General conditions for use of funding
During the last few years, the general conditions and guidelines for Academy research funding have been updated several times.
These updates have been based on a number of legislative changes and reforms in national financial administration or the Academy’s own strategies. The most important reforms have been the introduction of the full cost model (2009), the new Universities Act and the Act on the Academy of Finland (2010), and the reform of the Academy’s funding instruments (introduced in the October 2010 call). All of these changes have significantly affected the use and administration of Academy research funding.
Background
Calls for Academy research funding and the preparation, drafting and execution of Academy funding decisions are all carried out under the full cost model (with only a few exceptions). This affects the application for research grants, budgeting, the allocation of research grants as well as accounting and reporting. The full cost model does not apply to personal grants.
Academy research funding is by nature a joint venture in which the funds to finance the costs of each project always come from at least two sources. When applying for Academy funding, universities, research institutes and other research organisations commit to contributing a certain percentage of the project costs.
When the full cost model is applied, the Academy’s funding contribution comes to a maximum of 80 per cent. In the funding of research infrastructures, the Academy’s contribution comes to a maximum of 70 per cent. The percentage is equally applicable to all project costs, that is, to both direct and indirect costs, including overheads. The Academy provides detailed guidelines on acceptable costs separately for each funding scheme.
The full cost model does not apply to decisions based on calls implemented in 2008 or earlier. Likewise, the full cost model does not apply to calls that were open in 2008 and on which the decisions have been made in 2009. In these cases, the overheads share included in the decisions is 12.5 per cent. The full cost model does not apply to the following funding schemes: research posts as Academy Professor and Academy Research Fellow (previously Academy Professorships and Academy Research Fellowships), Senior Scientist’s salary, researcher training and research abroad, doctoral studies of employed people, researcher mobility in working life, and academies and science-policy associations. Likewise, the full cost model does not apply to the operating grants for graduate schools that were open for application in August 2008.
More information on the full cost model is available on the Academy’s website.
There are a number of regulations on the use of funding that sites of research and researchers who have received Academy funding shall follow. The Academy has adopted a payment procedure for all organisations that receive Academy funding. In the use of funds, funding recipients shall follow both the relevant legislation and the Academy’s separate guidelines. In the use of the funds, the valid general conditions and guidelines shall be adhered to, unless otherwise decided.
Research grants from the Academy can be used only for the purpose for which they have been granted. This is the responsibility of the site of research that has received the funds and the principal investigator of the research project.
Any supplies, equipment and literature acquired with Academy funding will remain in the ownership and possession of the site of research. The guidelines for the acquisition procedure at the site of research in question shall be followed.
The following general conditions and guidelines have been approved in 2010 and 2011:
General conditions and guidelines 2010‒2011:
General conditions and guidelines 2011:
Decision 2 May 2011. These conditions apply to decisions whose funding period starts 1 May 2011 at the earliest.
The general conditions and guidelines are an integral part of the Academy’s funding decisions and are sent to the funding recipient and the principal investigator together with the funding decision. The general conditions and guidelines are also available on this page under “More information”.
The Academy recommends that Academy-funded social-science research data be delivered to the Finnish Social Science Archive (FSD), based at the University of Tampere.
Funding recipients should also read the Academy of Finland’s research-ethical guidelines, Equality plan (PDF) and IPR handbook for researchers.