Publication grants FAQs / Guidelines for applying

When should I 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 application according to when you wish to start receiving funding:

Application deadline and earliest start of funding

• March 15        
• June 15           
• September 15   
• December 15 

The awards notifications will be sent out about 6-8 weeks after the deadlines.

Important:

• If the due date of the invoice from the external service provider falls in the 6-8-week assessment period, you will have to pay the invoice yourself and, if the grant is approved, you can only receive the grant in the form of a reimbursement paid out to you afterwards.
• The publication grant cannot be awarded retroactively for publications/proofreadings that have already been implemented.
• Applications submitted after the deadline or incomplete applications will not be considered. An application is incomplete if any documents are missing or if essential information is missing from the application form.

Why do I have to indicate the expected invoice due date on the online registration form?

For administrative processes and to coordinate the financial planning, especially when paying invoices directly to service providers, it is important for us to know approximately when the payment will be due. Please simply indicate the expected date of the invoice (at very least the month and year) in the online registration form.

Please note that invoices cannot be paid during the 8-week assessment period, as grant decisions have not yet been finalized at this point. If the due date of the invoice falls within this assessment period, you will have to pay the invoice yourself and, if the grant is approved, you will only be able to receive the grant in the form of a reimbursement paid to you afterwards.

What should I consider when writing my 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 I 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 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 I need to submit any additional documents (e.g. publication lists, CV, etc.)?

The application procedure and 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.

What is meant by "external funding" and why am I being asked about it?

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

Who can complete the evaluation form for my application?

The evaluation form for your application must be completed by your supervisor and submitted to the Graduate Academy. Please note that the evaluation is confidential and must be sent by your supervisor 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.

If it is not possible for your first 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.

How will the grant be paid?

The publication grant may be paid to you in the form of a reimbursement of the expenses already incurred, or it may be paid directly to the external service provider.

If the financial settlement of your publication grant is made directly between the external service provider and the Graduate Academy, please ensure that the the invoice(s) are submitted to the Graduate Academy as soon as possible after receipt. If the invoice amount exceeds the approved funding amount, a partial invoice for the approved funding amount must be submitted.

All publication grant information and forms are available below.

What happens to my publication grant if my dissertation is not published by the publisher indicated in my application?

The grant will only cover the publication by the publisher named in your application. If your publisher changes at any time, please contact the Graduate Academy immediately (ga-docs@uni-heidelberg.de).

What happens to my publication grant if I do not publish my dissertation or do not follow through with the proofreading within the one year period after receiving the grant?

If you do not publish your dissertation or proofread it within one year after receiving the grant, you must apply for an extension of the grant. You may only receive one extension. If the publication of your dissertation or the proofreading is delayed, please contact the Graduate Academy immediately (ga-docs@uni-heidelberg). If the dissertation is ultimately not published or the proofreading is not completed within the deadline of the final extension, the grant will expire and you will not be entitled to any replacement or compensation.

What happens to my proofreading grant if I do not have the proofreading done?

The proofreading grant is not transferable to another person or publication. Therefore, if you do not follow through with the proofreading, you will automatically forfeit your grant.