Novo Nordisk Foundation Young Investigator Awards

2019

Information and guidelines for applicants

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Table of contents

1 NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION YOUNG INVESTIGATOR AWARDS 2019 .......... 4

1.1 PURPOSE .................................................................................................................... 4

1.2 GRANT FUNDING ........................................................................................................ 4

1.3 ELIGIBILITY .................................................................................................................. 4

1.4 HOST INSTITUTION .................................................................................................... 5

1.5 APPLICATION PROCESS ............................................................................................. 5

1.6 INTERVIEW AND SELECTION PROCESS .................................................................... 6

2 THE NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION APPLICATION SYSTEM FOR STAGE I ....... 8

2.1 BEFORE YOU BEGIN ................................................................................................... 8

2.2 GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS .......................................................................................... 8

2.3 NEW USER REGISTRATION ........................................................................................ 9

2.4 CREATING AND COMPLETING AN APPLICATION ..................................................... 9

2.5 APPLICATION TEXTS ................................................................................................ 10

2.6 ILLUSTRATIONS ....................................................................................................... 10

3 GUIDELINES FOR COMPLETING THE APPLICATION ........................................ 10

3.1 STEP 1 – CHOOSE GRANT AREA .............................................................................. 10

3.2 STEP 2 – PERSONAL INFORMATION ....................................................................... 11

3.3 STEP 3 – SHORT DESCRIPTION ................................................................................ 12

3.4 STEP 4 – DETAILED DESCRIPTION INCLUDING ILLUSTRATIONS .......................... 13

3.5 STEP 5 – LITERATURE REFERENCES FOR THE DETAILED DESCRIPTION .............. 14

3.6 STEP 6 – BUDGET ...................................................................................................... 14

3.7 STEP 7 – TOTAL APPLICATION / APPLICATION PDF ............................................... 14

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Application information Deadline for stage I applications: 15 November 2018 Stage I applicant notification: Mid-December 2018 Review committee: Committee on International Research Leader Grants (found at http://novonordiskfonden.dk/en) Contact: John Wittschieben Senior Scientific Officer Phone: +45 3517 6613 E-mail: jpwi@novo.dk

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1 NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION YOUNG INVESTIGATOR AWARDS 2019

1.1 PURPOSE

NNF Young Investigator Awards are for outstanding younger scientists to come to Denmark to expand

their groundbreaking research programs. These awards provide funding for independent early- to

midcareer researchers who are ready to conduct larger and more ambitious studies. The NNF is seeking to

support exceptional scientists working within any area of biomedical and/or biotechnological sciences.

Research within biotechnology can be related to medical and/or non-medical uses of the technology.

1.2 GRANT FUNDING

Up to 4 NNF Young Investigator Awards will be awarded in 2019.

The researcher may apply for a grant of up to DKK 25 million (EUR ~3.4 million, USD ~3.9 million) for

a period of 7 years. Up to DKK 14 million may be utilized for establishment of the laboratory during

the first year, with following years funded at up to DKK 6 million per year.

NNF Young Investigator Award holders can apply for additional funding from other Novo Nordisk

Foundation grant programs, both during and after the Young Investigator Award period.

To assess the establishment and progress of the NNF Young Investigator Awardee’s laboratory and

research program, there will be a midway evaluation following the first half of the grant period.

Funding may be utilized for:

o salaries, including for the grant recipient

o direct project costs, including materials/consumables and purchase of services

o equipment costs

o travel expenses in relation to relocation and the research program

o costs to publish and present the results of the program

o direct administrative expenses for the grant (up to 5% of the total budget)

Funding from the grant may not be used for overhead or other indirect costs.

1.3 ELIGIBILITY

Eligibility – An applicant:

• must be a principal investigator with an independent research group that s/he has directed for less

than 7 years in total (taking into account any Leave of Absence).

• must be employed as a scientist outside of Denmark at a public or private research institution, or at a

commercial organization.

• must, if awarded a Young Investigator Award, establish her/his principal research group in Denmark

as soon as possible within two years of receiving the grant.

• may have any nationality.

• may have visiting faculty status in Denmark that must end by May 1, 2019.

• may be associated with a Danish university as an affiliated professor not receiving salary from the

institution.

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Ineligibility – An applicant:

• may not have an employed position in Denmark or a completed contract for employment in

Denmark during the entire two-stage application process.

