Eligible research areas include molecular biology, cell biology, bioinformatics, genetics, microbiology, pharmacology, physiology, biophysics, biochemistry, biology, and biostatistics, typically conducted using animal, cellular, subcellular, or in silico models.
Applications must align with one of the foundation’s specific calls: endocrinology and metabolism, clinical and translational medicine (for clinicians), natural and technical sciences (NERD and RECRUIT), industrial and environmental biotechnology, or plant science, agriculture, and food biotechnology.
Projects should be clearly defined, with an appropriate budget that may include independent or delimited projects, or distinct parts of larger ongoing projects. Collaborations may be included but the grant recipient must be the main driver, as co-applicants are not permitted. Only one Investigator Grant application may be submitted at a time, and applicants with an active grant may apply again only during the final year of their current funding.
A total of up to DKK 25 million is available for up to two 5-year grants, each worth up to DKK 12.5 million. Applicants may request funding for research staff salaries (excluding the applicant), tuition fees for PhD students, operating expenses, equipment (up to 20% of the total budget), travel, conference participation, publication costs, and other project-related expenses. Overhead, indirect costs, commercial activities, and the applicant’s own salary are not eligible for funding.
Applicants must hold a professorship (MSO included) and be employed at a university, hospital, or other non-profit research institution in Denmark during the project period. The research must be anchored in Denmark, with only minor or time-limited affiliations abroad permitted. Distinguished Investigator grants are individual grants designed for full-time researchers, and clinicians with clinical obligations are not eligible to apply.
Applications will be evaluated by the Committee on Bioscience and Basic Biomedicine based on scientific quality, originality, relevance, impact, scientific approach, research environment, collaborations, and the applicant’s track record and leadership potential. Applicants must submit detailed project descriptions, CVs, funding overviews, and publication lists following the foundation’s specified format.
The deadline for applications is 13 January 2026.
For more information, visit Novo Nordisk Foundation.
