Small Grants Scheme

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Funding

The ELS Academy launched a Small Grants Scheme through which early-career scholars interested in Empirical Legal Studies could apply for financial support for their empirical legal research projects and activities. With this funding scheme, we aimed to stimulate empirical legal research and research-related activities that contribute to the mission of the ELS Academy.

IMPORTANT: The entire budget allocated to the Small Grants Scheme has now been awarded, reflecting the high demand and strong interest in this initiative. We wish all grant recipients the best of success in the coming months as they carry out their empirical-legal studies. The information on this page is now outdated. Please check our LinkedIn for updates on new initiatives and announcements.

Purpose and objective

The ELS Academy’s Small Grants Scheme is intended to help early-career scholars working in the field of Empirical Legal Studies in their ambitions to conduct empirical research, strengthen their CVs, establish (inter)national and interdisciplinary research networks, and increase impact-oriented activities, while at the same time contributing to the mission of the ELS Academy.

Funding of up to €5,000 was available for research, workshop organisation, impact activities, or networking. We are particularly appreciative of activities that foster relationships between researchers of the ELS Academy partner universities and beyond.

The funding could be used for the following purposes:

data collection (e.g., fieldwork, survey panel services, incentives for respondents);
data analysis (e.g., buying data analysis software);
organising research meetings and impact activities (e.g., expert workshops, symposia, or conferences);
science communication (e.g., webcasts, infographics);
other activities that fit the mission of the ELS Academy.

Please note that funding through the ELS Academy’s Small Grants Scheme cannot be used for the following purposes:

paying for one’s research time in FTEs;
hiring a research assistant;
conference fees and conference travels;
research stay travels or travel costs to conduct empirical research abroad;
open access publishing (APCs).

The grants were available only for staff from Dutch universities or research groups with a main applicant being based at a Dutch university. Priority is given to early-career scholars (PhDs, Postdocs, and Assistant Professors).

Grant

How to submit your grant application

You can download the past application form here. We are not accepting new applications currently.

Budget and lead time

The ELS Academy launched the Small Grants Scheme in 2024 and it ran until the mid-2025, with a total available budget of €60.000 which was fully allocated. A maximum of €5.000 euros was available per project. Researchers could apply for the grant until February 2025. The ELS Academy Small Grant can only be used to cover costs that have not yet been reimbursed or funded through other means (e.g. by the applicant’s University, including personal research budget). Any awarded grant needs to be utilised (read: spent and costs reimbursed) by mid-2025 (until 30/06/2025).

Selection committee and procedure

The selection committee of the Small Grant Scheme consists of the following members:

Monika Glavina, Erasmus University Rotterdam
Sonja Bekker, Utrecht University
Anja Eleveld, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Marc Hertogh, University of Groningen
Rowie Stolk, Leiden University
Pieter Desmet, Erasmus University Rotterdam

We aim to review all grant applications promptly. Upon submission of your grant application, you can expect to receive a response from us within a month. In case the grant is awarded to you, we will communicate the practical details in due course.

Questions?

Please contact Monika Glavina (glavina@law.eur.nl), who is coordinator of the research school of the ELS Academy.