• may not apply for another NNF Investigator Grant (eg, Ascending Investigator or Emerging

Investigator) during an overlapping application and review period. However, if an applicant for an

NNF Young Investigator Award receives a rejection in stage I, the researcher may then apply for a

different NNF Investigator Grant for which the researcher is eligible.

• may not concurrently be a member of a Novo Nordisk Foundation expert review committee.

• may not have applied for a 2018 NNF Young Investigator Award unless the stage I or stage II

notification mail from the NNF specified that it was possible to apply for a 2019 NNF Young

Investigator Award. Unsuccessful stage I and stage II NNF Young Investigator Award applicants must

wait until the application round following the next one before applying again unless stated otherwise

in an NNF notification mail.

1.4 HOST INSTITUTION

Can be anywhere in Denmark and must be a university, university hospital, public research institution or other non-profit organization

1.5 APPLICATION PROCESS

Application stages

The application process consists of two stages. Up to four selected applicants will be invited to stage II.

Stage II applicants prepare a comprehensive research proposal that will be assessed by the review

committee and by external peer reviewers.

Stage II applicants will be invited to the Novo Nordisk Foundation to present and discuss their proposed

research programs with the review committee.

Evaluation of both the stage I and stage II applications will emphasize scientific quality, originality and

potential impact. Selection of NNF Young Investigator Award awardees will be based on the scientific

excellence of both the investigator and the proposed research program.

Stage I Major aspects of the stage I application are:

o the scientific achievements and track record of the applicant

o the goals and significance of the proposed research program

o the scientific questions to be addressed and an outline of the research to occur

o a description of the benefits of conducting the research in Denmark and consideration of a potential

host institution if known

Letters of reference will not be considered during stage I and should not be submitted.

Stage II

Stage II applicants will need to identify a host research institution within Denmark that is suitable and

beneficial for their research. Discussions between the candidate and the host institution must result in a

letter of commitment from a host institution to be used as part of the stage II application. The major elements planned for the stage II application are:

o a comprehensive research program proposal, including a description of the planned research group

and plans for research collaboration

o a letter of commitment from the host institution within Denmark.

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Deadline for stage II applications

The deadline for stage II applications will be in February, 2019. Stage II applicants will be informed of the

date in December, 2018.

1.6 INTERVIEW AND SELECTION PROCESS

Stage II candidates will be invited to Denmark for an interview with the Foundation’s review committee in

March, 2019. Candidates will present their proposed research programs as part of the interview.

Selection of NNF Young Investigator Award awardees will be based on scientific excellence, originality

and potential impact. These aspects will be assessed by the review committee and by external peer

reviewers. Following completion of the stage II application process, the evaluations of the external

reviewers and the recommendations of the NNF review committee will be submitted to the Board of the

Novo Nordisk Foundation. The Novo Nordisk Foundation will contact stage II applicants by early June,

2019.

Please note that the foundation does not provide scientific reasons or feedback for applications that are

not selected for funding.

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Application Guidelines

The following pages contain guidelines for completing the application correctly. It is strongly recommended that the applicant reads these carefully and has a printout to refer to while completing the online application.

Grant recipients must comply with the Terms and conditions for grants from the Novo Nordisk Foundation. These are found at http://www.novonordiskfonden.dk/en/content/conditions-grants

We recommend that you read these guidelines carefully before initiating the application process

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2 THE NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION APPLICATION SYSTEM FOR STAGE I

2.1 BEFORE YOU BEGIN The Novo Nordisk Foundation application system does not support Google Chrome.

Use of one of the following browsers is recommended:

- Mozilla Firefox, newest version, for both PC and Mac computers

- Safari, newest version, for Mac

- MS Internet Explorer, v.9 or newer, for PC

It may be necessary to disable “pop-up” blocking.

It is possible to complete an application using different browsers.

2.2 GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

Filling in the fields

For all applications, the individual fields must be completed in accordance with these guidelines and the

instructions supplied in the application. Abbreviations should be defined at the first use. The maximum

character limit for each text field may not be exceeded. Character counts include spaces and symbols, but

not line changes.

NNF Young Investigator Award applications must be written in English.

Submission

The application in its entirety must be submitted electronically via NNF’s application system. It is not

possible to submit an application or any part of it by standard mail or e-mail.

The NNF asks that you do not send any reprints, abstracts, letters of reference, etc., outside of the

application system. Any material submitted outside the application system will not be included in the

evaluation and will not be returned. Applications cannot be modified after the submission deadline.

