FAQ
24th Competition Round (2027):
TYPES OF PROJECTS
What types of projects can be submitted to GA UK?
Grant funding is one of the ways to secure resources for scientific, research, development, innovation, artistic, or other creative activities conducted at the university (Grant Rules, Article 1).
The project applicant chooses the topic and objectives of the project, as well as the implementation method. However, these must align with GA UK project output requirements. We therefore recommend reviewing the project evaluation criteria here before submission. Project objectives must not be identical to those of another project funded or proposed through GA UK or any other grant agency.
In which fields can projects be submitted?
Project proposals may be submitted within three disciplinary board sections (A – Social Sciences; B – Natural Sciences; C – Medical Sciences), which are further divided into groups. The BIO groups are further subdivided. The choice of section and group is entirely up to the project applicant. The selection is based on the project's disciplinary focus, not the applicant's field of study or workplace. More information on sections and groups is available here.
What types of projects are ineligible for GA UK funding?
GA UK funding cannot be used for projects focused on organizing conferences, summer schools, workshops, or symposia, or on preparing concerts and exhibitions. (Exhibitions may be recognized as a GA UK output only if accompanied by a scholarly exhibition catalogue containing citations and a description of the research methodology.)
Can the project topic be the same as the dissertation or thesis topic?
Yes. The project topic may be identical to the dissertation or thesis topic. A dissertation may even be one of the project outputs, though not the only one. The GA UK grant scheme is primarily intended to fund scientific research projects, not to fund the dissertation or thesis itself. Please find information regarding required project outputs here.
What is the possible duration of the project?
A project may be submitted with a duration of one, two, or three years.
It is not possible to conduct a project for a period shorter than one calendar year, nor is it possible to conduct a project during a suspension of studies or after the completion of studies.
APPLICATIONS
Since when can applications for new projects be submitted?
The opening of the competition is announced every year at the beginning of the academic year at the latest, by announcement from Rector of Charles University, where specific dates are mentioned. Applications for new projects are submitted through the GA UK application, roughly from October to mid-November. Applications are submitted in aggregate on behalf of the faculty to Rectorate.
What deadline should the researcher follow when submitting the application (request for continuation, final report or supplemented final report)?
It is necessary to follow the faculty deadline for submission, which is usually before the rector's deadline. Contact the clerk of the relevant grant / research department on your faculty.
Who can apply?
Applications can be submitted by master's or doctoral students enrolled at Charles University. The novelty is that from the 18th round of the competition (beginning of project in 2021), only those students who have not exceeded standard study period can submit applications. Interruption of study is not counted in the standard study period. However, the project can be completed even after exceeding the standard study time. However, any interruption of studies must be properly and correctly recorded in SIS; otherwise, the study period is classified as having exceeded the standard duration. The GA UK application relies on SIS records. If the application does not allow you to submit a project, yet you believe your study duration has not exceeded the standard limit, please contact your faculty’s study department to verify that the interruption has been correctly recorded.
Only students who do not plan to terminate their studies during project should submit project applications. The proposed length of the project should comply with the expected length of study.
If the applicant terminates study during the selection procedure or in the period before the announcement of the results, project will be canceled.
Only one project can be solved in the role of the principal researcher. However, one person can be a member of other research teams (a maximum of three research teams at a time). Application monitors whether the specified number of projects is not exceeded.
If the student is completing a project that is ending in the current year, they may submit a new project
proposal; the ending project is not counted toward the above limits.
I am unable to submit my project application.
Check the Rectorate deadline: a project cannot be submitted before the application system opens. You can find these dates on the GA UK or University websites.
Check the faculty deadline: the faculty deadline is earlier than the Rectorate deadline. You can find these dates at the faculty department responsible for GA UK projects.
Check your standard period of study: a project cannot be submitted if this period has been exceeded. Contact the faculty study department for information.
Check your study status: a project cannot be submitted if your studies are currently suspended. Contact the faculty study department for information.
An email address I do not use has appeared in my project application. What should I do?
Log in to WhoIs and set the email address you wish to use for GA UK communication as your primary email address within the WhoIs system.
The application does not use the email address listed in SIS or CAS, but rather the one in WhoIs.
Can a project proposal be submitted by a bachelor's student?
No, only a student enrolled in a doctoral or master's degree.
Is it possible to apply for project in master's degree programme and continue in doctoral degree programme?
