Announcement of innovation funds for societal improvements

Employees from all academic environments at OsloMet are eligible to apply for funding.

• The project leader must hold at least a 50% position at OsloMet throughout the project period.
• You may apply for between NOK 100,000 and 400,000 per project. The total allocation budget for 2025 is NOK 2 million.
• Applicants can only be the project leader for one application but may participate as a project member in several applications.

• Buyout (frikjøp). Note! Applications for buyout must be agreed upon and approved by the personnel manager before submission.
• Equipment and materials: Purchases of equipment and materials to create prototypes, perform laboratory tests, or similar. Note! Applications for the purchase of equipment, including software, licenses, and similar items which entails costs beyond the project period, must be approved by the institute leader before submission. Additionally, applications for software and licenses must be approved by IT.
• Costs related to acquiring external expertise necessary for the project's execution. This will be considered as the use of subcontractors.
• Costs associated with further development, testing, and piloting of the idea.
• Communication and dissemination activities stemming from research and development activities or artistic research work which has an innovative character.
• Rental costs: Costs for renting facilities and lab spaces outside OsloMet.

If project costs are subject to VAT, this must be included in the budget. VAT must be part of the application sum.

The project must commence by March 1, 2026, and be completed by December 31, 2026. Expenses covered by the allocated funds must be accounted for by December 31, 2026.

The same project cannot receive funding to cover the same activities from multiple sources.

The purpose of the innovation funds is to support projects that need to test, demonstrate, or prove an idea based on employees' research and development activities, or artistic research work, at OsloMet. Therefore, the funds do not finance:

• Costs related to research.
• Costs related to development after the verification phase.
• Purely educational projects.
• Pure marketing and communication activities, and traditional research dissemination (e.g., academic seminars, conferences, etc.). The call will also not fund initiatives solely aimed at disseminating existing knowledge or results without additional innovative content.
• Costs related to the establishment or operation of a company.

Ideas not stemming from your research and development activities or artistic research work do not qualify for application.

All applicants must complete the the online form for the call (nettskjema.no) and upload the application. All applicants must use the template for the project description. 

You can amend a submitted application until the application deadline.

The application deadline is Monday, December 1, 2025, at 11:59 PM Norwegian time.

The team for societal improvements under the Section for Research and Societal Improvements in the R&D Department will review all received applications to ensure that the formal requirements outlined in the call are met (see “Formal requirements”). Applications that do not meet the formal requirements will be rejected.

All applications that meet the formal requirements will be submitted to a committee that will assess each application based on the evaluation criteria (see below). The evaluations will form the basis for a recommendation for granting, which will be forwarded to the university's leadership meeting (ULM). ULM will make the final decision on the allocation.

The information in the application will be treated confidentially and used only for the assessment and administration of the application. All individuals handling the application are bound by confidentiality. However, upon grant award, basic project information (e.g., project title, project leader, and granted amount) may be published on the university's website.

The funded projects will be announced in the second half of January 2026.

1. Innovation Potential and Societal Benefit

• Challenge, solution, and innovation: What problem does the idea aim to solve? How does it represent something new and ambitious compared to existing solutions? How robust is the knowledge base, and is the approach realistic?
• Societal benefit and added value: How can the idea benefit society? What are the potential applications, who are the end-users, and what value can the project bring to them?
• Sustainability and consideration of surroundings: Is the idea sustainable, and if so, how? What ethical, social, and/or environmental considerations influence the idea, and how are these integrated into the project?

2. Project Implementation and Team

• Project timeline: Is there a realistic plan for project implementation, with clear milestones?
• Project team: Does the team have the appropriate expertise and composition? What expertise does each participant bring to the project?
• Infrastructure: Will relevant infrastructure or laboratories be used? Are external partners involved in the project, and if so, what role will they play?
• Budget: Is the budget realistic and well-justified? How are the funds planned to be allocated? Is there consistency between the project's plans, needs, and budgeted costs

3. Plan for Utilizing Project Results

• Results: What specific results are expected, and to what extent will they contribute to realizing the proposed solution?
• Further development: What plans do project members have for developing the project results after the project ends? Is external funding (national or international) being considered? Is commercialization a possibility? Are there other plans to ensure the results' usefulness?
• Realism: Is the follow-up plan for project results reasonable and realistic?

Project Start and Duration

All projects must commence by March 1, 2026, and be completed by December 31, 2026.

Finances

The grant letter will be sent in P360. The faculty and center administration will follow up on the project's finances. A final report must be submitted upon completion of the project.

Reporting

All projects must submit a final report within one month after the project ends. The final report should detail the project's specific results and how the allocated grant was utilized.

Do you have questions?

Questions can be directed to the Team for Societal Improvements in the Section for Research and Societal Improvements under the Department of Research and Development via the email samfunnsforbedringer@oslomet.no.

1. The project idea originates from research and development work or artistic research work at OsloMet.
2. The project leader must hold at least a 50% position at OsloMet throughout the entire project period.
3. Applicant can only serve as project leader for one application for innovation funds for societal improvements.
4. The application must be submitted via the designated application form by Monday, December 1, 2025, at 11:59 PM Norwegian time.
5. The application form must not exceed a total of 5 pages, including references.
6. Projects can only apply for funding between NOK 100,000 and NOK 400,000.

The same project cannot receive funding to cover the same activities from multiple funding sources.