FWF Austrian Science Fund - Stand-alone Publications (FWF)

FWF Stand-alone Publications grant

You will receive up to 22,000 EUR for the production and publication of an academic book, paid as a lump sum. You select modules that suit your project: up to 10,000 EUR for basic production costs and open access fees, up to 8,000 EUR for proofreading, foreign-language editing or translation, and up to 4,000 EUR for extras such as a higher page count, layout or image rights. The book must be published within 36 months of approval. It must be published simultaneously as an open-access publication, so that anyone can read it online free of charge. The funding is provided by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), which finances basic research.

Who can apply

• Who you are: You are a researcher at an Austrian research institution or are working abroad on behalf of such an institution. Authors based abroad may also apply, provided that the book is the result of a project funded by the FWF.
• Field of study: Open to all disciplines.
• Nationality: Applicants of any nationality are welcome to apply. What matters is your connection to Austrian research, not your passport.
• What gets funded: Monographs, themed anthologies and conference proceedings, revised doctoral theses (following the completion of the PhD) and post-doctoral theses. Not eligible for funding: textbooks, reprints, exhibition catalogues, popular science books, Master’s or Bachelor’s theses, and books that are already in production or have already been published.
• Quality: Your book presents the results of basic research of international significance.
• Publisher and open access: You have a renowned academic publisher at your disposal. The book will be published as an open-access publication, complete with an index and professional editorial processing and translation.

How to apply

You can apply at any time via the FWF’s online portal, elane. There are no fixed deadlines. A single peer review usually takes around six months; after that, the FWF will reach a decision and notify you of this in writing. A quicker decision is possible if your book stems from an FWF-funded project and your publisher has already carried out an international peer review of the complete manuscript.

How realistic are your chances?

This funding is aimed exclusively at academic book projects relating to Austrian research, meaning that the pool of applicants is far smaller than for open grants. If your book clearly constitutes well-founded basic research, has a committed academic publisher, and is not on the exclusion list, your prospects are good. The key selection criteria are academic quality and the suitability of the book’s format and publisher; therefore, a well-prepared manuscript and a convincing justification for your choice of publisher are of the utmost importance.