Yes. The master's student can start solving project and continue solution as a doctoral student. In the period between end of the master's study and beginning of doctoral study (roughly about 3 months), he cannot perform any actual, f.e. financial, operations in connection with project. Once he becomes a full-time doctoral student at Charles University, he can fully continue working on the project.
Can a student apply if he / she has interrupted his / her studies?
No, the application is working with internal student register - the project cannot be even entered into application.
What to do in case of termination of study?
If the study is terminated during the project, the project may be terminated prematurely. Please announce premature termination of project at GA UK. It is also possible to request a change of the main researcher, ideally to a co-researcher from the team who will continue to solve project. Address request for a change of princial researcher to the University Grant Council. However, the change may or may not be approved.
Is it possible to draw funds even after termination of study?
No, it is not possible to draw funds after graduation. If unspent funds remain on the project, the faculty must return them to GA UK.
Who makes up the project team?
The team consists of the principal investigator, the supervisor, and potentially other co-investigators (students or academic staff).
Individuals not listed in the "Project Team" table cannot be considered team members and cannot be paid from GA UK funds as team members. Such individuals may be mentioned, for example, in the "Project Implementation Method" section and paid from "Other Non-investment Costs."
List only those individuals who will actually be working on the project during the given year. In the project team description, it is mandatory to specify the involvement of the members listed in the "Project Team" table in the project work.
For multi-year projects, you may modify the team composition in the annual reports.
How many members can be in the project team?
The team must consist of at least two members (supervisor + principal investigator); there is no upper limit on the number of team members.
However, the number of students on the project team must be at least equal to the number of other team members. Regarding GA UK project teams, for new applications submitted from the 24th round onwards, Bachelor's students are classified as students (i.e., receiving remuneration in the form of a scholarship); for ongoing and ending projects, they are classified as "other members" (i.e., not as students).
Who can be the project manager?
A member of the team is always the applicant's supervisor or another academic staff member, if the applicant is not studying in the doctoral study program, usually the supervisor of the diploma thesis. The supervisor can also be a doctoral student if he / she is employed at the faculty as an academic staff member, but only for a master's degree applicant.
The same supervisor can be listed for more than one project, the number is not limited. If an external collaborator is designated as the supervisor, they must be assigned a person ID number - at the proposer's faculty - before being added to the project application.
Can a bachelor's student be part of a research team?
Yes. Within the research team of the GA UK project, a student at the bachelor's level of study is viewed as a student (i.e. with a scholarship type of exchange) for new project applications from the 24th round, and as other members for ongoing and ending projects, i.e. not as a student.
Do team members have to be from the UK?
Team members must always have a relationship with the UK, either as students or staff. Persons who are not from the Charles University will be listed at the faculties as external collaborators, and in order to obtain a person's number, they must be introduced into the system by faculty officer of science department.
Can he be a team member from another faculty of Charles University?
Yes, financial transfers are handled by faculties themselves.
How big can the research team be?
The size of the team is not limited, but the number of doctoral or master's degree students in the research team must be at least equal to the number of other members of the research team (academic staff). A student in the bachelor's degree is seen as an employee within the research team of the GA UK project.
In the characteristics of the research team, it is necessary for the members listed in the table Research team to state their work commitment on the project.
Persons not listed in the table cannot be considered as team members and cannot be paid out of GA UK funds as team members. Such persons can be introduced, for example, into the Method of Solution and paid out from Other non-investment costs.
Always list in research team only valid persons who will work on project in a given year. If the project is accepted, you can change team within the annual reports.
How does the supervisor make recommendations?
For submitting application its necessary endorsement of supervisor.
Applicant shall establish supervisor in application using the personal number. Supervisor will receive an e-mail requesting a recommendation for your project. If the e-mail is incorrect, supervisor will not receive the request, but he/she can still enter his/her recommendation after logging in to the GA UK application using the personal number and password to the UK Web Applications.
Project recommendation is only possible via the GA UK web application. Any sending of project recommendations by mail or by e-mail is not possible.
We recommend that you submit supervisor only when the project proposal is complete. Beware, that if you insert the wrong person of supervisor during drafting project proposal, it cannot be replaced in the application. You must cancel the application and create a new one.
Is it possible to submit a project in another language?
