The university is beating its peers in getting funding from the EU programme. Head of research policy Jan D'hooge shares the recipe for success
Jan D'hooge, KU Leuven vice rector of research policy. Photo credits: KU Leuven
At the halfway point, KU Leuven has won more grants from Horizon Europe than any other university. This isn’t accidental. Jan D'hooge, vice rector of research policy, told Science|Business how it took the lead.
Since Horizon Europe kicked off with a budget of €95.5 billion in 2021, KU Leuven has won €247 million in grants in 418 projects, of which it coordinates 176. Its best performance is in Horizon Europe’s Pillar II which funds large-scale collaborative research projects as well as Pillar I for fundamental research.
The university has a big team of support staff that help researchers turn their ideas into research proposals, with this support network itself built on a strong policy base.
The Flemish regional research…
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