Short and Exchange Visits

Deadlines: continuous application

Micro-DICE has an annual budget of about 20,000 € to fund short visits (up to 15 days) and exchange visits (15 days to 3 months). These travel grants are aimed in particular at young scientists, to allow them to visit other institutions for analyses, experiments or other activities in line with the aims of Micro-DICE, namely to advance our knowledge of the dynamic behaviour of ice, based on the philosophy that:

  • The predictive value of small- and large-scale models of ice behaviour under changing conditions relies on a correct description of ice properties and their evolution.
  • Grain-scale processes (microstructure) strongly influence the properties of ice, and hence, better understanding of dynamic grain-scale processes in ice is needed

Level of funding:

  • A maximum of 500 € for travel to and from the host institute
  • According to the length of the visit, a daily, weekly or monthly allowance of respectively 85, 400 and 1600 Euros.
  • Please note that research or any other expenses (e.g. insurance) are not funded

Application procedure:

Applications for short visits can be submitted online.
The application should include:

  • A description of the intended work and how it fits into the aims of Micro-DICE (maximum 2 pages)
  • A CV of the applicant (maximum 2 pages)

Application for exchange visits can be submitted online.
The application should include:

  • Title and description of the intended project (work plan), scientific motivation and justification with particular reference to the aims of Micro-DICE and the benefits to the programme (maximum 4 pages)
  • A letter of recommendation from someone familiar with the applicant’s work
  • A letter of acceptance from the host at the receiving institute
  • A CV of the applicant (maximum 2 pages), including the 5 most relevant recent publications.

Please note that applications can only be submitted via the ESF homepage (links given above) and that the above information should be uploaded in a single .PDF or .DOC document that does not exceed 5 Mbyte.

Review and decision procedure:

All applications that are received before the deadline will be distributed to the members of the Steering Committee for review. The applications will be ranked according to the following criteria:

  • The compatibility of the work with the aims and activities of Micro-DICE
  • The scientific quality of the proposed work
  • The scientific quality of the applicant
  • The scientific quality of the host scientist(s) and institution
  • Career level and origin of applicant. Early-career scientists are particularly encouraged to apply, as are scientists from Eastern European and non-European countries
  • Benefit of the work to the applicant and his/her home institution

All applications must also comply with any guidelines of the ESF (Appendix F, page 18), such as:

  • The proposed host institution must be in a European country different from the applicant’s home institution
  • The applicant must intend to return to his/her home institution after completion of the visit
  • The proposal must be submitted before the deadline.

Results of the review will be announced by mid April. A first payment of 80% of the proposed budget will normally be made in advance of the travel. Final payment is conditional on submission of a final scientific report and submission of all documents required by the ESF, all to be approved by the Steering Committee. By accepting a travel grant, the applicant agrees to:

  • submit a scientific report, normally within one month after completion of the project
  • transfer copyright of the report to Micro-DICE and allow it to publish it on its website and any other publications or reports
  • acknowledge the financial support by the Micro-DICE Research Networking Programme in any publications that may result from the travel grant