team members, up to CZK 150,000 per project year (project total, per year).

Relocation package (one-time; outside the annual cap)

Where provided under this call:

  • reimbursed against documented costs, normally within the first 12 months after project start;
  • funded at 100% by the CTU Future Fund; and
  • does not count toward the annual cap.

Project duration and the “+1 year”

  • Standard maximum duration: 3 years.
  • One exceptional extension up to +1 year may be granted once, primarily as a bridging/continuity mechanism; unless explicitly stated otherwise, it is no-cost (no increase in approved funding volume).

Two common tracks (use-cases) under the same rule:

  • No-cost time extension: for justified interruptions/delays (e.g., parental leave, caring responsibilities, illness), typically with timeline adjustment.
  • Bridging/continuity year: an optional planned continuity year to complete the project’s core outcomes and bridge to follow-up funding; still no-cost by default.

Applicants submit an indicative budget for the full project duration (up to 3 years); the extension is approved after the progress review by the panel.

CAREER/FAMILY-FRIENDLY DESIGN

The scheme is designed to be compatible with diverse career paths:

  • Eligibility window extensions (2026 call):
    • maternity leave: 18 months per child (or documented longer total leave, whichever is longer);
    • parental leave (other than maternity): extension by documented leave; and
    • other documented circumstances (e.g., long-term illness/injury, compulsory military service): extension by documented duration.
  • Reduced FTE can be agreed in justified cases (including parental leave/caring responsibilities), typically with a corresponding timeline adjustment (agreed in the grant agreement).
  • Flexible start date within the start window may be set/deferred on justified request (e.g., relocation, visa procedures).
  • Child/dependent-care costs included among eligible project costs.
  • Evaluation fairness: productivity is assessed in the context of effective research time, part-time appointments, and documented career breaks.
  • Minor language issues must not influence scientific assessment; evaluators must be aware of potential unconscious bias.

ELIGIBILITY

You are welcome to apply if you meet all eligibility conditions in the Principles and the Call, including:

  • max 8 years after PhD at the deadline (with the extensions above),
  • substantial international experience route,
  • the commitment to take up full-time CTU employment for the project duration (justified exceptions by agreement).

SUBMISSION

Language: English.

Mandatory proposal package includes:

To ensure equal treatment and reduce admin burden, proposals must not include potentially negotiated host-unit commitments or proposed co-funding ratios.

Submission process

The submission system is intentionally split into three short forms to keep the workflow simple and to collect recommendation letters directly from referees.

  1. Form I (Application data): you enter basic applicant/project details and the emails of two referees.
    After you submit Form I, the system automatically sends:

    • you an email with the link to Form II, and
    • each referee an email with the link to Form III.

  2. Form II (Project package: applicant only): you upload the required PDFs (and any supporting documents) and submit your application package.
    You will receive a time-stamped confirmation when Form II is successfully submitted.

  3. Form III (Recommendation letters: referees only): each referee uploads their letter via the dedicated link.
    Each referee receives a time-stamped confirmation upon successful upload.

Important: Your application consists of Form I + Form II + two submitted letters (Form III). Please allow enough time for referees to upload their letters before the Call deadline.

Technical issues

If a technical issue prevents timely submission, contact submissions@cvut-starting-grant.org without undue delay; exceptionally, submissions outside the portal may be accepted to ensure equal treatment (must be recorded and time-stamped).

EVALUATION

Evaluation is carried out by an expert panel and is comparative and evidence-based, with scientific excellence as the primary consideration. Proposals are assessed against three criteria with indicative weights:

  • A (40%): Project quality, impact, and originality: novelty/ambition, contribution beyond the state of the art, sound methodology and work plan, clear deliverables, and risks with mitigation measures.
  • B (40%): PI excellence, independence, and leadership potential: quality and significance of past contributions (which may include publications, software, datasets, patents, etc.), evidence of independence, and ability to lead and develop a team.
  • C (20%): Fit with CTU and feasibility of establishing a research group: clarity and credibility of the CTU integration plan, feasibility of implementation at CTU (resources/environment), and realism of the group setup.

Scoring uses a 1–9 scale (9 Outstanding … 1 Poor). The overall assessment is not a mechanical average of the three criteria. Productivity is interpreted relative to effective research time, including part-time appointments and documented career breaks.

SELECTION

Host matching

Host matching is a separate operational step conducted after shortlisting to prepare feasible implementation. For shortlisted proposals, call administration circulates a standardized short summary and collects host-unit expressions of interest via a one-page electronic form (e.g., space/infrastructure availability and indicative employment timeline). This step does not involve the candidate and does not affect scientific scoring or the panel’s ranking.

Results, negotiations, and project start

The panel adopts a final ranking and funding recommendation. Funding is confirmed only after post-selection negotiations (initiated strictly in ranking order) conclude in a grant agreement between CTU, the host unit(s), and the PI. The grant agreement records implementation conditions (including host-unit commitments and co-funding arrangements) and sets the project start date within the start window; if negotiations cannot be concluded within the call timeframe, CTU may withdraw the offer and approach the next proposal in the ranking.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions can be found on a GitLab page.

DOWNLOADS

  • Call text (2026): PDF
  • Scientific project description: LaTeX | PDF
  • CV/Track record: LaTeX | PDF
  • Running projects and funding: (to appear soon)
  • Budget information package: PDF and template: Google Sheet
  • Recommendation letter guidelines: PDF and template: Google Doc
  • Review form: (to appear soon)
  • Instructions for applicants: PDF
  • Principles of the ČVUT Starting Grant Competition: PDF
  • Evaluation Procedure Guidelines: PDF

CONTACT

Administration (CTU Rectorate / Department of Science and Research):

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The ČVUT Starting Grant program was prepared with the time, feedback, and open resources contributed by the following people and communities.

Tool disclosure: Large language model tools (ChatGPT, GitHub Copilot, and NotebookLM) supported drafting, editing, code generation, and consistency checks. All final content was reviewed by humans.

Responsibility: Jan Zeman reviewed the final versions of all published documents and codes and takes full responsibility for any remaining errors or inconsistencies.

Note: The individuals acknowledged above contributed comments and feedback “only”. Their inclusion does not imply endorsement of the scheme.

2026 ČVUT StG Change log
Content owner: Jan Zeman