The application offers a choice of Czech or English version. However, it is necessary to follow the choice of language in the chosen version of the application - it is not possible to fill in the text in Czech in English and in Czech in English; not even partially. Curriculum vitae in the English version of the application are filled in English only. In the Czech version of the application, CV’s are allowed in English (or Czech, Slovak, English). The University Grant Council recommends applying for projects in Section B (Natural Sciences) and Section C (Medical Sciences) in English.
What are the mandatory attachments to the application?
The application must include 4 to 5 attachments: 1. project proposal (exclusively in .pdf format), 2. references/bibliography, 3. CV of the principal investigator, and 4. CV of the project supervisor, including a list of key publications from the last 5 years. For fields in medicine and the natural sciences, the supervisor's CV must include the total citation count and h-index according to WoS. In the humanities and social sciences, citation counts from other databases (e.g., SCOPUS or ERIH) may be listed. The Grant Agency of Charles University (GA UK) recommends including ORCID and/or Researcher ID identifiers, particularly in the supervisor's CV. CVs may also be submitted in English.
5. An Ethics Committee statement is mandatory for all projects involving clinical trials of medicinal products or medical devices, the use of human biological material or sensitive personal data, or any other intervention in the provision of healthcare.
One Ethics Committee approval is permissible for multiple projects submitted by the same department; however, a copy of this approval must be included with every grant application. The Ethics Committee statement must be current (e.g., a statement issued for a previously rejected proposal cannot be used for a new submission the following year). If you have questions regarding the documentation of the Ethics Committee statement, please contact your faculty, not GA UK.
Some faculties specify particular timeframes during which Ethics Committee approval can be obtained; please check with your faculty.
In the case of animal research, the approved complete experimental project is submitted only for projects accepted for funding. Principal investigators will send approved applications to the faculty’s scientific department, where the documents will be registered. This is not a mandatory attachment to the project application.
How is the length of the project solution determined?
GA UK projects can be one-year, two-year or three-year. The applicant chooses the length when creating the application.
When to apply?
It is necessary to meet the faculty deadlines - the project is submitted to the faculty, then the faculty is submitted in bulk at GA UK.
How to save a pending application?
The application saves the pending application automatically.
FINANCE
What are the overall financial limits for the project?
A total of 300 thousand CZK per year.
Specifically, you will find all the limits of partial items in the Principles of the GA UK Operations.
What is the limit for the remuneration of project supervisors?
A maximum of CZK 20,000 for a supervisor or academic staff member, in accordance with Article 7, Paragraph 3 of the Grant Rule. The Grant Council has resolved that the amount should not exceed 10% of the principal investigator's stipend; however, this is a recommendation, so you may request an amount up to the specified limit. Please note, however, that the amount may be adjusted by the project rapporteur. The proposed remuneration amount must always be justified.
Travel costs – what is the limit and who is eligible?
There is no set financial limit.
These funds are intended solely for student team members, typically the principal student investigator. However, they may also be used for student co-investigators. A prerequisite for claiming travel costs is the student's active participation (e.g., a poster presentation, oral presentation, etc.). If multiple student team members attend the same conference as part of the project, the principal student investigator and the co-investigator must each present a different output. Proof of the presented output must be submitted with the annual report (or the final report in the ending project); a mere certificate of attendance is insufficient. Only in very exceptional and well-justified cases may travel costs be claimed for an academic or research staff member of the team (e.g., accompanying the principal student investigator to a dangerous area).
Only travel related to the execution of the project is covered, not travel related to the fulfillment of study obligations.
Long-term stays exceeding six months are not covered.
Travel costs cannot be covered for individuals who are not part of the team - for example, visits by experts to the principal student investigator's workplace.
I can't enter an amount in a certain item in the application - there is a zero or lower amount than I want to enter.
Make sure that you do not exceed the total project limit in the items already filled in (additional costs are automatically included in the total project limit). In such a case, the application reduces amount up to the permitted limit of 300,000 in other filled-in items.
Is it possible to pay for computer/IT technology from GA UK projects?
Yes, but only in justified cases.
Where are conference fees included?
Conference fees can be stated within other non-investment funds, or from travel costs - it depends on the practice at the faculty. It is covered only to the researcher who demonstrates active participation in the conference.
Is it possible to pay for participation in workshops, conferences, summer / winter schools from GA UK projects?
Workshops, conferences and summer / winter schools are reimbursed only in the case of active participation of the researcher (lecture, article in compendium, poster). The planned costs must be part of the application.
Is it possible to pay school fees or participate in courses or trainings from GA UK projects?
