Deadline: 28-Jan-2026
The Novo Nordisk Foundation is seeking applications for its Clinical Distinguished Investigator Grant Programme to support excellent clinically active research leaders at professor level with ambitious and clinically relevant 5-year research projects.
The research fields may include, but are not limited to, patient- and disease-related research, translational and clinical studies, investigations into disease mechanisms, treatment methods, disease trajectories, epidemiology, diagnostic approaches, public health and family medicine, intervention studies, register-based research, proof-of-concept studies, pilot projects, initial clinical trials and testing, and biomedicine.
The ‘Clinical Research Leader Programme’ is targeted at the best clinical researchers, who combines, or wishes to combine, clinically relevant research with clinical work and responsibilities. The continued clinical responsibility throughout the project and grant period is essential, as it is considered key to facilitate deep roots of both the research and the researcher in the clinic.
The calls ‘Emerging’, ‘Ascending’ and ‘Distinguished’ target principle investigators at specific career-stages and applicants are encouraged to familiarise themselves with the requirements in each call, to ensure they are eligible to apply. The ‘Clinical Distinguished Investigator’ grant is for the excellent clinical professors who through years have demonstrated the ability to lead and conduct research at the highest international level, while they have maintained an association with clinical work and responsibility.
The funding available ranges from DKK 8,000,000 to DKK 11,000,000 for a five-year period, with a total of up to DKK 22 million allocated, and up to two Distinguished Investigator Grants can be awarded. Approximately DKK 2.2 million per year may be allocated to project-related expenses, including salaries for research staff, operating expenses, equipment (up to 20% of total budget), travel expenses, publication costs, project supplements for Danish universities, administrative support (not for universities), and bench fees (not for universities). The Foundation does not fund the applicant’s salary, commercial activities, overheads, or indirect costs.
Eligible applicants must have a project lasting five years anchored at a Danish university, hospital, or other non-profit research institution. They must be medical doctors, specialist physicians, and hold a Ph.D. or dr. med. degree. Applicants are generally required to be clinical professors, though, in rare cases, those evaluated as professor-qualified but not yet holding a clinical professor position may be considered.
Applicants must remain actively associated with clinical work for 20-50% of their time while dedicating 50-80% to research. The grant cannot cover the applicant’s own salary, substitute replacement salary, or teaching obligations. Institutional support from the heads of both the clinical and research departments is mandatory.
Grants are individual, and while collaborative work may be included, the applicant must be the primary driver of the project. Only one application per applicant is allowed within the NNF Research Leader Programme 2025, and overlapping projects or double funding from other sources are not permitted.
Applications must be submitted in English and will be assessed primarily on quality and impact, scientific approach, scientific environment and collaboration, and the investigator’s track record including leadership potential.
The deadline for applications is 28 January 2026.
For more information, visit Novo Nordisk Foundation.