With Sinergia, the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) aims to make collaborative projects in independent research possible. Funding will be given to interconnected projects consisting of at least 3 to a maximum of 6 research groups. The groups will jointly tackle a proposed topic which taps into a very promising new area of research and/or is at the cutting-edge of international research. The programme is geared towards research teams working within one discipline as well as for interdisciplinary projects.
General Conditions
Research groups may be based at various universities or research centres in Switzerland. One of the research groups may be outside Switzerland if the expertise is required and no other group in the country can supply this at a sufficiently high level.
The applying groups assign one applicant to legally represent them at the SNSF. This person must work at a university or a research centre in Switzerland.
Applications must include an overall, joint research plan, specific work schedules for sub projects, and a description of how the groups will collaborate. Each sub project has its own detailed budget. The joint budget can include costs related to the collaboration between the groups. Funding will be granted for a maximum of 36 months.
The research plan and the CVS must be written in English. Exceptions can be accorded prior to submission upon request to the administrative office of the SNSF (see contacts).
Assessment Criteria
Applications will be peer reviewed by external experts and must meet the SNSF regulations governing the granting of funding. In addition, the following specific criteria will be applied to Sinergia applications by the National Research Council of the SNSF:
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Added value provided by the joint research approach
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Selection of the involved groups (complementarities, coherency of the collaboration, etc.)
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Organisation of the collaboration between the involved groups
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Influence of the collaboration on the qualification of junior researchers
Application Documents and Call for Applications
Application deadlines are the same as for project funding (1 March and 1 October).