CES - new digital forms

New digital request forms (in Czech: košilky) have been launched at the university since March. The Legal Department has organized several training sessions. The entire system is undergoing changes. The Department of Project Support would like to ask project managers to contact project officers and CES key user Silvia Šavrňáková if they encounter any difficulties in creating templates for project contracts and addenda.

GA ČR: Announcement of EXPRO a JUNIOR STAR tenders for 2027

The Czech Science Foundation (GA ČR) announces calls for project proposals for the EXPRO and JUNIOR STAR tenders. Project proposals can be submitted until 20 April 2026, via the new GRITA system.

NEW: Final project proposals for these competitions are no longer sent via data box, but are confirmed by the statutory body of the institution directly in the GRITA application.

Administration in GRITA will be handled by UP Project Service (PS UP), which currently handles the necessary registration process for UP. As part of all announced GA ČR competitions, UP's eligibility to carry out projects has also been submitted.

Administration at the Faculty of Science:

5. April 2026 – original completed green request form (košilka) signed by the applicant and the head of the department and brief project information deliver to DPS to Mgr. Ľubica Korcanová by internal mail or in person.

To submit a project proposal, it is mandatory to have it approved by the Faculty of Science management; otherwise, the project proposal will not be submitted!

You can log in to the GRITA application, where proposals for this call are submitted, using your citizen ID, for example via eObčanka or internet banking (foreigners who do not have a Czech birth number or citizen ID can log in with their name and password). Instructions for using the application will be available here.

Proposers will be informed about the specific method of submitting and sending project proposals in this application to UP OL.

Please do not leave completing and submitting your project proposal until the last minute, as the GRITA application is brand new and its functionality has not yet been tested in practice.

Announcement of the EXPRO a JUNIOR STAR 2027 tenders - Czech Science Foundation
GRITA: new information systemto facilitate grant management - Czech Science Foundation
http://www.grita.gov.cz/

Note: project proposals for standard and international projects, POSTDOC INDIVIDUAL FELLOWSHIP, and Return Grants 2027 competitions must be submitted in the GRIS application and the generated PDF file must be sent via data box.

GA ČR: Tenders for 2027

The Czech Science Foundation (GA ČR) announces calls for proposals for standard and international projects, POSTDOC INDIVIDUAL FELLOWSHIP, and Return Grants.

Project proposals with a start date in 2027 can be submitted until 31 March 2026. The results of the tenders will be announced on 26 November 2026. For international competitions and calls, the results will be announced later, depending on the agreement with the foreign agency.

Deadlines for submitting project applications to FS UP:

20 March 2026 (Friday) – deliver the original completed green request form ("košilka") signed by the applicant and the head of the department and brief project information or a draft project proposal by internal mail or in person to DPS – Mgr. Ľubica Korcanová.

24 March 2026 (Tuesday) – deliver the final version of the project proposal in PDF format with the watermark FINAL generated from the GRIS application by email to: lubica.korcanova@upol.cz.

The full text of the call for proposals can also be found on the website of the Czech Science Foundation. Queries may be addressed to lubica.korcanova@upol.cz, tel. 4051.

GA ČR: Call for Slovenian-Czech projects

The Czech Science Foundation (GA ČR), in cooperation with the Slovenian agency Javna agencija za znanstvenoraziskovalno in inovacijsko dejavnost Republike Slovenije (ARIS), announces a call for project proposals based on the Lead Agency evaluation principle, with an expected start date in 2027. In this call, GA ČR acts as a partner organization – projects are evaluated by ARIS and GA ČR accepts the evaluation results. The call is announced as part of the Weave initiative.

The Czech part of the project proposal can be submitted no later than 7 April 2026, i.e. 7 days after the official deadline set by ARIS for Slovenian applicants on 31 March 2026. The text of the call can be found on the Grant Agency's website.

Deadlines for submitting project applications to FS UP:

31 March 2026 (Tuesday) – deliver the original completed green request form ("košilka") signed by the applicant and the head of the department and brief project information (or a draft project proposal) by internal mail or in person to DPS – Mgr. Ľubica Korcanová.

2 April 2026 by 12:00 (Thursday) – deliver the final version of the project proposal by email to: lubica.korcanova@upol.cz.

