UP Young Researcher Grant Competition

The Rector of Palacký University Olomouc announces the 4th UP Young Researcher Grant Competition.

The Young Researcher Grant Competition aims to support excellent research by young researchers and members of academic staff below the age of 37 when establishing new research teams and laboratories, as well as developing their independent research programme to support the preparation of a high-quality international project (e.g. within HORIZON EUROPE). Proposals must be submitted by 20 June 2023 till 12:00 a.m. Details can be found at this link.

MEYS – Announcement of a public competition in the INTER-EXCELLENCE II programme, sub-programme INTER-ACTION-LUAUS (Bilateral projects Czech Republic – USA)

The aim of LUAUS24 is to select collaborative research projects in the categories of basic research, industrial research and experimental development, with a focus on all scientific fields. The duration of the supported projects is set at 3-5 years. Deadline for projects submission to the MEYS is 30 June 2023, faculty deadline for final proposals: 27 June 2023 (green request form "košilka" + Brief project information by 15 June 2023). Further information can be found on the DPS website or on the webiste of MEYS. Please, report any project submissions in advance to tea.pokorna@upol.cz.

MEYS – Announcement of a call for project proposals for the selection of projects at international level in the INTER-EXCELLENCE II programme, sub-programme INTER-EUREKA-LUE231

The LUE231 call aims to select bilateral or multilateral research, development and innovation projects at international level, with a focus on all scientific fields. The duration of the supported projects is set at 2024-2026 (maximum 3 years).

The LUE231 call targets the Cluster and Network Projects programmes of the international Eureka network collaborating in science and research, where consortia submit joint project proposals. The LUE231 call will support the Czech part of a bilateral or multilateral research project to be implemented in a consortium of Eureka network partners.

Deadline for the call is on 14 July 2023, faculty deadline: 27 June 2023 (green request form "košilka" + Brief project information, if the final proposal is not ready). Further information can be found on the DPS website or on the webiste of MEYS. Please, report any project submissions in advance to tea.pokorna@upol.cz.

MEYS – Announcement of the 10th European Interest Group Joint Call on SOLUTIONS FOR CARBON-NEUTRAL CITIES with Japan

The 10th Joint Call focuses on finding solutions for carbon neutral cities and is divided into three key sub-topics:

• Sustainable Smart Urban Mobility
• Improving Water, Soil and Air Quality in Carbon-Neutral Cities
• Efficient Waste Management

To participate in the call, you must be working on a research topic related to at least one of the three sub-topics listed. Proposals that combine multiple themes in an innovative way are welcome. The 10th joint call was announced on Tuesday 23 May 2023 on this website with a deadline of Monday 1 August 2023 at 10:00 and the announcement of the results in December 2023. Faculty deadline: 25 July 2023 (green request form "košilka" + Brief project information, if the final proposal is not ready). Further information can be found on the DPS website or on the webiste of MEYS. Please, report any project submissions in advance to tea.pokorna@upol.cz.

MEYS – Joint Programming Initiative “Cultural Heritage and Global Change” (JPI CH) – Call 2023 – “Climate & Cultural Heritage (CCH) 2023 Collaborative Research Action (CRA)”

The aim of this call is to promote transdisciplinary and convergent approaches to research on cultural heritage and climate change, to foster collaboration between the research community in several regions, and to contribute to knowledge development and policy change at the global level. Applicants are invited to submit research proposals that address at least one of the three themes of the call:

• The impact of climate change on cultural heritage;
• Cultural heritage as a resource for climate change mitigation and adaptation;
• Sustainable solutions for cultural heritage.

The full text of this call, including the list of participating countries, funding organisations, timeline, definition of key objectives, supported areas and expected impacts can be found here. Faculty deadline: 4 September 2023. More information can be found on the DPS website.

HORIZON EUROPE – MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships (European/Global)

Under the Marie Curie-Skłodowska Actions of the Horizon Europe programme, the European Commission funds research and innovation projects to support the careers of top researchers through mobility and innovative postdoctoral training. The aim is to enhance the creative and innovative potential of PhD researchers who want to acquire new skills through advanced training, international, interdisciplinary and intersectoral mobility.

