Aalto takes first place among Finnish organisations in ERC grants

Aalto University has had even greater success in acquiring EU research grants. According to an analysis by Tekes, the Finnish Funding Agency for Innovation, Aalto has climbed to the top position among Finnish organisations on the list of European Research Council (ERC) grants through the Horizon 2020 programme. Aalto is now 28th out of European universities in the ranking, having held the 59th place in the previous, Seventh Framework Programme. The University of Helsinki is 33rd in the ranking.

Aalto University’s Provost, Ilkka Niemelä, is very happy about the success of the Aalto community.

"I want to thank our entire personnel for a job well done, he says. "This result shows that we at Aalto are doing ever better and internationally more competitive research. Thanks to that, our opportunities to expand our funding base in the challenges of the current economy are also improving, he points out."

Innovations and well-being

Altogether, Finland has been the target of approx. EUR 200 million in Horizon 2020 grants, with universities taking an EUR 70 million share. In addition to ERC grants to individual researchers, the Horizon 2020 programme provides funding to, among other things, multiple participant consortium projects.

Up until now, Aalto has received the third largest amount of funding in Finland, slightly under the University of Helsinki. Aalto has received a total grant sum of EUR 17,2 million for 28 projects, with the University of Helsinki receiving EUR 17,9 million for a total of 40 projects. The largest share of Horizon 2020 funding has gone to VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland with EUR 34 million.

Horizon 2020 is an EU research and innovation programme that began in 2014, whose goal is to foster the development of European innovation and bringing those to the market, as well as improving its citizens’ quality of life and well-being. Aalto University researchers receive Horizon 2020 funding for studying, among other things, biomaterials, energy efficiency and IT usability.

Tekes report “Finland in EU’s Horizon 2020 programme” (Finnish)

Further information:

Provost Ilkka Niemelä
tel. +358 50 511 3013
[email protected]