A record number of these grants – 40 percent – were awarded to women this time. Dutch scientists were awarded 35 starting grants this year. One of these Dutch ERC grants went to the Erasmus MC, while another went to the Erasmus School of Social and Behavioural Sciences (ESSB).
At EUR, doctor-scientist Rebekka Schneider and associate professor Renske Keizer will be receiving research grants worth €1.5 million. Schneider will use the money to conduct research on myelofibrosis. Keizer is conducting research on the way in which fathers emotionally and cognitively affect their children’s development. She was also awarded a Vidi grant last May.
Three thousand proposals
More than three thousand proposals were submitted this year, 406 of which (i.e., 13 percent) were honoured by ERC. The total value of all the research grants awarded is €605 million, which is €120 million more than the total amount awarded in 2016. Scientists with two to seven years’ research experience following the completion of their PhD are eligible for ERC starting grants.
