Flexible Funds

Call opens: 2 November 2026

Online info session: 16 November 2026 (Registration)

Submission of applications by 14 December 2026

Results of applications will be available in February 2026.

Implementation period for Berlin-based projects: 1 March 2027 – 1 November 2027 (FU, HU, Charité) and 30 September 2027 (TU)

Implementation period for Oxford-based projects: 1 March 2027 – 31 March 2028

The Oxford Berlin Research Partnership aims to further mobility and scientific connection between Oxford and Berlin. The partnership will make available funds to promote the initiation for new or continuation of existing collaborations and research projects between researchers based in Oxford and Berlin and to prepare third-party funding applications.

The funds are primarily intended to cover costs for travel, accommodation, the organisation of workshops, smaller-scale commissioned work (such as translation work) and comparable activities between Oxford and Berlin. Depending on where the applicant is based, the funds are awarded via the individual BUA partners or the University of Oxford.

Application

You will find the links to the online application forms at the bottom of this page.

Please briefly address the following questions and aspects in your application:

What specific measures and projects will be carried out? Why are they important? What is the aim of the activities (e.g. acquisition of third-party funding, joint publications or field research, supervision of students, etc.)?

What specific benefits or added value do you expect from the activity for your own research and for academic cooperation between Berlin and Oxford?

Please note that there are different forms, depending on whether the applicant is based at a BUA institution or the University of Oxford.

Available funding

Applicants from the institutions of the Berlin University Alliance:

The minimum funding amount is EUR 3000, and the maximum funding amount is EUR 3500 per application or you can apply for up to EUR 5000 if your project involves at least two BUA institutions. Travel and accommodation costs are calculated on the basis of the German Federal Travel Expenses Act. The approved funds are budgetary funds. They are earmarked and are to be used exclusively for material costs (i.e. not staffing costs) in accordance with the budget plan and the submitted application. The funds will be managed by your home institution.

At Charité the funds will be managed centrally.

At TU, the funds will be managed centrally by Task Force Excellence Strategy (PExStrat).

At FU, you must have an existing cost centre that you can use to manage the funds or be in a position to create one for the purpose of managing these funds.

At HU, you need to be able to create a so-called “BUA-Projektanzeige” in FIS.

Please make sure you check this with your finance department before applying.

You will receive more detailed information on the management of the funds after approval with the funding notice.

The following are not eligible for funding:

- costs for editing and publishing books
- meetings convened by persons already funded through Einstein Visiting Fellowships
- funding other international (non-Berlin, non-Oxford) participants in meetings

Applicants from the University of Oxford:

The maximum funding is 3500 GBP per application. Travel and accommodation costs should be calculated in accordance with the University’s Departmental Expenses Guide, available for consultation here: Expenses | Finance Division.

If you are based at the University of Oxford, the funds will be transferred to your faculty or department from the central University and administered there. Before you submit your application, please make sure that you have discussed this with your faculty/ department and obtained their agreement that they will administer these funds in the event of your being successful. In the event of your application being successful we will ask you to supply your department’s cost centre code to enable the funds transfer.

The following costs are not eligible for funding:

Eligibility

Doctoral candidates, post-docs and professors of the Berlin University Alliance and the University of Oxford are eligible to apply. We particularly encourage applications from early/mid-career researchers to initiate, continue or expand existing collaborations and research projects, and to prepare third-party funding applications.

Applicants from the University of Oxford must have an official and active affiliation with the University for the duration of the potential funding period (1 March to 31 March 2028).

Thematic focus

Interdisciplinary applications, and applications from the Humanities in any research area are welcomed.

Social Sciences applications in the areas of interdisciplinary research addressing global challenges, democratic resilience, governance of emerging technologies and colonial legacy are particularly welcome.

Applications in the field of Medical Sciences dedicated to the following research topics are particularly welcome:

Health across the lifecourse
Disease prediction and prevention
Global Health

In STEM, a preference is given to applications from researchers working in the following research areas:

Energy (in particular batteries/energy storage systems, photovoltaics, energy distribution, flexible use of energy, bioenergy, energy transformation, energy systems design)
Process automation (in particular self-driving laboratories, process control, robotics, digitalisation of laboratories and industries, FAIR data systems)
Bio- and chemical catalysis of complex systems (e.g., hydrogenase, cell engineering, difficult to express proteins, evolutionary processes)
AI research

Across all fields, cross-divisional collaboration in interdisciplinary projects is encouraged.

