The DFG offers specific funding programmes for researchers in early career phases. This Infobrief examines to what extent those who submitted a proposal under these programmes a few years ago have since remained attached to the German research system on a long-term basis. The monitoring approach presented here, based on DFG data, was first used for the DFG study “Forschungsförderung und Karrierewege” published in 2017. As such, this Infobrief is particularly dedicated to a comparison over time, allowing conclusions to be drawn as to whether different cohorts of applicants remain in the German research system or become professor to varying degrees.

A doctoral project occupies a doctoral student for several years of their life. Information on how long doctorates usually take and what the completion rates are is relevant from the point of view of science policy and funding policy, too. This Infobrief provides an overall analysis of the duration and completion of doctorates pursued under DFG-funded Coordinated Programmes based on two studies published by the DFG in 2021.

In clusters funded under the Excellence Strategy, researchers work together on an overarching topic. 6,600 researchers were already involved in the clusters of excellence when the projects were launched in January 2019. How have personnel levels developed in these large consortia since then? What is their composition? This Infobrief addresses these and other questions relating to the start-up phase of the clusters of excellence.

The coronavirus pandemic poses major challenges to researchers. In particular, there is debate as to whether the pan-
demic is placing greater demands on female researchers as compared to male researchers. The new DFG Infobrief therefore examines DFG proposal and review activity among female and male researchers during the first year of the coronavirus pandemic.