The next ERC Starting Grant call is expected to have a deadline in mid-October 2026.
The call will be available on the EU Funding and Tenders Portal in July 2026, and details of the ERC Starting Grant scheme can be found here. The Oxford Humanities deadline for Expressions of Interest is Friday 17 April 2026.
Expression of Interest process
Due to the level of interest from candidates wishing to submit a Starting Grant application through one of the Faculties or Departments in the Humanities Division, an initial selection stage is used.
All Expressions of Interest must be accompanied by a letter of support from a post-holder in the Faculty where you wish to be based, confirming that they are willing to support your application, and available to provide feedback on drafts over the Summer.
Candidates selected for support in submitting a full application to the deadline in October will be provided with support by the Humanities Division Research Facilitation team.
The deadline for expressions of interest is 17 April 2026.
Eligibility
For this call, researchers will be eligible to apply for a Starting Grant immediately after successfully defending their PhD, and at any time within the following ten-year period. See: https://www.ukro.ac.uk/news/changes-to-the-2026-and-2027-erc-work-programmes/
Submitting an Expression of Interest
To submit an expression of interest you should submit:
- A completed Expression of Interest form (3 pages maximum). You should bear in mind when writing your expression of interest that it will be reviewed by Faculty staff, some of whom will be outside of your specialism.
- a maximum 2 page CV.
Details of where to send these are given below.
The deadline for expressions of interest is 17 April 2026.
For any queries, please contact: research.support@humanities.ox.ac.uk