Once the application has been submitted, a confirmation of receipt will be sent to the applicant at the e-

mail address provided by the applicant. If you (the applicant) do not receive a confirmation of receipt, you

should contact the NNF as soon as possible by e-mail or telephone using the contact details on page 3 or

by e-mail via nnfond@novo.dk.

Confidentiality

All applicant and application information will be treated as confidential.

IMPORTANT! Use a compatible browser.

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2.3 NEW USER REGISTRATION The electronic application system can be accessed through links on the NNF website. The links lead to the

login site, where the new user registration link is found beneath the login for existing users.

To apply for grants from the NNF you need to register as a user. Only one user, which must be the main

applicant, can be assigned per application. An applicant may only have one user in the application system.

If you already have a user, but experience problems logging in, then please contact NNF using the contact

information on page 3 or by e-mail via nnfond@novo.dk.

New users are created via the Login screen by clicking “Ny bruger? / New user?”

Notes for new user registration

- First name is your given name and Surname is your family name.

- Username must be written as birthdate followed by the two first letters of your first name and the

first two letters of your surname (DDMMYY-xxxx), e.g. (050672-toha).

- Your e-mail address is required for routine communication.

- The selected password must consist of at least 8 characters, both letters and numbers.

After creating a password, click "Fortsæt", and you are logged into the application system. You will receive

an e-mail with your username.

2.4 CREATING AND COMPLETING AN APPLICATION - After receiving a new user e-mail, an application is created by clicking the “Create application” icon in

the start menu, under “My work items”. This icon should be utilized only once for creating the grant

application. The application is then stored in the system and it is possible to return to it repeatedly

until the completed application is submitted.

- It is necessary to save the data in the application while it is being worked on. The “Save” function

button found at the bottom of each application step saves all application data as it exists at the time

the save is performed. The Save button is next to the “Back” and “Continue” buttons, which are used

to move between the different steps. By pressing “Continue” the system checks that mandatory

fields are filled and saves the content before moving to the next step. You can only move through the

steps in the given order.

- To prevent loss of data, it is essential to press “Save” before you leave the application system or use

the menu to the left. Exit/logout of the application and system is performed simply by closing the

application and system windows. When you return to the application, it will be at the step where it

was exited.

- After the application has been created and while it is in the process of being completed, the

application is accessed through “My work items” in the lower part of the screen, and you can at all

times see which step of the application you are working in.

- If the “Create Application” icon has been utilized more than once, additional applications will be

present. In this case, the applicant must choose one to complete and submit. It is not possible for

applicants to delete additional applications - these will be deleted in the system after the application

deadline.

- Complete the mandatory fields (*) before clicking “Continue”. The application cannot be submitted

until all mandatory fields have been completed. Instructions for the final submission steps are found

in “Step 7 – Total application / Application pdf” at the end of this file. Submitted applications can be

found in the “Applicant” menu in the left side.

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2.5 APPLICATION TEXTS Text from word processing files can be pasted (using CTRL+C/CTRL+V) into the text fields of the

application. Due to system compatibility requirements, most formatting is lost upon pasting and needs to

be re-formatted within the text fields.

The available functions for formatting text are at the top of the fields. The function marked with the Greek

letter Omega (Ω) is a special character dialog box that can be used to insert special letters and symbols. It

is vital to check that special letters and symbols have not been converted or lost in the text fields. Greek

letters created via Symbol font may not remain as Greek letters when pasted into the text fields. Unicode-

formatted letters and symbols are not converted/lost upon pasting.

The applicant is responsible for the legibility of the text in the application.

Text fields have a maximum number of characters, which include spaces (but not lines).

2.6 ILLUSTRATIONS Figures/charts/tables/images, etc. are all classified as illustrations.

The application may contain up to 4 illustrations, which must be in jpg or jpeg format.

The pixel dimensions for an illustration file may not be more than 700 pixels wide or 900 pixels high.

Details for illustrations and how to upload them are provided in application step 4 below.

3 GUIDELINES FOR COMPLETING THE APPLICATION The online application has seven steps.

- Step 1 is where the grant area is selected and an application is created.

- Steps 2-6 comprise the five parts of the actual application.

- Step 7 is used to preview the application, to create a pdf file of the application, and to submit the final

application (and application pdf) to the NNF.

3.1 STEP 1 – CHOOSE GRANT AREA

Choose Young Investigator Award (fase I) from the menu.

