Individual and collaborative projects

For the (further) development of research software that is used to address a research question and in a specific research context, funding can be requested for personnel, material costs, etc. accordingly. Funding can also be requested to outsource development tasks to third parties (e.g. central service units or external service providers), to increase ecological sustainability (e.g. CO₂ compensation or higher acquisition costs for ecologically sustainable hardware), and to set up measures in the area of equal opportunities and diversity (equal opportunities module).

Depending on the relevant job description for academic staff in all academic fields, personnel costs can be applied for up to a maximum of 100%. Staff positions do not have to be linked to an academic qualification (usually a doctorate or post-doctoral lecturing qualification). When submitting a proposal, it must therefore be precisely stated (a) which work tasks are to be fulfilled by the academic staff, (b) in which personnel cost category (E9-E14) the employees are classified based on the job description, and (c) whether the assigned tasks involve a qualification opportunity. 

Funding for community-building can be applied for under the “Project-specific workshops” and “Public relations” modules. 

In collaborative projects, central funding (e.g. in the coordination fund) can be applied for to develop software that creates a recognisable added value for the individual projects through the development and use of software.

Proposals must be submitted in accordance with the requirements of the respective funding programme or in accordance with the Proposal Preparation Instructions – Project Proposals (54.01).

Infrastructure

Through its Research Software Infrastructures programme in the field of Scientific Library Services and Information Systems (LIS), the DFG supports science in establishing structures for developing, making available, finding and securing research software. It is important to ensure that the infrastructure to be developed does not depend on a specific research question but rather supports researchers across all locations in using research software. The LIS funding programme e-Research Technologies offers funding in particular for the expansion of comprehensively matured research software, virtual research environments and digital research platforms. The funding programme Coordinating Roles and Responsibilities in Information Infrastructures (VIGO) is recommended for the development of solutions to tackle specific challenges in the establishment, expansion or long-term safeguarding of research-related information infrastructure.

Projects with research and information infrastructure components

Projects with a scientific focus can also have a strong infrastructure orientation. These projects are characterised by a close interlinking of subject-specific science and information infrastructures. For such projects, proposals can be submitted as a combination of an Individual Research Grant and funding under a programme from the area of Scientific Library Services and Information Systems (LIS):

• For example, research software can be further developed as a research method in the scientific part of the project (Individual Research Grant) and combined with the LIS funding programme for the Digitisation and Indexing of holdings or collections.
• For projects which involve both research and the (further) development of technologies, tools, procedures and methods for scientific information provision, the Individual Research Grant can be combined with the e-Research Technologies programme.