The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) is Germany's largest independent research funding organization. The DFG funds and promotes research in all disciplines and fields, from the humanities and social sciences to the natural and life sciences, engineering, and mathematics.
DFG operates under scientific excellence, academic freedom, and the merit-based selection of research proposals. It is primarily funded by the German federal government and the states, and a panel makes its decisions on funding allocations of independent experts.
The DFG provides funding for individual research projects, collaborative research centers, training groups, and international research collaborations. It also supports the development of research infrastructure, the establishment of research networks, and the promotion of early-career researchers.
The DFG is an important player in the German research landscape and has played a key role in promoting the country's position as a leading research nation.
The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) funds various programs to support research in all disciplines and fields. Some of the main programs offered by the DFG include:
Individual Grants: The DFG funds individual researchers to carry out independent research projects in all fields.
Collaborative Research Centers are long-term interdisciplinary research programs involving multiple research groups, typically focused on a specific research topic. Collaborative Research Centers are typically funded for up to 12 years.
Research Training Groups: These programs provide structured research training to doctoral students and postdocs in interdisciplinary research.
Priority Programs: These temporary research programs fund projects on a specific research topic. Priority Programs typically run for up to six years.
International Research Training Groups: These programs fund joint research and training between German and international universities.
Emmy Noether Program: This program supports outstanding early-career researchers, particularly women, to establish independent research groups.
Excellence Strategy: This funding program promotes top-level research in Germany's universities to enhance the country's position as a research hub.
The DFG also provides funding for international collaborations, conferences, and research infrastructure development. Funding is awarded competitively, with decisions made by independent experts based on scientific excellence and the potential impact of the proposed research.
Emmy Noether Programme: This program supports early-career researchers who have already demonstrated exceptional research potential. It provides funding for up to six years to establish independent research groups at German universities.
Heisenberg Programme: This program provides funding to experienced researchers seeking to establish themselves as independent researchers. It supports researchers already working at a German university or research institution or planning to return to Germany from abroad.
Research Fellowship Programme: This program is aimed at postdoctoral researchers who have completed their doctorate within the last four years. It provides funding for research projects conducted in Germany, lasting six to 24 months.
Reinhart Koselleck Projects: This program supports researchers exploring innovative and high-risk research questions that can lead to groundbreaking discoveries. It provides funding for up to five years.
Research Training Groups: These groups are designed to support the education and training of doctoral researchers. They provide funding for structured research programs conducted by groups of doctoral researchers and their supervisors.