Want to apply to the Danish National Research Foundation? - Find important learning in the Research Support Office's rejection analysis
This year, AU has received five grants from the Danish National Research Foundation; three for NAT, one for Arts and one for BSS. This gives a good boost to the selected research projects, which now have six years of funding with a possible extension for another four years.
Ambition for even more DNRF centres
AU wants even more Danish National Research Foundation (DNRF) grants, and for this reason the Research Support Office has carried out a rejection analysis to help new applicants in the next application round. Below are the main points from the rejection analysis.
The analysis was prepared on the basis of AU's successes in the DNRF 2023 call for Centres of Excellence, with focus on the most common reasons why applicants are rejected. This has led to five main points and recommendations:
- It is crucial to unfold the centre idea thoroughly in practical terms to make it clear how the environment will work in practice; especially with international partners.
- Research leadership competencies are not only about being a beacon of expertise, but also about being able to generate top-level research through others (PhDs and postdocs) and about being able to get top researchers to collaborate across disciplines and national borders. These should be important priorities for a top researcher, and they should be thoroughly described in an application.
- Reapplications have a significantly lower success rate. The breakthrough potential is crucial, and if you work with the same idea, it will not necessarily improve over time. Research leadership competencies may also be an explanation, although these typically improve over time.
- Applicants who are professors/professor material are more successful in the fierce competition. Therefore, it is important carefully to consider when exactly the time is ripe to give the DNRF a try in your research career.
- Mock interviews are very rewarding for applicants in their preparation for the final interview at the DNRF.
Read more about the DNRF here.
Read about the AU recipients here.
Contact the Research Support Office if you are considering applying for a DNRF grant.