English is automatically chosen as the language.

To continue and to complete the application, it is necessary to read and accept the NNF’s standards for

good research practice. These can be found on the NNF website and can be accessed through the link in

Step 1.

I PLEASE NOTE! - Character limits and the number of used characters are indicated below each

text field.

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3.2 STEP 2 – PERSONAL INFORMATION

You can change all other information either in the application or in the “Personal information” menu in the

top bar. If you want to change the information that is stored for you as a user, please press “Personal

information” in the upper left part of the screen. Complete the fields as required and relevant before

clicking “OK”. It is then necessary to create a new application in the Start menu for these changes to be

incorporated into your application.

Personal information

Please provide your highest educational degree, current position, gender, age and ORCID identifier. For

education and position, if a relevant choice is not included in the drop-down menu, choose “Other” at the

bottom and write the information in the field labelled “Other” that will appear to the right.

ORCID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) is an open, non-profit endeavour to register and link

researcher efforts and output. The applicant must have an ORCID identifier (http://orcid.org/) and

introduce the membership ID in the appropriate field.

ORCID is a unique identifier, which researchers can associate with their name variations and their research

works, to ensure that these links can be made accurately and reliably. NNF uses the information from

ORCID to ensure that grantees receive full credit for their work for the benefit of both individual

researchers and their institutions. The applicant is requested to keep a full and updated publication list

available via ORCID.

Private address

Please provide your private address as well as phone number.

Current institution

This section relates to the place of your current employment.

The “Institution / University” field contains a menu of research institutions within the Nordic countries

(accessed via the find icon at the right). For applicants based outside of the Nordic countries, select

“Andet / Other” at the top of the menu. Then enter the full name of the Institution/University into the

“Other” field that will appear to the right.

Complete the Institute and/or Department fields as relevant.

If you chose “Other” for your Institution, use the drop-down menu (downward arrow) to choose “Other”

for Country and write the institution country in the field labelled “Other” that will appear to the right.

IMPORTAN T! It is not possible to modify your name or e - mail address in the

application. If you need to change either, you must contact the foundation.

IMPORTANT! If changes have been made to ‘Personal information’, you must create

a new application in the Start menu for these changes to be incorporated into your

application.

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Applicant’s curriculum vitae

Please provide your brief CV. Include:

o Education

o Employment history

o Recent research funding

o Supervision/training/teaching activities

o Summary publication & bibliometric information. References for your most important recent

publications are to be entered two fields below.

o Other relevant information if space allows

(max. 4,000 characters)

Summary of own research

Please summarize your own research that is of relevance to this application. Include information regarding

your research group. (max. 2,000 characters)

Publications

Please provide the complete reference information for your most important recent publications (up to 10).

(max. 4,000 characters)

Supplementary personal information

In this field, please describe your motivation(s) for applying for an NNF Young Investigator Award. These

can be related to scientific opportunities, personal reasons, etc. (max. 2,000 characters)

3.3 STEP 3 – SHORT DESCRIPTION

Project information

o Please enter the expected grant period. The earliest grant period start date may be 1 July 2019 and

the latest start date may be 1 July 2020.

o For the project title field, please give the expected title your research program will have.

Grant administration

It is not a requirement to contact a potential host institution or department during the stage I application

process.

If you know a potential host institution in Denmark that would be a beneficial location for your research

program, please enter this in the Institution field using the menu via the find icon. The

Institute/Department at the Danish host institution as well as the address may be written in the relevant

fields if known.

If a potential host institution in Denmark is not yet known, use the menu to choose “Andet/Other” for the

Institution. In the field that will appear to the right, enter “TBD”. Enter TBD also for the address & phone

fields.

Whether or not a potential host institution in Denmark is known, select Denmark for the “Country” field.

Brief project description

Please summarize the scientific goals, significance, originality, and potential impact of the research

program you propose to conduct over a seven-year period at a Danish research institution.

(max. 2,000 characters)

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Category choice

In the Category fields, characterize the research program by selecting the most relevant research type(s),

area(s) and discipline(s). Choices are accessed through the Add button and up to 3 selections per category

can be made. To access all of the category 3 choices, use the arrows at the bottom of the menu or click the

100 items view.

