SNSF Independent Researcher Calls
The School of Engineering (STI) of EPFL is composed of five Institutes, grouping the laboratories working in specific fields of Engineering, as follows:
The STI and its Institutes apply an internal review process of the potential applications to the following programs:
SNSF Ambizione – STI application process
Information on the 2026 call will be shared when available.
Grantees of the Ambizione program are hosted by a laboratory, in an Institute of the STI, and need to get the support of all corresponding parties, up to the Dean of the STI.
Particularly, if you would like to join the STI by applying to the Ambizione grant, you must:
contact your potential host laboratory and Institute in STI and get the support of the head of the laboratory and Institute Director for your application. You must contact your hosts (both lab and institute) as soon as possible to inquire about their internal deadline and requirements.
pre-register your application according to the EPFL Research Office (ReO) instructions, which can be found in the EPFL toolkit for the Ambizione grant here. Please contact the EPFL Research Office (ReO) at research@epfl.ch in case of questions or if you do not manage to access the toolkit. To pre-register your application, you need to include the SNSF “Detailed confirmation letter” signed by both the host unit professor and the host Institute Director. Please note that the SNSF “Detailed confirmation letter” template will be made available by the SNSF (and included in the ReO EPFL toolkit).
wait for the STI to review, jointly with the respective host laboratory and Institute, your pre-application.
- The STI will notify you whether your application is supported or not.
- If your application is supported, you will be re-directed to the ReO to obtain the General Confirmation Letter that you need to include in your application to the funding body.
Overall, the following calendar applies to this process*:
| Call | Call Opens | Call Closes | STI deadline to pre-register your application with the ReO | Latest date at which the STI communicates you whether your application is supported or not |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SNSF Ambizione | Not available yet | Not available yet | Not available yet | Not available yet |
* Please note that some Institutes might have deadlines for the preliminary process described at Step 1. Please check with your host whether this is the case.
In case of questions, do not hesitate to contact research@epfl.ch.
SNSF Starting Grants – STI application process
The submission deadline of the SNSF Starting Grants call 2026 was 05 May 2026 and the call is now close.
Information for the next call will be shared when available.
Grantees of SNSF Starting Grants are hosted by an Institute of the STI and need to get the support of the Institute and the Dean of the STI.
Pre‑register your application here. To pre‑register, you have to:
- Specify the tentative title and short abstract describing your research project (1 page max).
- Specify your host Institute at the STI – Please note that the Institute of Materials (IMX), the Institute of Mechanical Engineering (IGM), the Institute of Neuro-X (INX) and the Institute of Bioengineering (IBI) will not consider applications to the SNSF Starting Grants.
- Specify whether special lab space and equipment will be needed to deploy your research project.
- Upload your CV & publication list.
Please contact research.sti@epfl.ch in case of questions.
Wait for the STI to review, jointly with the respective host Institute, your pre‑application.
- The STI will notify you whether you are invited for an interview, at the latest by (date not yet available). Interviews will take place by (date not yet available).
- For applicants invited to the interview step, the final decision on the STI support will be communicated latest at (date not yet available).
Overall, the following calendar applies to this process*:
| Call | Call Closes | STI deadline to pre-register your application with STI | Rejection or invitation to interview sent by STI | Latest date at which STI communicates you whether your application is supported or not |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SNSF Starting Grants | Not yet available | Not yet available | Not yet available | Not yet available |
In case of questions, please do not hesitate to contact research.sti@epfl.ch.