Doctoral initiatives FAQs / Guidelines for applying

When should we apply?

Application deadlines are March 15, June 15, September 15 and December 15 of every year.

You must submit a complete application by the relevant deadline in order to be considered for funding. 

Please note that this also applies even if the deadline falls on a weekend or public holiday.

Please submit your applications according to when you wish to start receiving funding and the relevant deadline:

What should we consider when writing our application?

Your application will be reviewed by evaluators both from within and outside your research field. It is therefore important to present your project in a way that can be understood by experts who are not familiar with your field.

What do we need to consider when filling out the application form?

Please fill out the application form electronically; Do not complete it by hand. To ensure that the electronic forms work with all versions of Adobe software, we strongly recommend that you first download the blank application form, save it on your computer, then fill it in and save it again.

Please use an Apple or Windows operating system to fill out the forms. The forms are not compatible with Linux.

Please use only the space provided in the existing fields on the application forms. The evaluators will not be able to read any text that goes beyond the existing field limits.

Please do not change the formatting of the fields on the application forms.

Please send the application documents as separate attachments in your email. You do not need to merge the different documents into one PDF-file.

Do we need to submit any additional documents (e.g. publication lists, CV, etc.)?

The application procedure and the required application documents are described in detail in the section Application procedure and forms. Additional documents not listed on the website, such as publication lists, literature lists or CVs, will not be sent to the evaluators.

We do not know exactly how much the doctoral initiative will cost. Which expenses do we enter on the application form?

If you do not yet know your exact expenses, enter your best estimate on the application form. Please be aware that if you receive the grant for the doctoral initiative, the amount awarded in the grant will be based on these expenses and the maximum funding amount for a doctoral initiative of 2.500 Euro.

It will not be possible to claim more than the amount you enter on the application form.

Why do we have to specify a person or an institute that will handle the financial administration?

For administrative reasons, all applications or contracts that are required in the context of your doctoral initiative (e.g. guest lecture/internship contracts, travel expense applications) will be managed by your institute (e.g. the institute/chair of the mentor of your doctoral initiative).

Therefore, when a grant is approved, the grant amount will be paid out to the institute that has agreed to carry out the budgetary administration of the doctoral initiative. Please clarify in advance who will take over these administrative tasks and who will be the contact person for the Graduate Academy with regard to the financial processes.

Due to the university's budgetary rules, the grant cannot be paid out directly to the applicant.

What is meant by "external funding" and why are we asked about it?

"External funding" refers to funds that you have received from an external funding organization (e.g. Begabtenförderungswerke, other funding organizations) for the planned doctoral initiative. The fact that you have been awarded external funding can be of advantage to you in the evaluation process. For example, the receipt of an external grant will be treated as an award or distinction on your part.

Who can complete the evaluation form for our application?

The evaluation form for your application must be completed by the mentor of your planned doctoral initiative and submitted to the Graduate Academy. This may or may not be one of your doctoral supervisors. The mentor should be familiar with your academic qualifications and be informed about the content of the planned doctoral initiative.

If it is not possible for your mentor or doctoral supervisor to complete the evaluation form for you (e.g. due to illness, parental leave, etc.), you may ask another professor in your field who is familiar with your project to evaluate your application and complete the form for you.

Please note that the evaluations are to be treated confidentially and must be sent by your mentor directly to the Graduate Academy: ga-docs@uni-heidelberg.de.

Please note that the application deadlines also apply to the receipt of the evaluation form.

How is the grant paid out?

If a grant is approved, the approved amount will be paid directly to the institute that has agreed to take over the budgetary administration of the doctoral initiative (see the online registration form).

The institute will act on behalf of the main applicant for the financial management of the doctoral initiative and, if applicable, will employ any student assistants. The institute will administer the grant funding (e.g. paying travel expenses for external guest speakers, paying for materials, etc.). The use of the grant incurred by a doctoral is governed by the budgetary rules of Heidelberg University and the guidelines of the heiDOCs program.

The institute is required to send the Graduate Academy proof of the total expenses that were covered by the grant (Verwendungsnachweis) no later than 2 months after the doctoral initiative has been completed. If the total expenses come to less than the grant payment, the institute must reimburse the difference to the Graduate Academy. If the actual expenses exceed the maximum grant amount indicated in the awards notification, the difference cannot be covered by the grant or by the heiDOCs funding program.

What happens to our grant if we cannot carry out the initiative?

The grant is not transferable to another person or a different activity or event. Therefore, if you are unable to carry out the planned initiative, you will automatically forfeit your award.

What happens to our grant if we have to postpone the initiative or make other fundamental changes?

In this case you must contact the Graduate Academy as soon as possible in order to notify us of the changes. A decision will be made on a case-to-case basis as to whether the grant approval can be upheld in the new situation.