Funding Calls

You can apply for the money to attend schools, conferences, collaboration meetings, that allow you to discuss and advance your research within STRUCTURES or educate yourself further in related topics. Preference will be given to activities that are difficult to fund otherwise.

How to apply:
For your application please write a description of your planned activities (about half a page) which should contain the following information:

• What do you want to use the funding for? How does this help you to advance your studies or career?
• Do you have the opportunity to present your research in the form of a poster or talk?
• How is this activity related to STRUCTURES or how does it help you to connect with STRUCTURES?
• How much would you need? (Not the exact amount, but an estimation. This can also cover more than one activity.)
• Why is it difficult to get funding from your group or by other means?

We recommend you to check the FAQs on the YRC Travel Grants down below.

You can request to buy books that you cannot get at the university library. After the use the equipment would become part of the STRUCTURES library.

How to apply:
Your application should be short (max a half page) and should contain the following information:

• Which books do you need? Specify author, title, publishing house, edition, and ISBN.
• Why do you need it in your research or project?
• How is this related to your activity within STRUCTURES?
• How much would the books cost?

You can apply for the money to attend online schools, conferences, courses, events, workshops that allow you to discuss and advance your research within STRUCTURES or educate yourself further in related topics. The online event or course should satisfy all of the following conditions:

• the topic of the course is STRUCTURES related
• the course is not already offered by the university as a regular course or as a part of the Weiterbildungsprogramm
• the course is offered by the university but the applicant cannot attend it for a good reason (for instance: the course exists only in German and the applicant doesn't speak it, the schedule conflicts with his/her departmental duties).

The application (max. half a page) must contain a short description of the course and the following information:

• Which course would you like to take?
• How would it help you in your research or project?
• How does it connect to your activity within STRUCTURES?
• Is there an equivalent course at the university? If yes, explain why you cannot attend it.

1. What do I have to do before travelling?

In order to get your travel reimbursed there are 2 documents that need to be handed prior to your departure: the travel authorization form (Antrag auf Genehmigung einer Dienstreise) to the STRUCTURES offices in Philosophenweg 12 or Berliner Str. 47 (not to your institute!) and (if applicable) the A1 form for European travel (A1 Bescheinigung) to your institute.

• The forms need to be filled out electronically (not handwritten!) but signed by hand.
• The forms need to be handed in the original form (no copies!).
• The travel authorization form should always be signed by the supervisor and the travelling student, and handed in prior to the date of travelling.
• In case of being an employee of the university (PhD student etc.), do not forget to add your LBV Employee No. (dt. Personalnummer) to your papers.

The updated version of these forms can be found under the following links:
https://www.uni-heidelberg.de/einrichtungen/verwaltung/personal/formulare_personal.html#dienstreisen
https://lbv.landbw.de/vordrucke#vordrucknummer=42103

2. What is the UHD number and where to find it?

This is a number introduced with the new system used by Heidelberg University for invoices. It needs to be added to your travel expense claim form and any other invoice you want to get reimbursed. You can get it from the STRUCTURES office upon request.

3. What is the A1 form and who needs to fill it out?

The A1 form is a form for business travels within EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and the UK. Only employees of the university have to fill out this form correctly and hand it in at their institute.

4. What do I have to consider when booking?

• You are obliged to take the cheapest travel option when booking (within reason)
  For example:
  • If a flight leaves an hour earlier and is substantially cheaper, you should take this option.
  • If you are buying a train ticket and you do not have a specific reason why you must be flexible, then take the saver's fare (Sparpreis).
• Do not forget to write the UHD number on all of the bills.
• Note the rules on maximum cost of accommodation (question no. 6) and what to consider when travelling with colleagues (question no. 10)

5. What do I have to do after travelling?

You should hand in the travel expense claim form (Abrechnung einer Dienstreise) to the STRUCTURES offices in Philosophenweg 12 or Berliner Str. 47 (not to your institute!).

• The forms and bills need to be handed in the original form (no copies!).
• The forms need to be filled out electronically (not handwritten!) but signed by hand.
• On bills for flights/hotels/etc. please name Heidelberg University and the STRUCTURES YRC as far as possible. All bills have to be handed in as original documents.
• Make sure you keep all receipts for your expenses. Receipts should not be bigger than letterform / A4. If your receipts are smaller, affix them to an A4-paper per receipt. Do not staple, use tape or glue to attach them.
• For us to calculate the CO₂-emissions, please add the aircraft type to your flight number.

The updated version of the travel expense claim (Abrechnung von Dienstreisen) form can be found here:
https://www.uni-heidelberg.de/einrichtungen/verwaltung/personal/formulare_personal.html#dienstreisen

6. How much can the accommodation maximally cost?

The accommodation should not exceed 80 Euros per night and person. Up to 100 Euro is often tolerated. If all available (and reasonable) accommodations exceed this price, please contact us.

7. Can I get my payment for flights or hotels reimbursed in advance?

Advance payments for flights or hotels are (up to 75%) possible for people who have an employment contract with Heidelberg University.

8. What to do in case my bills are in a foreign currency?

In case some of your bills are in a foreign currency, please convert them to Euro (show the correct conversion by supplying an excerpt from your bank/credit card statement; for payments in cash use OANDA: https://www.oanda.com/currency-converter/de/?from=EUR&to=USD&amount=1).

9. Until when can I maximally hand in the travel reimbursement?

Travel fund is granted for the year of application, so your activities must take place before the end of that year. Forms for reimbursement should be handed in as soon as possible when you come back. Travels can only be reimbursed up to 6 months after your return.

10. How to hand in the bills, if I am travelling with colleagues and sharing e.g. a hotel room?

If you are travelling with colleagues and you pay a bill for all of you (e.g. hotel room), do not split the costs on your reimbursement form. The correct way to do this is to hand in copies of your colleagues' travel authorization forms for your reimbursement. If you did not pay the bill, you should hand in a copy of the travel authorization form of your colleague who did pay the bill.
In either case you should leave a remark on the second page of the travel expense claim form.

11. Can I combine my stay with a private one?

Combining your scientific stay with a private one is tolerated but needs additional explanations. Of course, you need to carry all costs for the private stay yourself and your supervisor needs to approve of your absence. For arrival/departure it is mandatory to provide comparing offers between your travel with and without your private stay. Processing without is not possible. For more detailed information on this you can contact the STRUCTURES office.

12. When do I get a daily allowance and how much is it?

• Usually you are granted a daily allowance with your travel application. For each destination there is a fixed allowance set by the Federal ministry of Interior and Community.
• In case your stay exceeds 15 days, the primarily fixed daily allowance decreases to about 75% of the original value.
• The YRC usually does not grant a daily allowance for long travels, we start reviewing cases when the travel goes beyond 5-7 days.