Experts are sought for the evaluation panels of GA ČR

Do you want to contribute to the improvement of Czech science? Are you an expert in your field? Are you interested in the direction of Czech research? Every year, the Czech Grant Agency receives over three thousand project proposals from all areas of basic research. More than 400 renowned experts help select the best ones. In view of the expiring terms of about half of them in March 2023, the GA ČR is launching a call for nominations for evaluation panels. Applications are open until December 15, 2022.

CES – Central Contract Register

We would like to remind all solvers of ongoing and new projects that from June 1, 2022, the CES system is updated in connection with the new standards. All the so-called “košilky” are now filled in directly in the Portal. Please, note that the "košilka" for the contract and the addendum is different (see the ‘Contracts’ tile). At III. The statement of the departments concerned you must also enter 3900 – Dean's Office – doc. Kubala (for the purpose of approving the "košilka" including signature).

The Technology Agency of the Czech Republic (TA CR)

The deadline for submitting changes to the project is November 10, 2022 (applications submitted after the deadline will not be approved). Confirmation of the submission of the change request can be found in the ISTA system in the change request. This confirmation has to be sent from the main contender's databox to the provider's databox. It is possible to request an extension of the project solution period, changes to the project budget, addition of a new participant to the project, change of the main beneficiary or another project participant. In case of any queries or problems, the project officer (TA CR), who administers the project, is ready to help you. You can find the contact in the ISTA system directly next to the project in the Summary of project information tab.

Announced:

• TA CR – TREND Programme, PP1: Announcement of the 8th public tender – development of 5G technologies and higher (faculty deadline: October 16, 2022)
• TA CR – SIGMA Programme: Announcement of the 1st public tender – sub-goal 3 (faculty deadline: December 7, 2022)
• TA CR – CHIST-ERA Call Open Research Data (faculty deadline: December 7, 2022)

In preparation:

• TREND Programme: Announcement of the provisional parameters of the 9th public tender, subprogram 2 – „Newcomers“ (announcement: November 23, 2022)

Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT)

Announced:

• Application – call I. (faculty deadline: November 23, 2022)
• Innovation – call I. (faculty deadline: November 23, 2022)
• Innovation vouchers – industrial property rights protection – call I. (faculty deadline: December 17, 2022)
• Proof of Concept – call I. (faculty deadline: November 23, 2022)

MIT calls are managed by The Business and Innovation Agency. Queries may be addressed to Mgr. Silvie Šavrňáková (silvie.savrnakova@upol.cz). For more information follow the provider’s or faculty websites.

Strengthening the capacities of public universities in developing countries

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MZV) announces the grant programme "Strengthening the Capacity of Public Universities in Developing Countries" for the year 2023. The submitted projects must be directed to one of the developing countries according to the OECD/DAC* classification, in particular to the existing priority countries of the Czech Republic's foreign development cooperation: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ethiopia, Georgia, Cambodia, Moldova, Zambia. Grant applications will be submitted electronically in the www.mzv.grantys.cz system. The deadline for submitting applications is December 1, 2022, 14:00.

Fulbright Specialist

Take advantage of the opportunity to apply for the Fulbright Specialist program. It allows for a 2-6 week stay of an American expert both at universities and research institutes. Under the program, the visiting Expert can give lectures, participate in or organize and lead workshops, specialized academic programs and conferences, help develop and improve curricula and teaching materials or contribute to the training of university teachers, assist with technology adoption, develop soft skills such as academic writing, etc. The program is not intended for individual research.

The deadline for applications for the February-December 2023 residencies is November 30, 2022. All information and a link to the online application form can be found here, and any uncertainties or questions can be addressed to Kateřina Kloubová, kloubova@fulbright.cz.

Study and research scholarships in Germany

For more than 65 years, the German Catholic scholarship organisation Katholischer Akademischer Ausländer-Dienst e.V. (KAAD) has been providing young Christian students and academics from abroad with study and research scholarships. The duration of the scholarship is 2-36 months. The amount of the scholarship ranges from 750 to 2 000 EUR/month including travel expenses (round trip) and health insurance. The deadline for applications is January 15, 2023.

The regular meeting of the Academic Senate FS UP will take place on November 30, 2022 at 13:00 in the big meeting room of the Dean's Office. Detailed information and materials are published on the senate website (in Czech).

Dean's Award to the Academic Staff of the Faculty of Science

The Dean of the Faculty of Science, Martin Kubala, announced the next year of the Dean's Award to the Academic Staff of the Faculty of Science for the year 2021/2022.

This award is given by the dean to employees for outstanding teaching activities, and it is standardly given to five employees – one from each of the five fields of study at the Faculty of Science UP (Mathematics and Computer Science, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Ecology and Earth Sciences).

• The Dean's Award can only be received by an employee of the Faculty of Science UP who taught an average of at least two contact teaching hours per week in the previous academic year.
• Students of third and higher years of Bachelor study and students of the Master study can vote for their favourite teacher. Each student can nominate up to three teachers, who will be assigned votes with a weight of 1,0, 0,7 and 0,5, respectively.
• The prize will be awarded to the teacher who receives the highest number of votes. In the event of a tie, two prizes may be awarded in each of the above mentioned fields.

