First Call for Short-Term Scientific Missions

COST Action CA22137 - Randomised Optimisation Algorithms Research Network (ROAR-NET) invites applications for Short-Term Scientific Missions. A Short-Term Scientific Mission (STSM) consists in a visit to a host organisation located in a different country than the country of affiliation by a researcher or innovator for specific work to be carried out and for a determined period of time.

Eligibility rules

You may apply for an STSM if:

• You are based in a research institution in a legal entity in a COST Full/Cooperating Member, Near Neighbour Country (NNC) or a European RTD (see the Country and Organisations Table).
• You are engaged in an official research programme as a PhD Student or postdoctoral fellow or are employed by, or affiliated to, an institution, organisation or legal entity where you conduct research.

Duration

• There is no limitation on the duration of STSMs within each Action Grant Period. However, the STSM grant amount is limited and may not cover the total costs incurred during the STSM.
• The STSM must have a minimum duration of five calendar days. However, STSMs of longer duration are encouraged.

Location

• The host organisation of the STSM grantee must be located in a different country than the country of the grantee’s affiliation.
• There is no limitation on the location of the STSM host. Again, although STSMs can take place anywhere in the world, the STSM grant amount is limited and might not cover the total costs incurred during the STSM.

Specific eligibility criteria

• The STSM must contribute to the goals of the Action (see the Memorandum of Understanding).
• The STSM must address one of the following themes of interest to the Action:
  • Problem modelling and user experience
  • Mixed continuous and discrete optimisation
  • Single- and multiobjective optimisation
  • Optimisation under uncertainty
  • Algorithm selection and configuration
  • Benchmarking

Financial support rules

Financial support in the form of an STSM grant provides a contribution towards travel, accommodation and subsistence expenses. A maximum of 4.000,00 EUR can be awarded to each successful applicant. However, a typical value for a two-week STSM would be about 2.000,00 EUR.

The amount requested by the applicant should reflect the duration and location of the STSM. When determining the grant amount, the applicant should take into account an estimation of travel costs and actual accommodation, subsistence and local transport needs.

The final STSM grant amount will be determined during the evaluation process by the ROAR-NET Grant Awarding Committee. The awarded grant will be paid after the STSM has been completed and the required report and supporting documents have been submitted and approved.

Timeline

• The final deadline for the submission of applications is 20 August 2024.
• Applications can be submitted at any time on a rolling basis, but must be submitted at least 30 days before the start of the STSM.
• Applications submitted until the 20th of each calendar month are evaluated, and decisions are normally announced by the end of the month.
• The STSM must end no later than 30 September 2024.
• The report on the STSM and supporting documents must be submitted within 30 days after the end of the activity or within 15 days after the end date of the Action Grant Period, whichever comes first.

Application process

Applications have to be submitted via the COST Grants Application page. The following documents must be submitted:

• The completed application form (see the e-COST template) with the working plan detailing the preparatory work for the STSM, the work to be carried out during the STSM, and the expected follow-up activities
• A cover letter
  • specifying the (single) main theme addressed by the STSM
  • stating the applicant’s motivation for the STSM
  • providing a breakdown of the costs
  • declaring that the applicant will not be involved in any other COST-funded activities for the duration of the STSM grant
• One-page CVs of both the applicant and the host
• Confirmation that the host institution is willing to receive the applicant, indicating the conditions provided

For the submission procedure see the COST Grant Awarding User Guide.

Evaluation process

The ROAR-NET Grant Awarding Committee performs the scientific and budgetary assessment of the applications. The evaluation criteria and the corresponding scoring scales are:

• Contribution of the STSM to the goals of the Action
  high - 2, medium - 1, low - 0
• Alignment of the STSM with the selected theme
  high - 2, medium - 1, low - 0
• Expected contribution of the STSM to the professional development of the applicant and/or the host and their team
  high - 2, medium - 1, low - 0
• Quality of the planned preparatory work
  high - 2, medium - 1, low - 0
• Quality of the work planned to be carried out during the STSM
  high - 2, medium - 1, low - 0
• Quality of the expected outcomes and planned follow-up activities
  high - 2, medium - 1, low - 0
• Hosting conditions
  very good - 2, good - 1, unsuitable - 0
• Involvement of both industry (including RTD organisations) and academia in the STSM
  yes - 2, no - 1
• Participation of Young Researchers and Innovators (under the age of 40) as applicant or host
  yes - 2, no - 1
• Participation of researchers from COST Inclusiveness Target Countries or Near Neighbour Countries as applicant or host
  yes - 2, no - 1

The score of an application is the sum of its scores in all criteria.

The following selection procedure is applied in each round of evaluation:

1. Incomplete applications and applications with a zero score in any of the criteria are rejected.
2. Budgetary assessment of the remaining applications is performed and, for each application, the amount requested is either confirmed or revised to a lower amount.
3. Applications are sorted in descending order of their scores, and a threshold is defined as the greatest score such that the total amount required by applications with scores down to that threshold matches or exceeds the current budget. If there are multiple applications by the same applicant in the same evaluation round, only the application with the greatest score and, in case of a tie, the lowest amount is considered in this step. Applications by an applicant who has already been awarded an STSM grant in the same Action Grant Period are not considered in this step.
4. Applications with a score above the threshold are approved for funding, provided that the applicant has not been awarded another ROAR-NET STSM grant in the same Action Grant Period. Again, if there are multiple applications scoring above the threshold by the same applicant in the same round of evaluation, only the application with the greatest score and, in case of a tie, with the lowest amount is approved at this stage. The remaining applications are considered in step 5.
5. Additional applications are selected for funding from the applications scoring equal to or one point below the threshold, and any applications with greater scores resulting from step 4, so as to improve the gender balance and institutional and geographical diversity of STSM grants in the current Action Grant Period. In particular, funding several applicants from the same institution or the same applicant within an Action Grant Period should be avoided.

Reporting process

After the end of the STSM, the grantee will receive an e-notification to submit a report and other supporting documents on e-COST. Please note that the awarded STSM grant will be paid only after the mission has been completed, and after the required report and supporting document have been submitted and approved.

The following documents must be submitted:

• STSM report based on e-COST template, detailing the work carried out during the STSM, main achievements of the STSM and planned follow-up activities
• A photo showing the grantee and the hosting team during the STSM with permission to be shared by the Action for communication and dissemination purposes

Failure to submit the report and supporting document within 30 days from the end date of the STSM will effectively cancel the STSM grant. Note that the COST Association or the Action’s Grant Holder may request additional information to substantiate the information contained within the documents submitted by STSM grant applicants.

Contact

For further information, please contact:
ROAR-NET Grant Awarding Coordinator
Bogdan Filipič <bogdan.filipic@ijs.si>

Useful documents

ROAR-NET Memorandum of Understanding
https://e-services.cost.eu/files/domain_files/CA/Action_CA22137/mou/CA22137-e.pdf

Country and Organisations Table
https://www.cost.eu/uploads/2023/11/Annex-I-level-A-Country-and-Organisations-Table-Version-1.7.pdf

COST Grant Awarding User Guide
https://www.cost.eu/grants_userguide

COST Grant Applications page
https://e-services.cost.eu/activity/grants

STSM Grant application template
https://www.cost.eu/STSM_GrantApplication

STSM report template
https://www.cost.eu/STSM_Report