The Novo Nordisk Foundation is expanding its popular NERD programme, which supports creative and original research ideas within the natural and technical sciences. The programme’s annual budget is being increased to DKK 160 million, enabling support for 40% more pioneering research ideas each year.
The most promising research ideas often arise from a combination of curiosity, creativity, scientific insight, and an ambitious vision. These are the ideas the Novo Nordisk Foundation seeks to nurture and help flourish. The Foundation is therefore expanding the NERD programme (New Exploratory Research and Discovery), which supports ambitious and original projects within the natural and technical sciences such as physics, chemistry and mathematics.
With the increased annual budget of DKK 160 million, the Foundation will be able to help even more creative research ideas come to life.
“NERD grants allow imaginative researchers to explore ambitious and brilliant ideas, even when this involves risk and requires a longer horizon to succeed. Long-term funding and the opportunity to build a focused research group are crucial to realising the unique ideas that push the boundaries of our knowledge. With this programme, we specifically aim to place greater emphasis on the research idea itself rather than the applicant’s track record, which can be an advantage for younger researchers,” says Lene Oddershede, Chief Scientific Officer, Planetary Science & Technology, Novo Nordisk Foundation.
Designed to counter bias in research funding
A distinctive feature of the NERD programme is that applicants remain anonymous during the first assessment round. This means the scientific committee evaluates only the research idea – not the CV, title or institution of the applicant. Personal factors such as age, gender and nationality are also not visible at this stage. In the second round, the committee gains access to the applicant’s CV and uses it to assess feasibility, ensuring the evaluation places significantly more weight on the proposed research than on the applicant’s background.
This evaluation process prioritises the most innovative ideas and helps counter three well-known mechanisms in research funding:
The first is that established researchers typically find it easier to secure additional funding. This mechanism makes it difficult for younger researchers to obtain grants and is known as the Matthew Effect, referring to a passage from the Gospel of Matthew: “For to everyone who has, more will be given.”
The second mechanism is the hourglass effect. It describes how researchers who have recently completed a PhD often find it relatively easy to obtain a postdoctoral position – especially if they are willing to go abroad. Likewise, well-established and highly cited researchers often find it relatively easy to attract funding. However, researchers at the assistant and associate professor levels tend to have more difficulty securing grants, narrowing opportunities in a shape resembling an hourglass.
The third mechanism is known as the leaky pipeline. It refers to the decline in the proportion of women in research as career levels rise. This mechanism is documented, for example, in a report published by the Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science in 2023 (only available in Danish). The report shows that the share of female researchers steadily decreases the higher up the career ladder one goes.
Based on data from 2022, the report shows that women accounted for 56% of all completed master’s degrees, while women represented only 21% of associate professors and 17% of full professors within the disciplines covered by the NERD programme.
“One of the aims of the NERD programme is to encourage all brilliant and ambitious researchers to contribute to science – regardless of gender or age. To achieve this, we must address the well-known and often unconscious mechanisms that for many years have influenced the allocation of research funding. During its first six years, the NERD programme has been highly successful in this regard. With the expanded budget, we can now support even more original, high-quality ideas – the ideas that lead to new insights and enrich society in the long term,” adds Lene Oddershede.
Who can apply for a NERD grant?
The NERD programme is open to researchers who have obtained a PhD degree and are employed at a Danish research institution. This means researchers at the postdoc, assistant professor, associate professor and professor levels are eligible to apply. The programme specifically targets researchers who do not already hold major grants. Applicants with active grants exceeding DKK 4 million per year cannot receive a NERD grant.
The NERD call, with the expanded budget, is open for applications until 19 February 2026. Further information is available here.
