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Funder · Other

FWF (Austrian Science Fund)

Funds Austrian scientific research through competitive grants that strengthen foundational knowledge and innovation capability.

Austriawww.fwf.ac.at
Key stats
Annual funding—
Programs8
Active grants3
Total grants7
About

FWF (Austrian Science Fund) is Austria's principal public funder of basic and curiosity-driven research. It operates as an independent body under the Federal Ministry for Education, Science and Research, with a mandate that covers all fields, including sciences, humanities, and arts-based research; the fund has been active under the Research and Technology Funding Act since 1967.

The programmes named in this batch are FWF Principal Investigator Projects, Clusters of Excellence, doc.funds, ESPRIT, ASTRA Awards, 1000 Ideas Programme, Wittgenstein Award, and Specialized Research Groups. Award levels range from EUR 175,000 for 1000 Ideas to EUR 35 million for Clusters of Excellence, with other highlighted ceilings at EUR 1 million for ASTRA, EUR 2 million for the Wittgenstein Award, EUR 2.5 million for doc.funds, and EUR 9 million for Specialized Research Groups.

Applicants are strongest when they have peer-reviewable basic-research questions and an institutional route that fits FWF's PROFI mode in the elane portal. The portfolio reaches across every discipline rather than a narrow sector list, so the best fit is defined more by research quality, career stage, and consortium design than by industry alignment.

Programs & grants under this funder
FWF 1000 Ideas Programme

Funds bold and unconventional scientific ideas through a seeded pathway for early-stage projects with high concept novelty.

1 grant
FWF 1000 Ideas Programme — Next
Scheduled
— pool
FWF ASTRA Awards

Funds established postdoctoral researchers in Austria with advanced support for independent long-horizon research programmes.

1 grant
FWF ASTRA Awards — Next
Scheduled
— pool
FWF Clusters of Excellence

Funds major Austrian research clusters that unite teams across institutions to build long-term scientific excellence.

FWF doc.funds

Supports Austrian doctoral programmes with structured cohorts, supervision systems, and sustained PhD training resources.

1 grant
FWF doc.funds
Scheduled
€2.5M pool
FWF ESPRIT

Funds postdoctoral independence in Austria by supporting early-career researchers through salary and project resources.

1 grant
FWF ESPRIT — Postdoc
Open
— pool·Rolling submission
FWF Principal Investigator Projects

Funds Austrian curiosity-driven research projects in any field through institution-hosted grants for independent investigators.

1 grant
FWF Principal Investigator Projects
Open
— pool·Rolling submission
FWF Specialized Research Groups (SFG)

Supports consortium-based research groups in Austria to build long-term scientific capacity and innovation.

1 grant
FWF Specialized Research Groups
Open
€45.5M pool·72 days
FWF Wittgenstein Award

Funds a top Austrian individual science award for researchers showing exceptional international leadership and original contributions.

1 grant
FWF Wittgenstein Award
Paused
— pool
Last verified: 29 May 2026Source: www.fwf.ac.at