The call for MSCA PF 2023 applications will be open: April 12, 2023 – September 13, 2023.

• 2 types of MSCA: European Fellowship (EU countries + associated countries, 12-24 months) and Global Fellowship (12-24 months + 12 months return part in EU + associated countries)
• PF conditions: min. Ph.D., you can apply max. 8 years after Ph.D. defense (extended by maternity leave)
• Funding: from HE (project evaluation above 93%), from ERA Fellowships (above 91% of project evaluation), from OP JAK – MSCA (70-90% of project evaluation; 5% co-financing from the department)

In case of interest, please, contact Ing. Tea Pokorná (tea.pokorna@upol.cz).

Study or research stays in Mexico

There are five vacancies, with a maximum stay duration of 10 months. Required documents: proposal for sending/application for participation in the scholarship programme of the MEYS, CV in Spanish, motivation letter in Czech, proof of the passed exams. Deadline for submitting applications: 23 June 2023. Deadline for submitting the online application: 21 July 2023. Detailed information about the scholarship offer, including a list of required documents and a link to submit the online application, can be found on the website of the Mexican Agency of International Cooperation for Development (AMEXCID).

„Sandwich“ Doctoral Scholarship

Bar-Ilan University invites high-achieving doctoral students from universities around the world to apply to the Sandwich Program, which offers up to six months of research in Israel. Details on eligibility and supporting documents can be found here. Application form is available on this website. Applications must be received by 31 July 2023.

Preparation and reporting of mobilities

All students going on study stays and internships abroad must inform the international section of the Student Affairs Office of the Faculty of Science UP about their intention to go and the beginning and end of their trip. We also ask all lecturers, who intend to go abroad within the Erasmus+ programme, to contact the international section of the Student Affairs Office of the Faculty of Science first

Information about foreign students who will come for an internship and about foreign experts who will come as part of Erasmus+ must be sent to the international office in advance by the department to which they are to come.

Contact: Dana Gronychová (dana.gronychova@upol.cz).

The regular meeting of the Academic Senate FS UP will take place on 28 June 2023 at 13:00 in the meeting room of the Dean's Office. Detailed information and materials are be available on the senate website (in Czech).

Doctoral student evaluations
Students of doctoral study programmes should submit their evaluation for academic year 2022/2023 by 30 June 2023. The evaluation has to be signed by the student as well as the supervisor and the chairman of the Subject-Area Board of the student’s study programme. It has to include a written assessment of the supervisor as to whether or not he/she recommends the student's advancement to the next year. Even after submitting the evaluation, the student can complete the courses he/she has enrolled at in STAG until 6 September 2023. After 6 September a check will be made on the fulfilment of the conditions for advancement to the next year.
Students of the fourth and higher years, together with the evaluation, submit a request for the extension of studies. Similarly to the evaluation, the request must also include the supervisor’s statement and three signatures (student, supervisor, chairman of the Subject-Area Board).

Summer office hours of the Student Affairs Office

Student Affairs Office of the Faculty of Science will be closed during the following dates: 3 to 7 July, 31 July to 4 August.

During other days in July and August:

From 28 August to 1 September the office will be open only to students who will be enrolled in the 1st year.

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 2022/2023.

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 30 September 2023. Logging in is the same as in the Portal, but further voting is anonymous.

Evaluation of courses

With the end of the semester, we would like to ask you to share your views on teaching anonymously.

Take part in traditional student evaluations! Completing of the online questionnaire will take you only a few minutes and you can use it to influence the form of study programmes and courses in the future. The evaluation is carried out in an electronic form and you can evaluate until 7 September 2023.

Extraordinary scholarships for doctoral students for publishing activities

In 2023, 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 2023, 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 2023 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 15 November 2023. 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 programme 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.

UP Young Researcher Grant Competition

The Rector of Palacký University Olomouc announces the 4th UP Young Researcher Grant Competition.

