EOSC-Life Digital Life Science Internal Call Frequently Asked Questions

 

• How long should my research project last?

  • We are looking for projects which last up to 12 months. Shorter projects will also be considered. Projects should be completed at the latest by 31 December 2022 and reports submitted by February 2023. Absolutely no reimbursement for project work will be possible beyond the end of the EOSC-Life project grant (Feb 2023)

 

• When will I be informed of the outcome of my application?

  • You will receive updates by email when the status of your application changes. You can also view the current status of your application on your ARIA user dashboard. We aim to inform all applicants of the outcome of their applications within two months of the call closing date.

 

• Who can I contact with questions about my application?

  • For any general questions about the industry internal call please contact opencall@eosc-life.eu who will ensure your query is dealt with by the appropriate experts. To contact the technical experts directly use the contact buttons provided in the application interface.

 

• In the guidelines it states I must make contact with EOSC-Life technical experts. How do I know which technical expert to contact?

  • In the submission interface you will see “Contact Experts” buttons. These buttons will allow you to send your message to the expert team who will then assign an individual expert to liaise with you on your project. If your project covers multiple EOSC-Life application areas you should contact the experts for each area separately. When contacting the experts applicants must provide a project abstract and answers to the preliminary questions in the maturation phase questionnaire.

 

• I am a technical expert from one of the work packages myself. Do I need to go through the maturation phase?

  • The maturation phase is mandatory to ensure projects are aligned with the goals of the EOSC-Life project and relevant for the scientific community. If you are a member of WP1/2/7/4, another expert will still be assigned to you.

 

• Who will be able to see my application?

• • Proposals will be assigned to moderators from the EOSC-Life Call team that guide the proposal process during the maturation phase and manage the technical and scientific review process. Applicants are required to consult the EOSC-Life technical experts during the maturation phase of the proposal, but the amount of information that will be disclosed to these experts during the maturation phase is up to the applicant based on their need for technical advice. Moderators, technical experts and reviewers are bound by confidentiality agreements. It is possible for applicants to exclude certain reviewers or organizations from the application review process.

 

• I’ve submitted my application but there are changes I would like to make. What should I do?

  • Contact opencall@eosc-life.eu who can assist you and make modifications to your proposal after it has been submitted. Please note that we do not guarantee that we can apply your requested changes after the call deadline.

 

• I can’t find my colleague in the team selector.

  • Make sure that your colleague has registered with ARIA

 

• The guidelines state that my profile will be used as part of the assessment. How do I update my user profile?

  • To update your profile, visit the profile editor page at <https://instruct-eric.eu/adm/profile>. For more detailed instructions view our help guide at <https://instruct-eric.eu/help/aria-user-1/guide/managing-your-profile-32/>
    We recommend that you register all participants in ARIA and complete their profiles before starting a proposal.
    
    

 

• How and when will the resources necessary for my project be received?

  • To be eligible for this call, you must already be a beneficiary or linked third party in the EOSC-Life project. The project budget that your institution currently holds for carrying out the work within the EOSC-Life consortium will be increased according to the amount of specific funding awarded for implementing the project submitted in this call.

     

• What funding is available for my project?

  • We expect to provide up to 60 000 - 70 000€/project to cover personnel cost and dataset access. Projects should be up to 10-12 months in duration and must end by 31 December 2022. Shorter projects requesting fewer resources will be considered. The funding amount corresponds to actual direct costs incurred at the awardee. Cost for the project must be claimed by the EC according to the usual reporting process.

  • In-kind contributions and co-funding for projects are welcome, although no double-funding is allowed. Please list in-kind contributions in the budget form

  • Alternate sources of funding for cloud and compute resources might be available upon request. Please get in touch with the cloud deployment and resources experts to discuss these funding opportunities.
    

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• How many people can work on my project? 

  • The funding available can be used to part-fund multiple staff members or staff at different institutions if desired. In this case, the funding of all institutions receiving funding will be increased according to their budget share. The total maximum costs must not exceed 70,000€.
  • You will be asked to specify how the requested resource will be split amongst the team in the budget spreadsheet which forms part of your application. All institutions receiving funding must be beneficiaries or third parties in the EOSC-Life consortium.

 

• Until when can I contact the technical experts regarding my project?

  • Applicants are expected to make first contact with the technical experts at the latest by the consultation deadline on 5pm CEST 28 July 2021 in order for the experts to have time to process your request. We encourage you to make contact with the experts as early as possible to receive thorough consultation in time to impact your application. The consultation itself can be carried out up until the submission deadline. However, we strongly urge you to schedule and conclude your expert consultation early to ensure that all questions regarding your proposal can be properly addressed. Our technical experts reserve the right to offer only limited consultation in the final two weeks prior to submission if the number of consultation requests exceeds capacity.
    

 

• I am working in the UK. How is Brexit going to affect the eligibility of UK researchers to this Open Call?

  • EOSC-Life, which provides the award from the Digital Life Sciences Call is a Horizon 2020 funded grant and, as such, we continue to apply the rules as per ongoing grants. According to the Withdrawal Agreement, H2020 funds (please see https://www.ukri.org/our-work/collaborating-internationally/working-on-eu-funded-projects/) can continue to be received by UK participants for the lifetime of the individual H2020 grant even if that is after 31 December 2020. You are therefore eligible for this call.
    

 

• Where can I find the project proposal template specifying the guidelines and sections to be included in the proposal?

  • You can find the application form within ARIA on the application page when you click on "Begin a New Proposal". Only the applications that are submitted via ARIA will be considered. However, you can find a pdf version of the application form for information.

 

• What happens when I contact the expert?

  • When you consult the technical experts, you will be asked to provide information regarding your project by answering this short questionnaire. The information provided will help us assign your enquiry to an appropriate expert and streamline the discussion with the expert. You will be asked to provide this information as soon as possible since we can only pass on enquiries to the technical experts if they are received at the latest by the 5pm CEST 28 July 2021.

 

• Can I get funding for cloud and compute resources through this open call?

  • Cloud credits for projects might be available. Please get in touch with the cloud deployment and resources experts from WP7 if you wish to apply for cloud credits. You can find the description of the resources allocation process here. To request WP7 cloud and compute resources, you will need to fill in the form in Appendix 1 and send it to eosc-life-wp7-rap@elixir-europe.org.

 

• Can I hire new staff to carry out proposed project work?

  • Though there is no formal restriction on hiring new staff to carry out proposed project work, we would remind applicants that their project must be ready to start shortly after project acceptance, which is unlikely to provide sufficient time for recruitment. Expertise of the research team will also be taken into account during the assessment stages to determine project feasibility. As a result, we would recommend against designating a majority of the proposed work to a member of staff who has not been hired prior to application.

 

• Can you provide support for legal and ethical approval of my proposed work?
  

  • No, EOSC-Life cannot provide support for legal and ethical approval. It is entirely within the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the applicable ethical and legal conditions have been met for the project. EOSC-Life assumes no liability for ethical or legal compliance by the applicants.
    

 

• My project involves pseudonymised data. Is it eligible?

  • Yes, work involving pseudonymised data is eligible in the Sensitive Data Track. Please consult the applicant guidelines for detailed information about project eligibility or consult with the experts.