No, that's not possible.
What can be included in other non-investment costs?
ONC can include material costs (small long-term tangible assets, small long-term intangible assets: e.g. office supplies, laboratory materials, literature, computer technology, software that cannot be provided by the faculty, publication costs (including open access fees), services, conference fees, membership fees in professional societies).
Is it possible to pay membership fees in professional companies from GA UK projects?
Membership fees in professional societies can only be paid to the principal researcher who is in the doctoral study program. The planned costs must already be part of the application.
Can funds be drawn during the transition of the principal researcher from the master's form of study to the doctoral one?
In the period between the end of the master's study and the beginning of the doctoral study (about 3 months in time), neither the researcher nor any of the research team can perform any actual, eg financial, operations in connection with the project solution.
Can funds still be drawn after the completion of studies?
No, grant funds cannot be drawn after the completion of studies. This applies to all budget items, not just personnel costs! If any unspent funds remain in the project, the faculty must return them to GA UK.
What costs cannot be claimed from the GA UK project?
Costs unrelated to the project solution;
costs, the price of which exceeds the usual price at the place and time;
long-term intangible assets and long-term tangible assets with a useful life of more than one year and a valuation higher than CZK 80,000;
computer technology in unjustified cases;
computer programs that may be provided by faculty;
costs of rewards or gifts for respondents;
training, courses and tuition;
preparation of concerts, exhibitions, conferences, etc.;
payment of travel and accommodation costs for arriving persons;
entertainment costs, representation costs;
conferences, workshops and summer / winter schools without active participation;
I have unspent funds left. What should I do?
Non-spent funds returns through the faculty back to GA UK.
Co-financing
Please note that co-financing with other projects and programs within GA UK is possible - however, double financing is not possible (e.g. paying the fee for the same conference from GA UK; this also applies to outputs). Please always check whether co-financing from another provider is possible. Please note that, under the terms of the Primus for 2026, it is not possible to serve as the principal investigator of a Primus project while simultaneously serving as the principal investigator of a GA UK project.
RESULTS
When are results published?
Typically during March or April. All proposers will receive an email regarding the outcome of the competition.
Whom should I contact and how should I proceed in the event of a grant project being awarded?
Please contact the clerk of the relevant grant / science department of your faculty, where you will sign the contract.
ANNUAL REPORT
What results should the annual report contain?
The report should contain a specific result - in the form of an attachment, the researcher will provide an abstract of the conference, poster, preliminary data, publication, patent. A manuscript or confirmation of acceptance for printing is also valid. Results must include affiliation and dedication (see below).
You should also rich comment on the drawing of funds - it is not enough just to state that the funds was or wasn’t drawn in accordance with the plan. If there is an non-spend funds, it is necessary to return these funds to GA UK and provide information in the application for continuation.
FINAL REPORT
Can I create a final report even if I am no longer a student?
Yes, it is possible to enter the application for another six months after graduation. If the login does not work, contact the "Advice Center".
How do I request a Postponed Rating?
Cannot apply. The decision on a possible postponement of the evaluation is fully in the competence of the project reviewer, who decides on his evaluation on the basis of the information provided in the final report, especially in the case of expected outputs.
What results should the final report contain?
The report should contain a specific result - in the form of an attachment, the researcher will provide an abstract of the conference, poster, preliminary data, publication, patent. A manuscript or confirmation of acceptance for printing is also valid. Results must include affiliation and dedication (see below).
You should also rich comment on the drawing of funds - it is not enough just to state that the funds was or wasn’t drawn in accordance with the plan. If there is an non-spend funds, it is necessary to return these funds to GA UK and provide information in the application for continuation.
AMENDED FINAL REPORT
How and when will I submit a amended final report after postponed evaluation?
Amended final report is submitted on the same date and in the same way as regular final reports.
Can I create a amended final report even if I am no longer a student?
Yes, it is possible to enter the application for another six months after graduation. If the login does not work, contact the "Advice Center".
OTHER
Where should I go if I need to return the project proposal, the request for continuation, the final report for editing?
In case of return, contact the clerk of the relevant grant / scientific department of your faculty - they can return the application / request for continuation or the final report for modifications, if they have not yet been submitted to GA UK.
Dedication - example:
The research was supported by the Grant Agency of Charles University (project no.).
Affiliation:
The official affiliation of Charles University is listed in the Measure of the Rector of Charles University No. 40/2021