The Young Researcher Grant Competition aims to support excellent research by young researchers and members of academic staff below the age of 37 when establishing new research teams and laboratories, as well as developing their independent research programme to support the preparation of a high-quality international project (e.g. within HORIZON EUROPE).

Proposals must be submitted by 20 June 2023 till 12:00 a.m. Details can be found at this link.

State doctoral examination and dissertation defense

When submitting your dissertation or application for the state doctoral examination, adhere to the requirements and deadlines listed on the website in the section for Doctoral Study. Keep in mind that it needs to be done at least 3 months in advance.

Foreign prospective students

The first round of admissions for English study programmes has ended on 30 April. Currently, the only open application is for the Bachelor study programme Petroleum Engineering, which ends at the end of June. In the second round of admissions, which will be from 1 June to 15 August, only the Doctoral study programmes will be available.

The general information can be found at this website. At the beginning of June, a detailed application guide will be available on this website.

Foreign PhD students

The foreign doctoral students agenda is now completely in charge of Mrs. Waleria Słowiková (waleria.slowikova@upol.cz) from the international section of the Study Affairs Office. Other English study programmes (Bachelor and Master) as well as foreign internships and mobilities (i.a. within the Erasmus+) fall within the competence of Mrs. Dana Gronychová (dana.gronychova@upol.cz).

Online confirmation of study

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

Foreign travel

Due to the holidays at the university's Rector's Office and also at the Economic Department of the UP Faculty of Science, please, enter any foreign business trips that are to take place in July and August into the system as soon as possible.

The last pre-holiday withdrawal at the Rector's Office will be possible on 28 June 2023 (Wednesday), provided that the withdrawal (approved Travel order) must be reported by 21 June 2023 (Wednesday) at the latest.

In case of queries, call Irena Sičová – ext. 4034 or Kateřina Drozdová – ext. 4064 to discuss possible procedures regarding payments of advances. Advances in Czech currency remain unchanged.

Summer opening hours of faculty libraries

The Library of the Faculty of Science Envelopa:
CLOSED 30 June – 7 July 2023
CLOSED 14 August – 18 August 2023

The Library of the Faculty of Science Holice:
CLOSED 30 June – 14 July 2023
CLOSED 14 August – 18 August 2023

Detailed schedule can be found here.

PosPos

All faculty staff, doctoral students and seniors of the faculty are cordially invited to the “Post-Semester Gathering” (= PosPos). We will say goodbye to the summer semester on Thursday, 22 June from 12:00 behind the main building of the Faculty of Science. You can look forward to grilled steaks, sausages, fruit salad and cakes.

Celebrate František Palacký's birthday with the Fort Science

In 2023, Palacký University celebrates 450 years since its foundation. Palacký University and the Fort Science have prepared a special birthday programme for all visitors on Wednesday 14 June from 9:00 am, free of charge. In addition to the morning program for schools and the golden graduation ceremony of the Children's University graduates from 2008-2023, our science center will also host a recording of the famous podcast 'Přepište dějiny!" (Rewrite History).

Science Fair

Already on 16 June 2023, pupils and students can discover the world around us through fun interactive experiments, competitions and presentations.

The Science Fair at the Faculty of Science will offer a number of stands with an attractive programme from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. This year's theme is The Faculty of Science is celebrating (70 years since its foundation). Details are continuously updated on the website (in Czech).

Inauguration of the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Densistry and awarding of the František Palacký Prize

The inauguration of the Dean of the UP Faculty of Medicine and Densitry, Prof. MUDr. Milan Kolář, Ph.D., and the ceremonial meeting of the scholarly boards and academic senates of Palacký University on the occasion of the awarding of the František Palacký Prize to Prof. RNDr. Jan Peřina, DrSc., an expert in the field of quantum, statistical and nonlinear optics, will take place on 19 June 2023 from 10:00 to 11:30.

Palacký University – 450 years

On the website of the 450th anniversary of Palacký University can be found an overview of the nearest events related to the celebrations.

The next faculty Newsletter will be published on Monday, 26 June 2023.