Swedish Research Council/Vetenskapsrådet (VR) distributes almost 8 billion SEK annually—making it the single largest public research funder in Sweden (1). However, when a researcher's typical workday looks like mayhem, the time left for writing a grant application is scarce. Many applicants find themselves working on weekends or, in extreme cases, at night. In such situations, researchers should know which sections of an application are crucial for grant success. Some of them may not be that obvious.
Since 2022, AdvanSci has supported over 160 grant applications with scientific advice, medical writing, and editing, resulting in an over 40% success rate. Our cofounder Jane Fisher, PhD, reviewed our processes and summarised our learnings, breaking it down into 3 pieces of advice:
Give yourself enough time and know what to prioritise
Put yourself in the reviewer’s shoes
Align your application to the grant call
This blog post is the first part of our new ‘Swedish Research Council (VR) grants’ series. The series provides detailed insights and case studies of early-career researchers, such as Dr. Zindovic, who won a major VR grant. Watch a video below or read the blog post to learn more about:
VR win rates across grant calls
Approval rates and average grants per career age for project grants
How many hours a researcher should invest in a VR grant application
VR Grant Application Sections that are most important
Case study: From the Operating Room to 17.7 MSEK from VR - available only in our blog post
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about VR grant applications - available only in the blog post.
Watch the video with tips from Jane Fisher or continue reading the blogpost.
How to write Swedish Research Council / Vetenskaprådet (VR) Grants Part 1: which parts of a grant application should you prioritize by Jane Fisher, PhD, cofounder of AdvanSci Research Solutions
Swedish Research Council / Vetenskaprådet (VR) Win Rates Across Grant Calls
The VR grant portfolio spans project grants, starting and consolidator grants for early-career researchers, infrastructure grants, and international collaboration funding—with applications submitted and managed through the Prisma portal. VR-funded research must meet strict requirements for societal relevance, ethical compliance, and scientific excellence. Each grant application is assessed through a structured international peer-review process focused on good research practice.
The average win rates are very low. In 2025, between 87% and 92% of applications were not funded across various grant calls. Moreover, early-career researchers, those with a career age of less than 7 years, represent the least funded group across all research career stages: only 6% (men) and 7% (women) of early-career researchers will receive funding, compared to senior researchers, who receive grants in 18% (men) and 16% (women) cases.
Approval rates and average grants per career age for free project grants
* Project grants within artistic research are not included
Approval rates and average grants per career age for free project grants (2)
Naturally, securing research funding is preferable to receiving a rejection. The following sections provide critical insights into the strategy of writing a successful grant application, intended to assist academics in navigating the competitive landscape of project financing.
How Many Hours Should a Researcher Invest in a Swedish Research Council / Vetenskaprådet (VR) Grant Application
The primary consideration when writing a VR grant application is to allocate sufficient time. AdvanSci’s research consultants estimate that a competitive, high-quality proposal requires at least 70 hours of focused work. This time excludes necessary time for rest; consequently, the total commitment you should expect to put in exceeds ten full-time working days, or approximately two weeks. For the active researcher, integrating this substantial requirement with existing research and pedagogical and supervisory obligations is a significant challenge. Therefore, it is highly recommended to initiate the process as early as possible.
Additionally, the application encompasses significantly more than the ten-page research plan. Various supplementary sections in the Prisma portal altogether require approximately five pages of additional text. A detailed budget must also be developed; while it may not be the central focus of the assessment, it must demonstrate both reasonability and feasibility. Additionally, the CV section in Prisma is notoriously laborious as the system does not permit uploading of external documents. Each entry must be input individually—a process that demands considerable effort. The publication list is also a critical component of the evaluation and warrants meticulous attention. Finally, applicants with prior VR funding are required to provide a one-page summary detailing their previous results. Taken together, completing a VR application is a rigorous undertaking. It is essential to begin early, allocate adequate time, and prioritise the completion of the most important sections systematically.
Swedish Research Council / Vetenskaprådet (VR) Grant Application Sections that are Most Important
If you do find yourself stressed for time, here are 4 aspects that we would recommend you prioritise:
Project Description
First, we recommend that the theory and method section in the project description is finalised very early in the process. The content of the rest of the application often depends on the specific objectives and procedures defined here. Any subsequent modifications to these core components will inevitably impact several other sections, increasing the risk of internal inconsistencies. Therefore, it’s highly recommended to finalize the content of this section before working on the rest of the application and to reference it continuously to ensure alignment with the proposed work plan.
