ITC Conference Grant – Winter 2023

Final application deadline: May 30th, 2023

Call ITC Conference Grant – Spring 2023

Conference Grants are aimed at supporting Young Researchers and Innovators (YRI) who are less than 40 years old, who are affiliated to a legal entity in an ITC and a NNC participating in the COST Action 18213, to attend international conferences on Rural NEETs related topics not specifically organized by the COST Action.

Conference Grants are exclusively reserved for PhD students and YRIs who are less than 40 years old with a primary affiliation in an institution located in an ITC (Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, North Macedonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Turkey).

The grants are exclusively reserved for applicants making an oral/poster presentation at the conference and are listed in the official event/conference programme. The main subject of the oral presentation/poster presentation/speech at the approved conference needs to be closely related to the topic of the Action and to acknowledge COST. The participation of each applicant shall be pre-approved by the Action MC.

List of international Conference

WHAT ARE THE SPECIFIC TOPICS ITC CONFERENCES GRANTS TARGETED BY CA18213?

In CA 18213, each call for ITC Conference Grants will be aligned with thematic priorities related to the main topics of the Action’s working groups. This means that targeted conferences are preferably those that are connected with: Rural needs social networks and social inclusion; Rural NEETs and formal and non-formal education; Employment & employment services in rural areas, Rural NEETs and sustainability; Metamodel of risks and protective factors for rural NEETs.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT:

The following funding conditions apply and must be respected:

  • The number of Conference Grants to be funded in the 4th Grant Period is 2.
  • Up to maximum 1.000 EUR per ITC conference grant
  • For virtual conferences, only the registration fee is eligible (500 EUR).

A cost estimation (registration fee, estimated total cost) should be submitted with the application.

A conference grant is a fixed financial contribution which takes into consideration the budget request of the applicant and the outcome of the evaluation of the application by the delegated person(s). Conference grants do not necessarily cover all of the expenses related to participating in a given conference. A conference grant is a contribution to the overall travel, accommodation and meal expenses of the selected grantee.

In addition, when accommodation expenses are supported by the hosting institution as part of the provisions offered in their conference package, the amount for subsistence afforded to each eligible participant must be deducted from the grant. Documentary evidence of the conference fee amount shall be provided by the applicant and shall be archived by the Grant Holder along with the relevant administrative documents.

Multiple applications to several Actions by the same person to attend the same conference is strictly forbidden and may lead to the cancellation of the grant.

Researchers who have already used ITC conference grant in the previous grand periods are not eligible to apply for the funds form the 5th Call for ITC conference grants.

DEADLINE: Interested researchers can apply by the 30th of May 2023

APPLICATION PROCEDURE:

  1. Applicants should read carefully the funding rules detailly explained in the Cost Annotated Rules (https://www.cost.eu/uploads/2022/12/COST-094-21-Annotated-Rules-for-COST-Actions-Level-C-V1.3.pdf )
  2. Applicants need to have their e-COST profile at https://e-services.cost.eu/ and submit their application via the ”Create Conference Grant Request“ link.
  3. The applicant is required to send their ITC application form submitted to e-COST (pdf).
The list of supporting documents (in pdf format) to be submitted for the evaluation are:

  • The submitted ITC application form (downloadable when the online application is submitted – see points 2 & 3 above);
  • A short description of their involvement in the COST Action (max. 1 page);
  • Acceptance letter/email confirmation from the conference organizers (confirming either your speaking slot or your poster presentation) or conference program showing the applicants’ participation;
  • A copy of the abstract or poster submitted to the conference;
  • A full C.V. (including a list of academic publications – if applicable, max. 5 pages).

EVALUATION PROCESS:

The applications will be assessed by the ITC Grants assessment committee of Rural NEETs team and successful applicants will be notified by email, by the Grand Awarding Coordinator. The grants assessment team will evaluate applications according to budget, possible contribution that the proposed conference participation will make against the scientific objectives outlined in the Action’s MANUAL OF INTERNAL RULES & PROCEDURES, and the individual candidate’s career. For more information about the evaluation criteria for selection of the ITC Conference Grantees in CA 18213, please check p. 33-35 from the MANUAL OF INTERNAL RULES & PROCEDURES or follow the link:

https://www.rnyobservatory.eu/connect/index.php?r=file%2Ffile%2Fdownload&guid=887c9b1f-bf8b-4aff-a7b2-6a1f9b0ac095&hash_sha1=fe50b853

Please be aware that candidates who have previously received funding under the ITC Conference Grants of the CA 18213 are disqualified for the current call. Their applications will be rejected automatically!

 REQUIREMENTS:

Successful grantees are required to submit either a certificate of attendance or a scientific report and supporting documents with in the 30 calendar days from the end date of the Conference in question to the Grand Awarding Coordinator of the Action and the Action’s Grant Holder (or Vice-Chair if the Action Chair is affiliated to the Grant Holder Institution).

Payment of the grant is subject to the submitted scientific report or the submitted certificate of attendance being approved by the Grand Awarding Coordinator. Written approval of the submitted report shall be sent to the Grant Holder for archiving purposes.

Short scientific reports should cover a short description of involvement in the COST Action, a description of the oral presentation/poster presentation and the outcome/results, expected publications that may arise from the ITC (if applicable).

The applicant is also responsible for acquiring an official acceptance letter/email confirmation of acceptance from the conference organizers.

In addition to the scientific report or the certificate of attendance, successful applicants should submit to the Grant Manager (by mail) the following supporting documents:

  • One original certificate of taxpayer status i.e. residence form from his/her country of residence. Each country has a slightly different form to confirm your residence/taxpayer status but it is usually issued both in English and in the official language of the country. Please ask for an English or bilingual version. The original of the form should be signed and stamped by the respective authority in your country (e.g. local Public Revenue Office, Tax Inspectorate or Ministry).
  • A full-color scan of the main page of the passport which exhibits his/her name and surname and passport number.
  • Scanned copy of invoices, receipts, bills, tickets and other proofs of payments for all types of costs, including for hotel accommodation, travel, meals, and paid conference fees.

Failure to submit the scientific report and the supporting documents within 30 days from the end date of the conference in question will effectively cancel the grant.

The grant is payable up to 30 days after the grantee’s report and supporting documents have been approved by the Action Chair (or Vice-Chair).

Please note that the COST Association and Action’s Grant holder can request additional information to substantiate the information contained within the documents submitted by ITC applicants.

Useful link: https://www.rnyobservatory.eu

Grant Awarding Coordinator: Associate Professor Daniela Mamucevska,  UKIM-Faculty of Economics – Skopje, North Macedonia, Email: danielam@eccf.ukim.edu.mk

In charge for ITC conference grant – Vladislava Lendzhova Ph.D., South – West University “Neofit Rilski”, Bulgaria, Email: : vlendzhova@swu.bg