Strategic Centres for Science, Technology and Innovation

The Academy of Finland supports the high standard of research carried out at the Strategic Centres for Science, Technology and Innovation (SHOK in Finnish) by providing funding to researchers at universities and research institutes. The Academy’s funding instruments are all available to support research at Strategic Centres and in their thematic fields.

In making funding decisions related to Strategic Centres, the Academy focuses on the scientific quality of the research. Funding decisions also pay attention to promoting research that serves the Centres.

In launching research programmes and making decisions on Centres of Excellence in research (CoEs), the Academy takes into account the fields of the Strategic Centres and research that promotes them.

An applicant for Strategic Centre funding from the Academy must have the qualifications of a professor or adjunct professor or be a researcher with a doctorate, unless the call for applications indicates or the call allows otherwise.

Funding for Strategic Centres or research in related fields is awarded using the same principles as for all other funding granted by the Academy. In other words, on the basis of competitive applications, funding is granted to the best researchers and research teams and to the most promising young researchers for the implementation of scientifically ambitious projects. The funding decisions are made on the basis of an evaluation of the scientific merits of the research plan and the researcher. Where applications connected with Strategic Centres or their fields are concerned, the evaluation focuses especially on the significance and impact of research for society and the economy. The starting point is that the funding should benefit Finnish research and society or international cooperation.

The Academy may target funding to Strategic Centre activity and to the fields of the Centres, based on the initiative of one or more Academy Research Councils or the Academy Board.