Students can vote electronically on this website until November 15, 2022. Logging in is the same as in the Portal, but further voting is anonymous.

Welcome Office

An university-wide Welcome Office has opened on Vodární Street in Olomouc, which serves as a comprehensive service center for foreign students, doctoral students and guests, and will help them organize their stay at Palacký University. It will also serve as a support center for its faculties and facilities. Visit their official website here.

Plans of study for academic year 2022/2023

The lists of courses (plans of study) for the academic year 2022/2023 can be found on the faculty websites.

Online confirmation of study

You can print your confirmation of study online directly from your Portal.

Extraordinary scholarships for doctoral students for publishing activities

In 2022, the UP Faculty of Science will award one-time extraordinary scholarships to authors of prestigious publications from among the doctoral students studying in the regular period of study (i.e. students of 1st to 4th year). An extraordinary scholarship for publishing activity will be awarded to doctoral students who, in 2022, report a publication as the first or corresponding author with an affiliation to the Faculty of Science, UP, in a journal registered in the first or second quartile of a given subject category (Q1 or Q2 in Subject Category, SC) according to Journal Citation Reports ©. If a journal falls into more than one SC, the SC with the highest percentile will be counted. The publication must have a publication year of 2022 or be accepted for printing before submitting the application. An author can be awarded a scholarship only once for a specific publication. One author may apply for a scholarship for more than one publication.

The printed applications for scholarships (use the general request form) should be submitted to your student affairs officer no later than November 15, 2022. Scholarships will be paid out in one lump sum on the following payment date. The amount of the scholarship will depend on the number of applications received and the percentile of the journal's ranking in SC.

The scholarship application should contain: the student's name and surname, e-mail address, study program/field and year of study, the name, surname and e-mail address of the supervisor, the consent and signature of the supervisor if necessary, a full citation, including the DOI, the publication that is subject of the request, confirmation of acceptance for printing in the case of publications in print, printed full text (Pre-proof) of the publication.

Winter English course

As every year, Department of Foreign Languages organizes the winter English course for all doctoral students, this time on January 9 – 12, 2023. More information can be found on the website. Potential applicants can apply at lucie.vankova@upol.cz.

Rector’s Award

Students can enter their diploma thesis, professional article or sports performance in the competition For the UP Rector‘s Award. The awardees will receive a diploma from the Rector Martin Procházka as well as a financial reward. The work needs to be sent to the competition together with a completed application, reviews and an evaluation of its contribution. In the case of sports prizes, it is necessary to fill out a proposal sheet for an individual or a team. You can do so until November 16. More in the article; proposals and forms can be found here (both in Czech).

Parking will be significantly restricted at the dormitories for two days. Horizontal road markings will be added

At the end of this week, road workers will be supplementing the recent change in the parking system on the Envelope campus (see the original article in Czech) with horizontal road markings. In places where stopping is now prohibited on Šmeralova Street, a horizontal yellow line will be added to the pavement and reserved parking spaces will be marked on the side of the dormitories. It will not be possible to park even on these vertical parking spaces for the duration of the works, which will begin on Thursday, November 11, and should be finished on Friday. The area affected by the current traffic works is already marked with a portable traffic signs and vehicles that will not comply with these may be towed.

Energy saving

The management of the university recently issued a set of energy-saving measures for individual components. Recommended measures for energy savings in the buildings and operations of the university are divided into three groups: cost-free organizational measures, low-cost measures and high-cost measures in the form of investments. Details here (in Czech). At the same time, an energy competition for UP is being prepared for next year.

Palacký University joins the statement of the Masaryk University

Yesterday, the Palacký University, through its management, joined the current statement of the Rector's College of the Masaryk University (in Czech), in which it expresses a deep concern over the increasing manifestations of intolerance that can currently be observed not only in Czech society.

Donate blood

The Transfusion Department of the Olomouc University Hospital is facing a serious shortage of blood. Donors with blood type A are most needed, but all donors are welcome. You can make an appointment by calling 800 888 529 or 588 442 236. First-time donors can come without an appointment.

IT courses for UP employees

The Computer Centre has prepared an offer of courses in the field of IT competences for UP employees. From November 7, there will be lessons in Outlook, Excel for beginners and advanced. If you are interested in speeding up and streamlining your work on a PC, you can sign up for a training course dedicated to the Windows 10 operating system. There is also a new course on electronic signatures and computer security. The current offer of all lifelong learning programmes for UP employees can be found here.

Honest Guide at the faculty

The guys from Honest Guide took a trip to Olomouc at the invitation of Palacký University and in their new video are enticing visitor not only for tourist attractions and gastronomic experiences, but also for university studies. They also visited the Faculty of Science!

The next faculty Newsletter will be published on Monday, November 21, 2022.