Call for funding 2026 - Research school in Health science autumn 2027

The grant is for partial financing of a doctoral student.
The call includes co-financing of 14 doctoral students within different research projects at KI over a four-year period, similar to KID funding (i.e. approximately 50% of a doctoral student salary according to the doctoral salary scale).

Application period 17 August – 28 September 2026. 

Applications are submitted via PRISMA and will be evaluated by an external review panel.

The overall aim of the doctoral school is to strengthen doctoral-level education in health and care sciences and to stimulate high-quality research with close relevance to healthcare practice. A key focus area within the new doctoral school will be implementation research. An important objective is to contribute to the future supply of academic staff and to strengthen the integration of research into a wide range of undergraduate and advanced-level programs, primarily within the various health profession programs at KI.

Eligibility Criteria

  • The application must include at least two applicants (one main applicant and one co-applicant), all of whom must hold a PhD, and at least one must have docent (associate professor) competence.
  • The main applicant must be employed by KI or formally affiliated with KI and active at the department where the doctoral student is expected to be admitted. The main applicant must have received a “Green Light” decision for the doctoral project from their department and have completed documented supervisor training.
  • A main applicant may only participate as main applicant in one application per call. If a main applicant appears as main applicant on two applications, both applications will be considered invalid.
  • All rules governing supervision and doctoral education at KI also apply to those awarded FiH funding.
  • Co-applicants (maximum two) must be PhD-qualified researchers intending to act as co-supervisors of the recruited doctoral student. Co-supervisors may participate in multiple applications.
  • The main and co-supervisors applying must be the same individuals who will be appointed as main and co-supervisors by the Head of Department at the time of the doctoral student’s admission.
  • The following eligibility (cooling-off) rules apply:
    An individual who has been granted doctoral funding from government appropriations is not eligible to receive such funding again as a main applicant in another call in the same year, nor in the following year. This means that a main applicant who was awarded KID funding in 2025 is not eligible to apply for FiH funding as a main applicant in the 2026 call. An individual applying for both KID and FiH funding as a main applicant in 2026 may only be awarded funding from one of the calls.

Funding of a new doctoral student in the research project

The funding applied for corresponds to KID funding, which is currently SEK 386,000 (including indirect costs), and provides co-financing for a doctoral student equivalent to four years of full-time study (48 months). Annual adjustments are made in the same manner as for KID funding.

Doctoral students within the doctoral school must have the possibility to study part-time (however, at least 50%).

During the first one and a half years of the doctoral school, doctoral students complete compulsory core courses and are therefore expected to pursue their doctoral education full-time (100%) during the course period.

Assessment of application

For submitted applications, an initial assessment of eligibility is conducted based on the research area of the Doctoral School in Health Science. Projects that are clearly deemed irrelevant will not proceed to further review.

Applications will be assessed by reviewers consisting of senior researchers (at least associate professor level) from external universities in Sweden. Each project will be evaluated by preferably five, but at least three, reviewers who will assign scores for each application based on the assessment criteria:

  1. The relevance for the research school in health science (yes/no)
  2. Suitability as doctoral education project (1-5p)
  3. Quality of supervision and the doctoral students learning (1-5p)
  4. Scientific quality (1-5p)
  5. Project feasibility (1-5p)

5 p = outstanding
4 p= excellent
3 p = very good
2 p = good
1 p = insufficient

In order for a project to be included in the final ranking:

1)  At least half of the reviewers must have assessed the project as relevant to FiH (according to the description of the research area on the website). 

2)  Each assessment criterion (2–5) must have an average score of at least 3 points (total score divided by the number of reviewers).

Decision on allocation

The reviewers’ assessment results are compiled and the applications are ranked. If several applications receive the same score and share 14th place, a tie-breaking score is calculated, defined as the average of a combined assessment of the project’s suitability as a doctoral project and the project’s feasibility. Three project applications are placed on a reserve list.

The decision on the allocation of FiH funding is made by The Committee of Doctoral Education based on the assessors’ ranking and quality-assurance of the applications. The preliminary plan is for a decision to be reached end of February 2027.

