About
The ERC, set up by the European Union in 2007, is the premier European funding organisation for excellent frontier research. It funds creative researchers of any nationality and age, to run projects based across Europe.
The ERC offers 4 core grant schemes: Starting Grants, Consolidator Grants, Advanced Grants and Synergy Grants. With its additional Proof of Concept Grant scheme, the ERC helps grantees to explore the innovation potential of their ideas or research results. From 2026, it introduces ERC Plus Grants.
The ERC is led by an independent governing body, the Scientific Council. Since 1 November 2021, Maria Leptin is the President of the ERC.
The overall ERC budget from 2021 to 2027 is more than €16 billion, as part of the Horizon Europe programme, under the responsibility of the European Commissioner for Start-ups, Research and Innovation, Ekaterina Zaharieva.
Our mission
The ERC’s mission is to encourage the highest quality research in Europe through competitive funding and to support investigator-driven frontier research across all fields, based on scientific excellence.
News:
29 Apr 2026
ERC Scientific Council readjusts rules for reapplication
The ERC Scientific Council has listened to the concerns from members of the research community about the recent announcement on changes to the re-submission rules. The changes, intended to manage the surge in demand for ERC grants, pertain to calls…
16 Apr 2026
Applying for an ERC grant in the 2027 competitions: what you need to know
The ERC plans to launch the grant competitions under its 2027 Work Programme between July 2026 and June 2027, with the calls for proposals introducing several changes to the eligibility rules for applications.
16 Apr 2026
ERC President explains stricter application measures amid rising demand for funding
The text of an open letter sent by ERC President Maria Leptin to ERC panel members, grantees and other stakeholders on 16 April 2026.
7 Apr 2026
Microbial hockey: ISTA scientists discover how bacteria rotate tiny pucks and create unusual materials
At the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA), researchers resemble blacksmiths as they work with bacteria. When placed in water, E. coli help form gel-like aggregates and, as now demonstrated by the Materiali Molli Lab, can rotate tiny…
25 Mar 2026
ERC highlights actions to close Europe’s research performance gap
The European Research Council (ERC) has released a new white paper examining the persistent gap in participation and success rates between Europe’s strongest research systems and a group of countries performing less well, the ‘widening countries’…
24 Mar 2026
Antiprotons from CERN antimatter factory make their first road trip
Today, scientists at the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) have transported a device containing antiprotons by truck across the laboratory’s main site, showing a new way to handle these particles. Researchers will use this capability…
24 Mar 2026
ERC clarifies limits on AI use in grant evaluation
The ERC Scientific Council has adopted new guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence in the evaluation of grant proposals. The guidelines aim to safeguard the integrity of peer review while allowing limited use of AI where it does not…
16 Mar 2026
Decades-old chemistry mystery solved as elusive molecule is caught for the first time
Scientists in Sweden and the US reported the first-ever direct observation of a type of short-lived molecule that has shaped decades of thinking in atmospheric chemistry, combustion research and biomedical science.
Upcoming events
8:15-9:30
Joint session on Frontier Science around the UN Forum on Science, Technology & Innovation for SDGs
The Delegation of the European Union (EU) to the United Nations (UN) in New York, the European Research Council (ERC) and the International Science Council (ISC) are jointly organising a side event around the UN Multi-stakeholder Forum on Science,…
New York
9 May2026
10:00-18:00
Science in action: Celebrate Europe Day with the ERC
On 9 May 2026, the European Institutions will once again open their doors to the public to celebrate Europe Day, and the European Research Council will be there to welcome visitors in Brussels. From 10.00 to 18.00, you will have the opportunity to…
Berlaymont building, Rue de la Loi 200 / Wetstraat 200, 1000 Bruxelles / Brussels
19 – 24 May2026
14:30-21:15
ERC at Copernicus Festival 2026
The Copernicus Festival, held annually in Kraków, Poland, is a major interdisciplinary science event open to the public that brings together researchers and thinkers to explore fundamental questions. The 2026 edition, dedicated to the theme of …
Museum of Engineering and Technology, Krakow, Poland, and online
Science Festival
Past events
9:00-15:00
ERC grantees at Science is Wonderful! – 2026 edition
`Science is Wonderful!` is an annual science fair organized by the European Commission that brings the world of cutting-edge research to pupils and students from primary and secondary schools. Every year, this three-day event, free and open to all,…
Maison de la Poste, Brussels, Belgium
5 – 8 March2026
9:00-17:00
ERC at the MIT European Career Fair
The European Research Council will participate in the 30th Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) European Career Fair, taking place in Cambridge, MA, from 5 to 8 March 2026.Organised by the MIT European Club, the MIT European Career Fair (ECF)…
Cambridge, MA, USA
12 – 14 February2026
8:00-20:30
AAAS Annual Meeting 2026
The event celebrates discovery and embraces the challenge of implementing science and policy by examining evidence-based policy innovation. The theme ‘Science @ Scale’ aims to bring communities of scientists, policymakers, and citizentry to work…
Phoenix, AZ
Scientific Conference
Are you a talented early-career scientist who has already produced excellent supervised work, is ready to work independently and shows potential to be a research leader? The ERC Starting Grant could be for you. Link: https://erc.europa.eu/apply-grant/starting-grant
Source: https://erc.europa.eu/homepage
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