The Foundation supports projects with high scientific potential. Projects should be focused on a coherent research question where the complementary competencies of the participating scientists gives new possibilities to attack the chosen research question.
Projects normally have a budget of between SEK 15 million and SEK 40 million. Projects can have a duration of three to five years.
High-priority projects include new research areas and research that is interdisciplinary in nature.
A project must have a freestanding purpose and not merely constitute auxiliary funding for current operations or other projects in progress. For subjects in which research is generic in nature, such as mathematics, a project can consist of joint concept development.
During the period 2010 to 2022, the Foundation has granted almost SEK 8 billion in project grants.
Application period
The application period for 2026 begins Januari 7. Last day of application February 1 at 1:00 pm.
Nominations for the program
Swedish Universities are allowed to nominate projects according to the list below. 40 % of the nominated projects must be led by a researcher from the underrepresented gender.
| University | Number of nominations |
| Karolinska Institutet | 15 |
| Uppsala University | 15 |
| Lund University | 15 |
| Stockholm University | 15 |
| Chalmers University of Technology | 10 |
| KTH Royal Institute of Technology | 10 |
| University of Gothenburg | 10 |
| Umeå University | 10 |
| Linköping University | 10 |
| Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences |
5 |
| Luleå University of Technology | 5 |
| Others | 2 |
Guidelines for research projects with high scientific potential
Vice-chancellor’s letter of support
According to Foundation rules, the vice-chancellor or the equivalent must approve the application. A separate appendix signed by the vice-chancellor (or the person designated by the vice-chancellor to represent him or her) must be attached to the application. The vice-chancellor must certify that the project application has undergone internal prioritization and that faculty resources will be made available to the researcher(s), in cases where such resources are accounted for in the budget submitted. Furthermore, the vice-chancellor must certify that indirect costs beyond those approved by the Foundation will be covered by the university and that indirect project costs will be accounted for in accordance with the established model.
- The Foundation supports investigator-initiated projects of the highest international standard
- The Foundation primarily grants funding in natural sciences, technology and medicine
- Projects in other disciplines may receive support on the condition that they are related to research questions of relevance to natural sciences, technology and medicine
- An application can be made by a project group consisting of two to five researchers who collaborate in a project that focuses on a coherent academic research question
- The overall competence of the group will be evaluated by the Foundation, i.e. not the PI and the co-investigators one by one
- PIs must have a long-term association with a Swedish institution of higher education, and spend at least 70 % of their position and working time in Sweden. Co-investigators must spend at least 50 % of their position and working time in Sweden.
- Projects are prioritized where there are obvious that the complementing competences of the researchers make it possible to address hypotheses and research questions, where a single researcher would have had difficult to address on his own
- For subjects in which research is generic in nature, such as mathematics, a project may consist of joint concept development
- Project allocations must not primarily constitute auxiliary funding for current operations or other projects in progress
- The research must be undertaken at a Swedish institution of higher education but otherwise there are no limits regarding the localization of research groups in terms of organization or geography
- Project normally have a budget of between SEK 15 million and SEK 40 million. Projects can have a duration of three to five years. Grants for equipment necessary to the project are approved through financing of depreciation costs. Up to 20% of the awarded amount can be used for indirect costs and rent
- An individual researcher is only allowed to participate in two ongoing projects, and act as a PI on one of these
- Research funded by the Foundation must be published with open access, i.e. published articles must be archived in open searchable databases. The respective university's rules apply to open access
- A letter of support from the vice-chancellor must be attached to the application
- When an application isn’t approved for granting, the application cannot be submitted again based on the same scientific question within three years. The only exception is when an application has been rejected due to lack of funding. In this case it can be submitted again during next year’s application period.
Grants for equipment are normally awarded as part of a project in which the cost of the equipment is directly related to the scientific operations of the project. Equipment is financed through depreciation, which must be calculated linearly across its entire economic/scientific life, not merely across the project period sought. Procurement must take place no later than 2 years after the project starts, and depreciation can thereby commence and be sought for 2 years longer than other costs.
Additional information
Assessment criteria for evaluation of project grants