Abstract and Purpose & Aims
Next, the abstract and the first page of the research plan—detailing the purpose and specific aims—are the most critical components of the application. As these are the first parts evaluated by the reviewers, a researcher must provide a compelling and coherent justification for the project. These sections should clearly communicate the significance and value of the project. If the reviewers aren't interested or don't understand the project after reading these two sections, it's unlikely that the rest of the application will be able to spark their interest.
Preliminary Results
The next important section to focus on is the preliminary results. Reviewers will rigorously evaluate the quality of the methods and the results presented, and so this section requires thorough and precise attention. More detailed advice on the specific content requirements for the preliminary results will be provided in Part 2 of the VR grant application series.
Merits (CV/publications)
Finally, the academic merits detailed within the CV, publication list, and throughout the application should be given attention. These sections should demonstrate excellence for the applicant’s career age and complement the research description. Specific content requirements for the Merits section will be discussed in the next part of this VR grant application series.
Case study: From the Operating Room to a 17.7 MSEK Swedish Research Council / Vetenskaprådet (VR) Research Grant
Dr Igor Zindovic is a consultant cardiothoracic surgeon at Skåne University Hospital in Lund—a clinician-researcher who operates half the week and researches the other half. When it came time to apply for a VR Clinical Trial Grant for the PROPER trial, a 624-patient Nordic randomised controlled trial across 8 sites in 4 countries, he faced the same arithmetic every clinician-researcher faces: a competitive VR application for a large research project requires many hours of preparation that often simply do not exist alongside an active surgical caseload and research workload.
"Application writing demands a whole lot of time," Igor explains. "With AdvanSci's help, I could use that time for my clinical work instead, and the applications I submitted were far better than I could have done on my own."
Working with AdvanSci's team of research consultants and PhD-level medical writers, Igor's involvement in the writing process progressively narrowed as the team absorbed the science. After he provided all of the scientific input and necessary details, AdvanSci's team was able to take over and craft a clear and well-written application while Igor could focus on his research and clinical duties.
In November 2024, Vetenskapsrådet awarded the PROPER trial 17,741,200 SEK over four years.
"[AdvanSci's grant writing service] saved hundreds of hours," Igor reflects. "But the most crucial point is not that it saved me time—it's that the quality of the applications was much, much greater than I ever could have produced myself."
Read more about Dr Zindovic’s research project in our blog post.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about the Swedish Research Council / Vetenskaprådet (VR) Grant Applications
When should I start preparing my VR application?
Answer: The call typically opens 6 weeks before the deadline, but it's recommended to start 2-4 months before it opens. You can find the previous year's call by filtering for closed calls in the VR Calls and Decisions page to see the grant structure and requirements, but always remember to check the current call when it opens, in case something has changed.
Can I write a VR application alongside my normal research workload?
Answer: We recommend that you try to adjust your schedule to include blocks of time for deep-focus writing. However, this isn't always possible for many researchers, which makes it even more important to start as early as possible.
Is it worth applying to VR as a first-time applicant?
Answer: Yes, but with realistic expectations and proper preparation. VR's starting grant is specifically designed for early-career researchers within 7 years of their PhD. Success rates are competitive, but first-time applicants who invest in understanding the review criteria and get external feedback on their applications perform meaningfully better than those who apply without preparation. Many applications will receive feedback from reviewers if they pass a certain quality threshold, so even if you are not successful in your first year, you are likely to gain important insights into what you need to improve, making your chances of success higher in subsequent years.
Ready to take the next step in your Swedish Research Council / Vetenskaprådet (VR) Grant Application?
This article covers the most common starting points. But every research project brings its own challenges, funding history, and timeline constraints. Part 2 of this VR series goes deeper with a closer look at how the evaluation criteria play out in practice, following an early-career researcher who secured a VR grant in 2025 for planning a clinical study. To get early access to the 2 upcoming parts of the VR series, <subscribe> to our quarterly newsletter, carefully curated for early-career researchers.
About AdvanSci Research Solutions
At AdvanSci, we are committed to supporting academics in building a future of reproducible research by providing education and consultancy support that complement the services offered by universities. For example, Scientific Advice is one of our most popular services with early career researchers, as it helps improve applications and increase grant win rates. Within this service, our consultants provide researchers with an independent, unbiased reviewer perspective, with a strong focus on good research practice and reproducibility.
Natalia Johansson, MSc in Strategic Communication, is a Research Network Coordinator at AdvanSci. Driven by a passion to bridge researchers and publics, she works to enhance scientific dialogue, foster collaboration, and support the visibility of emerging scholars.
Editor
Jane Fisher, PhD, is a co-founder of AdvanSci Research Solutions. She is passionate about practical solutions that enhance human health and improve the quality of biomedical research.
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