3.4 STEP 4 – DETAILED DESCRIPTION INCLUDING ILLUSTRATIONS

Program description Please describe your proposed research program. Elements to be included are:

• The research questions and objectives of the research program

• The most important scientific background

• An outline of the research to be conducted (with an estimated timeline)

o General experimental approaches

o Main research methods and technologies to be utilized and developed

o Brief description of the research group and collaborations needed for this program

• Discussion of experimental outcomes and significance

• The scientific environment, equipment and facility requirements needed for your research

program’s success

o If a potential host institution has been identified, describe how these conditions can be

met at this institution

• A discussion of the benefits of conducting this research program in Denmark

o If you have any existing or planned collaboration(s) with researchers in Denmark, please

describe this briefly Notes:

-While this section has a 20,000 character maximum, it is acceptable to the review committee for

applicants to use fewer characters provided that the elements above are effectively described.

-The complete reference information for the literature cited in this section is to be entered in the following

step of the application (Step 5).

Figures, tables, diagrams etc. (illustrations) can be uploaded below the program description text field.

Uploading illustrations

-Up to 4 illustrations may be uploaded in step 4 via the Upload function near the lower right corner.

-The illustrations must be uploaded in jpg or jpeg format.

-Include the illustration number and legend within each illustration file.

-The pixel dimensions for an illustration file may not be more than 700 pixels wide or 900 pixels high.

To upload illustrations: 1. Click “Upload” near the lower right corner.

2. For each illustration, use the browse function to find the file on the computer.

3. Click “OK” to upload. For slow internet connections, this may take a few minutes.

4. Uploaded illustration files are found below the Upload function. A file can be removed by

clicking the red remove file icon and a new file can be uploaded if desired. Click on "Save" to

save changes.

The system automatically adds the application number to the file name of all uploaded pictures.

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3.5 STEP 5 – LITERATURE REFERENCES FOR THE DETAILED

DESCRIPTION

Provide the reference information for the literature cited in the program description.

(Max. 4,000 characters)

3.6 STEP 6 – BUDGET

Budgetary information for the proposed research is not required for the NNF Young Investigator Award

stage I application.

Supplementary information for the budget

This field can be utilized if there is special budget-related information that the review committee should

be aware of. (Max. 4,000 characters)

Grants previously received from the Novo Nordisk Foundation in the last 5 years

If you have received funding from NNF in the last 5 years as a main applicant or a co-applicant (part of a

collaborative grant), you must provide information about the grant(s) in this field. Please include

application number, grant period and grant amount. (Max. 2,000 characters)

Status report

If you are applying for funding of research that is related to any of your research already supported by the

NNF, you must describe the status of the already funded research and how it relates to the new research

in this application. (Max. 2,000 characters)

Approve and preview application

The applicant must certify that any funding granted will be utilized for the research in the application and

within the budget framework provided by checking the box at the bottom of the window.

The application must then be previewed before submission, to ensure that it is complete and legible. Click

“Preview application” at the bottom of step 6, in order to access the application preview in step 7.

3.7 STEP 7 – TOTAL APPLICATION / APPLICATION PDF

This step is used to preview the entire application and to ensure that all required information is included.

It is possible to return to previous steps to enter or change information by clicking “Back” at the bottom of

the page.

When all desired information has been introduced in the application, click “Create PDF” at the bottom of

the window, which generates the application pdf file at the bottom of the page. Open the created pdf file

by clicking on the pdf icon. Review the pdf to verify that it is complete and legible.

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IMPORTANT! If the application and pdf are to be modified, click “Back” to return to any application step(s). When all desired changes are made, return to “Preview application” at the end of step 6. An updated pdf must then be created by clicking “Create PDF” again. The new pdf file will replace the old one in the same location.

When the final application pdf is complete, the last step of the submission process is to click “Submit

application” at the bottom of the window.

After sending the application, you will receive an email confirmation of your application together with the

submitted pdf. This pdf can also be accessed in the application system under “Submitted applications” in

the “Applicant” menu. If you do not receive an email with your application pdf, please contact NNF

immediately using the contact details on page 3 or by e-mail via nnfond@novo.dk.

October 2018

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About the Novo Nordisk Foundation

The Novo Nordisk Foundation is an independent Danish Foundation

with corporate interests. The objective of the Novo Nordisk

Foundation is twofold: To provide a stable basis for the commercial

and research activities conducted by the companies within the Novo

Group and to support scientific and humanitarian purposes.

The vision of the Novo Nordisk Foundation is to contribute

significantly to research and development that improves the lives of

people and the sustainability of society.