The University of Padua offers funding for 30-month research projects

The University of Padua has just launched the fifth edition of the Supporting TAlent in ReSearch@University of Padua – STARS@UNIPD 2025 call for proposals. This programme supports excellent 30-month research projects to be conducted in Padua, by outstanding Principal Investigators (PIs) of any age and nationality, choosing the University and one of its 32 Departments as their working base.

The STARS@UNIPD call intends to promote and encourage high-quality, innovative and ambitious research in all scientific areas, offering support to ground-breaking ideas with definite potential to turn into competitive proposals for international funding, including the prestigious European Research Council grants.

In particular, STARS Starting Grants (STARS-StG) are designed to fund promising international PIs who have defended their first PhD within a maximum of 5 years before 1 January 2025, and who are beginning to establish their own research team and/or starting their own independent research activity. A Mobility allowance is also offered to support researchers coming to Italy from abroad. 

The call offers two other types of funding (for UNIPD researchers only):

STARS Consolidator Grant (STARS-CoG): for PIs, who are already conducting research at the University of Padua and are consolidating their own research team and/or their own independent research. PIs must have defended their first Doctoral degree within a minimum of 5 and a maximum of 10 years before 1 January 2025 (cut-off dates: 01/01/2015 – 31/12/2019 included).

STARS Wild Card Grant (STARS-WiC): for PIs, who are already conducting research at the University of Padua and who applied to the 2023 and 2024 ERC calls, indicating Unipd as their Host Institution, and whose project obtained a final score of “A” but was not funded due to budget limits.

The call for proposals is open until 21 March 2025 at 13:00 (CET).

Full information, annexes and application may be found on the UNIPD website.

For further clarifications, contact the University of Padua – International Research Office: talent.stars@unipd.it.