GA ČR: Call for Swiss-Czech projects

The Czech Science Foundation (GA ČR), in cooperation with the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF), announces a call for project proposals based on the Lead Agency evaluation principle, with an expected start date in 2027. In this call, GA ČR acts as a partner organization – projects are evaluated by SNSF and GA ČR accepts the evaluation results. The call is announced as part of the Weave initiative.

The Swiss agency has set two deadlines for submitting project proposals in 2026, namely 1 April 2026, and 1 October 2026. For the April deadline, the expected start date is 1 January 2027, and for the October deadline, it is 1 July 2027. The text of the call for proposals can be found on the Grant Agency's website.

The Czech part of the project proposal can be submitted no later than 7 days after the selected deadline on the Swiss side, i.e. by 8 April 2026, or 8 October 2026. In case of interest, please contact lubica.korcanova@upol.cz, tel. 4051.

Mandatory reporting of mobilities

Every mobility, regardless of the source of funding and regardless of whether the student will receive credits for that, must be reported at least one month before its start to Mgr. Marie Raková at marie.rakova@upol.cz from the International section of the Student Affairs Office. Outgoing mobilities are primarily reported by students, incoming mobilities by the department. Details can be found on the faculty website.

Records of foreign guests

It is the responsibility of the department to register foreign guests. If you have international guests visiting your department, enter their information in the Portal as follows:

• click on "All Applications" in your Portal
• click on the "Guest Admission" tile
• press the "+New" button and fill out the newly opened form.

This procedure does not apply to student internships - these are reported as incoming mobility.

Mobility scholarship

A student who goes on any mobility abroad for 30 days or more (study stay, research internship, work placement, summer school, etc.), can apply for a scholarship of CZK 5,000 for each mobility. The request must be submitted before departure. Details here.

Co-financing of trips and internships abroad

If the primary source does not cover all the necessary costs, it is possible to apply for additional funding for student internships abroad (lasting at least one month) or employee trips abroad. Send the completed and signed application form (for students, for employees) by internal mail to Waleria Kmentová (Student Affairs Office) or its scan to waleria.kmentova@upol.cz. Czech versions of the forms can be found in the Czech version of the Newsletter.
After each co-financed mobility, it is necessary to provide a brief description of its course and 5 photographs.

JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship for Overseas Researchers

The Czech Academy of Sciences announces a call for applications for JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship for Overseas Researchers programme in cooperation with the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS). An application can be submitted for a 12-24 month stay in Japan, starting no later than 30 November 2026.

The deadline for applications is 30 April 2026. The documentation is available on the CAS website in the section Academic Public - International Affairs – News and includes the instructions for applicants, the application form, and the instructions on how to complete the application. All documents must be in English or Japanese. The results of the selection procedure will be available in late June/July 2026.

European Degree Exploratory Action Call

The European Commission has published a call for proposals for the European Degree Exploratory Action, aimed at higher education institutions that want to adapt existing joint study programmes and design and implement new joint study programmes in line with the criteria of the European Degree Label.

The call is open until 17 March 2026, and applications must be submitted via the FTOP portal. The call has a budget of €14 million, with a maximum grant of €1 million per project, meaning that 14 projects are expected to be supported. The grant will cover 80% of the total costs, with 20% co-financing expected. The project duration is three years. The European Commission is organizing a webinar on this call on 13 January 2026, where it will also present a second call related to the European Diploma brand, focused on cooperation between systemic actors (ministries, accreditation agencies, etc.) with universities and other relevant stakeholders. More details can be found in the call document.

Aurora Global Coil Fair

The Aurora Global Coil Fair will take place on 8 April 2026 and is intended for academics interested in teaching using this method. The aim is to connect with academics from partner universities and create joint courses. For more information, see the links:

Jak na společné online vzdělávání ve virtuální třídě? – Aurora
Aurora Global COIL Fair 2026 – Call for Participants - Aurora

What is COIL and how does it work? Find out in these short videos:

An example of a COIL.
Suggestions for developing a COIL. - YouTube

Registration is required by 11. March 2026. For more information, interested parties can contact Karolína Berousková (Aurora Education Developer, karolina.berouskova@upol.cz).

Aurora Lunch Talk Series 2026

- Online meetings on selected topics related to internationalization, always on the first Tuesday of the month from March to June 2026
- Intended for employees of international departments and academics interested in the topic
- For topics, meeting dates, and the link to connect to Zoom, see the attachment. No advance registration is required!

