STARS EU launches second seed grant call to support research and innovation project proposals

STARS EU has launched its second seed grant call, aimed at promoting collaborative research and innovation projects among the nine partner universities of the alliance. This initiative seeks to facilitate the preparation of competitive proposals for European programmes such as Horizon Europe and the upcoming FP10, through specialised advisory services and financial support.

The purpose of these grants — available from May 2025 until March 2026 — is to support researchers, early-career researchers, and PhD candidates in building international consortia and drafting project proposals. The projects must be aligned with the STARS EU Priority Areas and include a minimum of three alliance partner universities. Preference will be given to multi- and cross-disciplinary research initiatives.

Each participating university may receive up to EUR 3,000 for RIA, IA and Cofund calls, and EUR 2,000 for CSA actions. The funding may be used to cover costs related to international consortium meetings, travel for external partners, external consultancy services, support for specific proposal writing, proofreading, and document design.

To address any queries, the alliance has organised a series of informative activities, including several webinars and explanatory documents. The first webinar will be held on 17 June at 12:00 (CET) and will be led by Carl-Fredrik Miles, member of the STARS EU Steering Committee and project manager for STARS EU at University West. Interested participants can join the event via the following link: https://hv-se.zoom.us/my/carlfredrikmiles

Application process

Applications may be submitted on a rolling basis, up to three months before the submission deadline of the targeted European call. Proposals must be sent in PDF format, not exceeding four pages, and must include a detailed budget. Submissions should be emailed to: starseu@org.hanze.nl

The STARS EU Funding Expert Group will evaluate the submitted proposals based on specific criteria, including clarity of the project idea, relevance, feasibility, and multi-disciplinarity, among other aspects. Once the proposals are assessed, the committee will notify applicants of its decision within a maximum of three weeks.

Funding will be disbursed only after the official submission of the proposal via the relevant Horizon Europe or FP10 portal, together with a financial report and a copy of the submitted application.

With this second call, STARS EU reaffirms its commitment to promoting research excellence, international collaboration, and access to European funding, in line with the alliance’s priorities on energy transition, digitalisation, and sustainable regional development.

For further information and to access the full call guidelines, click here: Guidelines for STARS EU Seed Grant.

Contact: starseu@hv.se