Doctoral student recruitment

A summary of the funded projects will be presented on the FiH website in connection with the recruitment process. Applicants awarded project funding will then participate in the recruitment of doctoral students. The recruitment process involves advertising the positions externally and/or internally in accordance with KI’s regulations. Applications for doctoral positions are submitted to the respective projects via KI’s application system. It is possible to apply to more than one project; in such cases, a separate application must be submitted for each project. After the application period has closed, the submitted applications are forwarded to the principal applicant for each research project, whereupon the selection process begins. Only individuals intending to undertake a full doctoral education (four years of full-time study) and who have not yet been admitted to doctoral education at KI may be recruited to an FiH project.

Thereafter, the admission process takes place at the KI department where the proposed doctoral candidate will be registered, in accordance with KI’s rules for doctoral admission. Please note that the date of the Head of Department’s admission decision may be earlier than the start date of the doctoral school (for example, if the candidate has a notice period from their employment).

The doctoral student must be admitted to doctoral education by 1 September 2027, when the doctoral school starts.

Application period 17 August – 28 September 2026. 

Applications, including Green light, are submitted via PRISMA latest September 28th 2026 at. 14.00. 

Instructions

The application may be submitted in Swedish or English.

Title of the research project

The project title must clearly indicate the research area and what the project is about. It should be possible for individuals outside the specific field to understand the content of the project. The project title must be provided in both Swedish and English.

Information about the principal applicant and co-applicants

The application must include at least two applicants (one principal applicant and up to two co-applicants), all of whom must hold a doctoral degree, and at least one must have the qualifications of a docent (associate professor). The principal applicant must be employed at KI or formally affiliated with KI and active at the department where the doctoral student is expected to be admitted.

Summary of the research project

The scientific summary must include overall objectives, research questions/hypotheses, methods/techniques, planned studies, significance and relevance for doctoral education, and the doctoral student’s role (maximum 4,000 characters including spaces). It must be written in Swedish and be fully understandable on its own.

Relevance for the graduate school in health sciences

Describe or justify (maximum 2,000 characters including spaces) the relevance of the research project to the field of health sciences (see the website).

Research environment and supervision

Describe the suitability of the research environment for doctoral education and the conditions for the doctoral student’s learning (maximum 2,000 characters). The description should include the doctoral student’s future research and educational environment, how the supervisors’ expertise is relevant to the project, and the supervision plan. Describe the doctoral student’s role in the project and what support will be provided to promote their learning process and development toward independence.

Supervisors’ previous experience

All applicants must report previous experience of supervision in doctoral education.

Reporting existing funding for the research project and doctoral student

State the financial conditions for carrying out the project. Applicants must list all grants relevant to the current project that the principal applicant and co-applicants have received or applied for. For each grant, specify the amount, time period, and funding body. It must be clearly stated whether awarded funding is linked to the proposed research project. The application must also indicate the applicants’ current source of funding (maximum 2,000 characters).

Reporting other available resources for the project and doctoral student

Report other resources available for the research project and the doctoral student, such as personnel, facilities, and material resources. Also list any collaborative partners within and outside the country, for example if the project is part of a larger international collaboration (maximum 2,000 characters). Describe how collaboration between participating institutions is organized.

Specify how the objectives of doctoral education will be achieved

Provide clear examples of how the doctoral student will achieve the learning outcomes within the research project:

  • Knowledge and understanding
  • Skills and abilities
  • Judgement and approach

For information about doctoral education objectives, see: https://staff.ki.se/doctoral-education/outcomes-for-doctoral-education-…
Research plan

The research plan, including references, may comprise a maximum of 20,000 characters (approximately 5 A4 pages) and must be written in English or Swedish. The plan should include aims, background, research questions, methods, planned sub-studies, significance, and a work plan. It must contain sufficient information to assess the project’s objectives, relevance, and feasibility. It is also important that the project is described in a way that provides a clear understanding of its scientific position and level of innovation in a national and international context.

Ethical approval

The registration number for ethical approval must be stated. If ethical approval is not available at the time of application, approval for at least the first study must be obtained before the graduate school starts. When applicable, a copy of the ethical approval should be sent to nvs-fih@nvs.ki.se.

Content reviewer:
Kay Sundberg
Ulrika Markne
25-06-2026