Projects that place a focus on “innovation”, i.e. researching or implementing new approaches or developing new techniques or solutions, are particularly welcome.

Procedure

Please submit your application through the link to the online form below by 14 December 2026. Please do not submit PDF documents by email.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us under the following addresses:

BUA applicants: please contact oxber@berlin-university-alliance.de.

Oxford applicants: please contact Sarah Hebbes sarah.hebbes@admin.ox.ac.uk.

You will receive the results of your application in February 2027. We regret that we will not be able to provide personalised feedback on any applications.

A short report must be submitted after the cooperation activities. We will send you an online form for this purpose a few months after the end of the project implementation period.

What criteria are evaluated?

Applications will be evaluated by the selection committee according to the following criteria:

Academic Merit/Quality (40% weighting)

Added value of the collaboration between Berlin and Oxford (30%)

Potential for further collaboration and acquisition of third-party funding (20%)

Diversity of the teams and topics (10%)

Information session

Please join us for an online information session on this call for applications on 16 November 2026 at 14.00 GMT / 15.00 CET
During the session, you will also have the opportunity to ask questions.

Please register by noon on 12 November through following link: Registration for Information Session Flexible Funds 2026/2027

Visa Details

Please take into account visa regulations – these might differ depending on the length of your stay, your nationality, and your destination.
Please consult the relevant regulations on the following websites and check if you need a visa to come to the UK/Germany to carry out your research:

DE->UK: https://www.gov.uk/visit-uk-research
(EU nationals up to six months for visa-free study and research: https://www.gov.uk/visit-uk-research + https://www.gov.uk/guidance/find-out-if-you-require-an-atas-certificate)

UK->DE: https://uk.diplo.de/uk-en/02/visa/travel-after-brexit/2441830?view and https://uk.diplo.de/uk-en/02/visa/professional-activities-not-classed-as-work/2447446?openAccordionId=item-2447448-0-panel&view
(NB: UK and other non-visa nationals should take particular note of the “90 days in any 180 day period” regulation – this includes personal stays in the Schengen area, e.g. for holidays. Please adjust the length of your stays accordingly.)

Where applicable, visa costs will be reimbursed. Please indicate them in your budget calculations.

Electronic Travel Authorisation to enter the UK for EU and other visa-free nationals

Please note that EU nationals and citizens from other other visa-exempt countries (e.g. US, Australia, Canada, South Korea etc.) are required to apply for Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) before travelling to the UK.

The application process can be completed through an app or online and requires a valid passport. It costs 20 GBP and is valid for multiple trips for up to 2 years (or earlier if your passport expires before).

Most applications are processed within 3 days or fewer.

You need to make sure to obtain an ETA before travelling to the UK. More information is available from the following website: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-an-electronic-travel-authorisation-eta

If you are applying for an ETA for the first time as part of this funding call, the cost of the ETA can be reimbursed. Please indicate this in your budget calculations.

Electronic Travel Authorisation to enter the EU for UK and other visa-exempt nationals

Please note that from the last quarter of 2026 citizens of visa-exempt countries such as the UK are required to have a travel authorisation to enter 30 European countries, including Germany, for a short stay.

ETIAS travel authorisation is linked to your passport. Once, obtained, it is valid for up to three years or until the passport expires, whichever is earlier.

You will need a payment card to cover the EUR 20 fee.
Applicants who are above 70 years of age are exempt from this payment. Also exempt are family members of EU citizens or of non-EU nationals who have the right to move freely throughout the European Union.

Most applications are processed within minutes.
It is possible, however, that your application may take longer to process. If so, you will receive a decision within four days. Please note that this period could be extended by up to 14 days if you are requested to provide additional information or documentation, or up to 30 days if you are invited to an interview. This is why you should apply for an ETIAS travel authorisation well in advance of your planned journey.

Further information is available from the ETIAS website: https://travel-europe.europa.eu/etias

If you are applying for ETA or ETIAS as part of this funding, costs can be reimbursed. Please indicate your budget calculations.

The Oxford Berlin Research Partnership