Mobility grant for PhD Fellows

Who can apply?
The scheme is primarily intended for HVL-funded PhD Fellows. PhD Fellows that are funded through the Research Council of Norway (Forskingsrådet), including “Public Sector PhD” and “Industrial PhD scheme”, must apply to "Forskingsrådet" for funding for stays abroad. The scheme allows for externally funded fellows employed at HVL to apply, but only if the external source of funding does not support stays abroad.

Applicants should be employed by HVL. The faculties can make exceptions from this.

About the grant
The mobility, preferably at a research institution in Europa, must be of a minimum length of 3 consecutive months, and you can apply for grants to cover additional expenses for 3 months. The stay must end at least 6 months before the end-date of your  employment. The applicant must have examined other sources of funding. Other sources of funding may be able to support longer stays abroad. The PhD-handbook contains information about different sources of funding for stays abroad. It is possible to combine the grant with other grants, for example through the Erasmus+ programme, as long as this does not lead to double funding of the stay.

The Mobility Grant will cover extra expenses during a stay abroad. All extra expenses must be documented with receipts after the mobility ends. Please note that any surplus funds must be repaid to HVL through salary deductions. Applicants are obligated to follow HVLs guidelines for travel expenses settlement.

What/how much can be covered?
One can apply for up to NOK 50,000 for individuals and NOK 80,000 for stays with family1 . In addition, the grant can cover travel expenses (cheapest alternative). The expenses must be documented in the travel report afterwards. Normally, 20% of the granted amount for individuals must be covered by the scholar's operating funds. For stays with family, 20% of the individual rate is also deducted.

More comprehensive information about what the grant can be used for can be found in the “Guidelines for travel expenses settlement”.

The family support scheme is limited to applicants with children under 18 years of age. Applicants may seek funding to cover travel costs for a spouse/partner and children under the age of 18, provided that the family members reside together with the PhD fellow for the entire research stay abroad.

Before apllying for a mobility grant, it is important to familiarize yourself with the guidelines for mobility grant for research education and the guidelines for travel expenses settlement.

To get sufficient time for application and case processing, it is recommended that the PhD fellow begins planning the application earlier than six months before the stay abroad. As a general rule, the scholarship recipient can receive up to 100% of the scholarship as an advance up to two months before departure. 

Application process
1. An application for the Mobility Grant must be sent, using the application form included all mandatory attachments, to post@hvl.no. The scholarship recipient must expect that it takes a minimum of two months from the submission of the application to the payment of the scholarship.

2. The application will be handled by the faculty of employment or affiliation for the applicant. The applicant will receive a written answer from the faculty.

3. The recipient of the Mobility Grant must fill in the the form «Utbetaling av utenlandsstipend – forskudd». More information about this will be given in the written answer from the faculty.

The Mobility Grant is paid out as a one-time payment in advance of the mobility at the same time as the PhD fellow’s salary. 

4. The recipient of the Mobility Grant must keep all receipts, invoices, bills, and other documentation concerning expenses connected to their stay abroad. This applies to all relevant expenses the grant is applicable for. This should be presented to HVL upon return in connection with the final settlement.

 1. As soon as possible, and no more than one month after the end of the mobility, the recipient of the grant must document travel expenses and extra expenses he/she has had through their mobility. This is reported to HR-Lønn (lonn@hvl.no) in a separate form.  The attachment for all expenses must be submitted with the form. This is a requirement for the expenses to be approved.

Any surplus will be paid back to HVL through deductions in salary.

2. The scholarships recipients are encouraged to present their experiences in relevant forums at HVL after the stay abroad has been completed. The faculties may request a brief written report from the stay.