To whom and for what purpose the grants are awarded: 

Turun Kauppaopetussäätiö (Turku Foundation for Business Education) awards grants for doctoral and postdoc research in business sciences and economics. Grants are available to doctoral researchers or postdocs conducting commercial research at an educational institution in Turku. Grants are awarded primarily for doctoral and postdoctoral research. No travel grants will be awarded under the open call. The application deadline for travel grants is February, each year.

The foundation’s board may establish a specific thematic priority for each year’s call.

Grant types and amounts:

Research grants can be awarded for both part- and full-year full-time research for a period of 1-12 months to doctoral researchers, up to a maximum of €26 000 per year (or €2 167/month).

Postdoctoral researchers may be awarded a maximum of € 30 000 per year (or €2 500 per month) for both part- and full-year full-time research for a period of 1-12 months.

Application deadline:

The application deadline for research grants is in September each year. 

Terms and conditions for grants:

The Turun Kauppaopetussäätiö grants are open to researchers permanently resident or working in Finland who are conducting research at an educational institution in Turku. Grants are awarded in particular to researchers at an early stage of their careers.

Social criteria do not affect the grant decisions or the amount of the grant awarded. Grants may not be awarded more than twice for the same research project.

Work grants are, as a general rule, intended for uninterrupted work. A grant awarded for full-time (continuous) work is designed to enable the recipient to pursue the project without engaging in salaried employment. The grant is intended solely for the coverage of living expenses. The use of a full-time grant presupposes exemption from paid employment.

The recipient of a full-time work grant shall not simultaneously receive any equivalent benefit, including but not limited to salary, another work grant, other comparable financial support, or unemployment benefits. A work grant awarded for full-time work may not be used during a period of paid leave.

During a grant period awarded for full-time work, the recipient may hold a position or perform other paid duties not exceeding twenty percent (20%) of total working time. The underlying principle is that, in addition to work funded by the grant, occasional or regular hourly employment is permissible. Such secondary employment shall not affect the duration of the grant period (e.g., a one-year grant remains intended for twelve (12) months of work).

The recipient of a grant awarded for full-time work for a full year is obliged to notify the Foundation without delay if, during the grant period, they intend to assume assume a salaried postgraduate student position at a graduate school,accept another (research) position, perform compulsory military service, or take parental leave, where such an arrangement exceeds one (1) month in duration.

In such cases, the grant period shall, as a general rule, be suspended.

Use of grants:

The grant must be used within two years from the date of award. The grant may only be used for the purpose for which it was awarded.  The signatory of the grant application is responsible for ensuring that the grant is used in the manner stated in the application. If the grant project is delayed, the content of the project is changed or the composition of the working group changes during the course of the work, the signatory must inform the foundation without delay and request approval to continue using the grant.

The grant awarded will lapse if no payment plan and commitment form are submitted within six months of the award unless otherwise agreed upon with the foundation.

The grant must be used in accordance with the work plan, but the project does not have to be completed within the grant period. 

Explanation of the use of the grant

A report on the grant’s use must be submitted within six months of the end of the grant period.

Payment of the grant

To withdraw the grant, a payment request must be completed in the Turun Kauppaopetussäätiö grant service. The grant will be paid into the applicant’s finnish bank account. 

Individual grants may not be transferred to a company or community account. If this has been done, the applicant may have to return the grant awarded.  

Grants will be paid by the end of each year. Applications for payment must be submitted by the end of November. For duly justified reasons, payment may be deferred until June of the following year at the latest, or the grant may be paid in two instalments by June of the following year.

Statutory MYEL insurance

The Farmers’ Social Insurance Institution (Mela) provides social security for grant recipients in the form of pension, accident and group life insurance cover (MYEL insurance). A grant holder has a legal obligation to insure the grant received for at least four months’ work. Short-term work may also be insured.  It is the responsibility of the grant holder to take out MYEL insurance and pay the premiums. The beneficiary will agree with Mela on the insurance and will be responsible for all related payments. The beneficiary must check the current conditions on Mela’s website or contact Mela.

Guidelines for applying for grants:

Detailed application instructions and instructions for filling in the application form will be published on the foundation’s website.

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Guidance on how to apply for grants:

The person signing the grant application is responsible for ensuring that the information provided in the application and its annexes is correct. Incorrect information may lead to the cancellation of the grant awarded or the recovery of any grant already paid.

Notifications regarding the grant will be sent to the email address provided by the applicant in their application. The applicant must notify of any changes to their contact information during the grant period. Attachments to the application are to be submitted as PDF files via the grant service. Statements related to the application are to be submitted directly to the application system through a link received by the statement maker from the system. The statement must be submitted no later than 7 days after the application period ends.

The application form must be completed electronically. Please fill in the information carefully. You can create a new application by clicking on the “Make an application” link.

• All fields must be completed. Referring to annexes is not sufficient.
• The same application form is used by all grant applicants, both individuals and working groups.
• The applicant on behalf of a working group is the group leader or the person responsible for the working group. The members of the working group must be indicated in the grant application.
• However, if the grant is to be awarded to only one member of the working group, he/she must apply under his/her own name.
• During the processing of the grant application, the Foundation must be informed immediately of any funding received from other sources.

The following attachments are mandatory. Please attach them to your application as a PDF file

• One-page abstract of the research plan, including a justification of the relevance of the research, a timetable for implementation and a financial plan. Summary must be understandable without requiring the reader to have any specialized knowledge in the field.
• The full research plan
• Resume or CV, including a list of publications

References

• Recommendations (a maximum of 2 recommendations, post doc 1 recommendation) must be submitted as part of the grant application. They are collected automatically through the grant system by sending a request to the recommender. 

The application and its attachments must be sent via this grant system by the deadline for submission. Late applications will not be processed.

Grant recipients will be announced on the foundation’s website in November, and the applicant will be notified of the award.