Aurora Lunch Talk Series - Aurora

Summer school Utrecht

The International Summer School for PhD students will take place in Utrecht from 6 to 10 July 2026. It includes an excursion to areas that are below sea level and are therefore particularly vulnerable to rising global sea levels. The full program and application conditions are available here. The deadline for applications is 15 March 2026.

Aurora Mobility Offer

New opportunities for students and staff within the Aurora consortium.

Elections to the FS UP Academic Senate

The Academic Senate of the UP Faculty of Science has announced elections to the FS UP Academic Senate for the 2026–2029 term and has set the election schedule as follows:

• the elections will take place on 29 April 2026, from 8:00 to 16:00 at the entrance on the ground floor of the UP Faculty of Science building, tř. 17. listopadu 12, and on 30 April 2026, from 8:00 to 16:00 in the UP Faculty of Science library, Šlechtitelů 27,
• The deadline for submitting nominations for candidates is set for 11 March 2026. These nominations must include: the first and last name of the nominee, year of birth, workplace and length of service in the case of academic staff, the study programme for which they are running and their year of study in the case of students, an indication of which group of candidates (students or academic staff) the candidate is being nominated for (if they are both a student and an academic staff member), and the signature of the nominator. Furthermore, the consent of the nominee must also be delivered to the election committee by the deadline for nominations; it is recommended that this be done directly on the nomination form.
• The deadline for submitting nominations for candidates is 25 March 2026
• The list of candidates will be published on 27 March 2026.

More information is available on the website.

The regular meeting of the Academic Senate FS UP will take place on 1 April 2026 at 13:00.

Electronic issuance of decisions

Decisions issued by the Student Affairs Office are now distributed electronically only (including scholarships, etc.). You can find them in your Portal, in the 'Viewing files' section. You can also set up notifications alerting you to new documents.

Schedule adjustments

Minor adjustments to the schedule may be made after 23 February 2026, only through the Student Affairs Office, until 15 March 2026.

Study confirmation

Follow this guide to generate the study confirmation with an electronic seal yourself.

Student Affairs Office

The Student Affairs Office is open for students only during the office hours. Please, do not enter the office outside of office hours.

The Embassy of France in Czech Republic - 2026 Scientific Prizes

The Embassy of France in Czech Republic has launched a call for applications for the 2026 Scientific Prizes, rooted in a long-standing tradition of scientific cooperation and promotion of research.

The conditions of participation in idividual categories can be found on the following websites:

• Joseph Fourier prize in computer sciences: IFP || Prix Joseph Fourier
• Henri Becquerel prize in nuclear science: IFP || Cena Henri Becquerel
• “Make Our Planet Great Again” (MOPGA) prize in environmental and climate science: IFP || Cena MOPGA.

The deadline for applications is 19 March 2026.

Call for proposals to support student projects

The Palacký University Endowment Fund announces the 11th call for proposals to support student projects, which is open from 9 February to 8 May 2026. This year, students in master's and doctoral programs can apply for a financial contribution of up to CZK 200,000 to carry out their own scientific research or artistic project. Details can be found on the website.

International Spring School on Visualization 2026

The Department of Geoinformatics cordially invites you to participate in the International Spring School on Visualization 2026, an international spring school focused on the role of data visualization, cartography, and emotions in shaping human perception and understanding of information.

The spring school will bring together leading experts and participants from around the world and offer interdisciplinary perspectives ranging from cartography and data visualization to psychology and human perception research. The program will include expert lectures, interactive workshops, and discussions with international experts. Participants will gain not only theoretical knowledge but also practical tips on how to effectively design data visualizations and how to interpret them critically. Participants will also have the opportunity to earn ECTS credits upon completion of the program requirements. The spring school will take place online from 1 to 2 April 2026.

City Nature Challenge

Do you know how many species of plants and animals live in your area? And how many of them can you spot during a regular walk?

Join the global City Nature Challenge (CNC), which Olomouc is participating in for the first time this year. From 24 to 27 April 2026, participants will photograph wild organisms and share their observations via the iNaturalist platform, where they can upload them until 10 May. Experts and the public will help identify species that are more difficult to recognize. The Olomouc challenge is being organized by the Olomouc Museum of Natural History in cooperation with the Faculty of Science of Palacký University. Its goal is to collect as many observations of plants, animals, and fungi as possible over four days and to draw attention to the fact that even cities hide surprising natural riches.

The next faculty Newsletter will be published on Monday, 23 March 2026.