Academy of Finland grants funding for new Postdoctoral Researcher posts

The Academy of Finland’s Research Council for Culture and Society today decided on funding for 30 new posts as Postdoctoral Researcher. The funding is granted for three years.

With funding from the Academy, the new Postdoctoral Researchers will study, for instance, the significance of environmental legislation and the control of chemicals in the Arctic region, how sleep disorders in early childhood are linked to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), the role of technology in market reformation, and population dynamics in Africa 130 000–10 000 years ago.

The applicant success rate (the proportion of applicants who were granted funding) was 11.5 per cent. The Research Council’s total funding for the Postdoctoral Researcher posts amounts to some 7.5 million euros. Women account for 73 per cent of the funding recipients.

The Research Council had a total of 260 applications for Postdoctoral Researcher funding reviewed following the September 2017 call. The applications are reviewed by using international peer review. The review panels consist of international researchers in each field concerned.

The criteria for the funding decisions – the scientific excellence of the research plan and the applicant’s competence – are based on the Academy of Finland’s funding principles. The Research Council for Culture and Society paid special attention to applicants who in their research plans combined high quality with strong academic and societal impact or science renewal.

The Research Council also considered the applicants’ opportunities to gain more independence during their project and their international mobility. Postdoctoral Researchers are expected to have established effective national or international networks and they are encouraged to engage in international mobility and collaboration.

The aim of the funding for research posts as Postdoctoral Researcher is to support the most talented researchers who have recently completed their doctoral degree in gaining competence for demanding researcher or expert positions.