VISESS Research Funds

Funding during the research phase of your doctoral studies

The VISESS Research Funds aim to support active VISESS students during the research phase of their doctoral studies. PhD students who have successfully passed their public presentation (“FÖP”) can apply for need-based funds to a maximum of 500€ per year for the duration of 3 years. The funds can be used for research-related costs, including but not limited to travel expenses to conferences, workshops, research- or field trips, fees for summer or winter schools, self-organised workshops and more. Submission is possible on a rolling basis with a minimum lead time of 4 weeks before the start of the planned activity.

Minimal requirements

  • Applicants must be enrolled in the DSPL45 doctoral programme, be a VISESS student member and have agreed to the Code of Good Practice.
  • Applicants must have successfully passed the FÖP within the first 2 semesters after registration, have submitted their dissertation agreement, and since then have submitted their annual progress reports (this applies strictly for students who started after 01.03.2023).
  • Applicants must show active and regular participation in VISESS activities, i.e.
    - minimum 75% participation in the VISESS Seminar over 2 semesters during the time of their doctoral studies
    - co-organisation of one Big Picture Talk or Event during the time of their doctoral studies
  • Applicants need to first use other available funding sources (such as funding opportunities through project funds or other relevant alternative funding opportunities).

Regulations

  • Submission is possible on a rolling basis with a minimum lead time of 4 weeks before the start of the planned activity.
  • PhD students can apply for a maximum funding amount of up to 500€ per year for the duration of three years after they have passed their “FÖP” (i.e. in total up to 1.500€ during their doctoral studies).
  • The first application can be submitted after the FÖP has been passed.
  • Funding is only possible within a total study duration of 4 years.
  • If a PhD student has taken a leave of absence from studies officially recognised by UNIVIE, eligibility is extended by the number of semesters during which the PhD student was on officially granted leave.
  • In justified cases, such as cost-intensive long-term stays abroad, PhD students can apply for the pooling of funds of two or three years in advance. It is not possible to pool funds retrospectively or to apply retrospectively for funds that were not used in the past.
  • The recipient of the funds must acknowledge the support from VISESS in suitable form, e.g. add a funding statement ("This project has received financial support from VISESS”) and – if applicable – use the VISESS logo.
  • There is no legal entitlement to funding, neither on the merits nor in terms of the funding amount.
  • Due to the administrative effort, applications for less than 100€ cannot be taken into consideration.

Use of Funds

  • The Research Funds can be used for research-related expenses such as
    • Travel expenses
    • Fees for conferences, summer or winter schools
    • Software and equipment
    • Proofreading, binding of the thesis
    • Language courses, in case they are research-related
    • Literature, if it is not available at the UNIVIE library
  • All made or planned expenses need to be specified with regard to their research relevance in the application.
  • The recipients of the funds need to provide evidence of all expenses by submitting invoices and proof of payment. Lump sums cannot be considered for funding.
  • Expenses for meals are not eligible (exceptions: overnight stays including breakfast and so-called "conference dinners" for networking purposes).
  • Expenses must be in line with the UNIVIE Sustainability Strategy. With regard to mobility expenses, we recommend using the train for trips to destinations that can be reached by train within six hours. Note that if a travel by flight is charged with an UNIVIE flight levy, the flight levy might need to be covered with the funds (More).
  • The Research Funds cannot be used to cover living expenses, tuition fees or staff employment.

Application process

  • Through an application form (.docx / .pages), applicants need to provide
    • Information to show fulfilment of minimal requirements
    • Overview of spent or planned costs
    • Specification of research relevance
    • Clarification that no other funds can be used
  • Applicants can submit their application (one PDF file) online. Once the application is submitted, no changes can be made.
  • All complete applications that fulfil the criteria will be considered for funding. Applications will undergo an eligibility check by the admin coordinator.
  • Candidates will be informed of their application's approval or rejection within 4 weeks after submission and, if approved, will be informed about the next steps.

Reimbursement process

  • The applicant applies for funding through VISESS.
  • VISESS checks the eligibility of the applications and informs the applicant about the application's approval or rejection and, if approved, about the next steps to be taken.
  • If an application is approved, the applicant must apply for reimbursement of the expenses for the approved project through the subunit in a timely manner (be aware that travel expense requests must be submitted latest within six months and possibly in the same calendar year). The sub-unit pre-finances the amount approved by VISESS through the global budget cost centre and assists the applicant with the reimbursement. The reimbursement process follows the respective subunit-specific practices.
  • Of the expenses actually incurred, VISESS will refund up to the (maximum) agreed amount of funding to the global budget cost centre of the subunit following the submission of a half-year report.

Links

Contact

In case of questions, please contact Martina Egger (E-Mail: admin.visess@univie.ac.at , Phone: +43-1-4277-53009).