Abstract

Researchers looking for funding under Horizon Europe programmes are often daunted by the efforts required to apply and participate. Hurdles include identifying relevant project calls, developing a project consortium, finding human and financial resources to write an application, drafting budgets, and, when approved, monitor finance and reporting requirements. At KU Leuven, the largest university in Belgium and a major recipient of European funding, research managers and administrators from different offices and departments cooperate in order to alleviate the burden for researchers, who can focus on what is most important: the research. This presentation will illustrate how the inter-departmental cooperation among research managers and administrators at KU Leuven is structured. For instance, whereas some check the eligibility of applicants, others focus on finance related issues, while others again provide feedback on the contents of projects. The university’s one-stop shop provides researchers with the relevant contacts for the administrative, legal, financial, as well as content-related aspects of a project, while behind the scenes the various relevant offices and departments actively inform each other of developments in both proposals and running projects. The best practices from KU Leuven can help less experienced research managers and administrators of universities to improve their internal workflow regarding research support under Horizon Europe.