old_The strategic concept of the CMMC Individual Project Funding Program (IPFP)

The Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC) is an interdisciplinary biomedical and educational research center embedded in the Life Science Campus of the University of Cologne. It is an innovative joint venture of the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, affiliated with the University Hospital Cologne, and collaborates with the Max Planck Institutes (e.g. MPI-Age and MPI Metabolism) among other non-university institutions. For further information, please visit the CMMC Image Brochure.

A key cornerstone of the CMMC is that it transcends the traditional borders of individual disciplines and faculties, allowing researchers and clinician scientists to join ranks and bring new synergies to basic biomedical research and clinical translation. The CMMC has therefore made it its mission to create the optimal research conditions and places a strong emphasis on highly collaborative, internationally competitive top-level biomedical research.

The CMMC is dedicated to advancing our current understanding of the underlying molecular and cellular mechanism of human diseases as a prelude to clinical translational research. Our ultimate goal is to develop novel tools for prevention, diagnosis, and the treatment of many common as well as rare diseases and disorders. To achieve this goal the CMMC has implemented various funding supports, and the Individual Project Funding Program has been a cornerstone of the CMMC funding policy since the foundation of the center in the early 1990s.

The support of the Individual Project Funding Program aims to promote the development of innovative, long term and high-risk research projects with clinical relevance in an individual or collaborative setting. To facilitate the integration of a wider range of research groups at the Faculty of Medicine as well as the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences the submitted proposals have to fit into one of the three CMMC research areas:

A)     Mechanisms of tumor development: intrinsic and extrinsic control of cell proliferation and tissue invasion

B)     Principles of immunity, inflammation and infection

C)    Molecular mechanisms and metabolic control of tissue degeneration and regeneration

The number of funded projects as well as the funding amount depends on the overall number of excellent research proposals that receive the final recommendation for funding.

Project funding will range from 70.000 € - 90.000 € per year for three years for personnel and consumables which may be reduced depending on funding available, with a funding period of three years (01/2023 - 12/2025). The use of the funds - except the purchase of equipment - is flexible and thereby providing the most powerful support for the individual research groups.

Research proposals that meet the formal criteria qualify for the scientific evaluation process.

The evaluation of the submitted research proposals integrates an internal and external procedure, that we consider to be instrumental in setting high standards for the CMMC research activities.

Please find the general information and the eligibility requirements for the applicants here