Introduced in 1998 by the Research Grants Council (RGC) and the Consulate General of France (CGF) in Hong Kong, PROCORE-France/Hong Kong Joint Research Scheme is designed to promote research collaboration between Hong Kong and France by providing researchers in the two locations with one-year and two-year travel grants. The scheme also offers grants to sponsor a conference/workshop in Hong Kong and France. By offering such support, the scheme aims to enable collaboration between Hong Kong and French researchers of similar fields so as to develop and disseminate new research works. The RGC and the CGF bear no responsibility for the manner in which the exchange/visit or the conference/workshop is conducted.

This scheme offers much flexibility to the applicants because there is no ceiling in terms of the number of applications that can be submitted by all eight UGC-funded universities. In addition, an applicant may apply as a Principal Investigator (PI) in an exercise and may also apply as a participating member of another project in the same exercise.

The RGC funds granted to the Hong Kong PI can be used to support the research visits of the research postgraduate students to partner institutions, thus enabling them to obtain valuable training and experience from overseas practices. The annual budget for the exercise is capped at HK$1.02 million, of which HK$150,000 is designated for a conference/workshop held in Hong Kong. The amount of the grant per project per year is set at HK$45,000 for those involving travel of research postgraduate student(s) and HK$31,250 per year for those not involving students' travels. Additional funding support from Hong Kong and French institutions/companies to individual grant recipient is most welcome.

Hong Kong applicants must meet the application requirements for the RGC General Research Fund (GRF).

The assessment criteria are as follows:

Travel Grants
Both the RGC and the CGF will review the applications based on:

1. the academic merits of the proposed research;
2. the possible synergies, expected benefits, and prospects for long-term collaboration; and
3. training opportunities for young researchers and research postgraduate students through the proposed exchanges.

Conference/Workshop Grants
Both the RGC and the CGF will review the applications based on:

1. the research standing of the main/co-organisers and the guest speakers;
2. the degree of intra and inter-institutional participation by local researchers and students; and
3. prospects for long-term research collaboration.

The RGC and the CGF will jointly select applications to be supported. Only applications that have been agreed upon by both sides will be considered for funding.

Travel Grants
Hong Kong and the French applicants are required to submit applications in parallel:

1. Hong Kong applicants are required to submit their applications to the RGC through the Research Offices (ROs) of their respective universities. Direct submission to the RGC will not be accepted;
2. French applicants are required to submit their applications directly to the CGF. Details relating to the application procedures are available on the CGF Homepage; and
3. applications must be received on or before the specified deadline. Hong Kong applicants are reminded to check with the ROs of their respective universities regarding internal closing dates. Late submissions will not be accepted.

It is the responsibility of Hong Kong and French applicants to ensure that their respective applications contain sufficient and consistent information for evaluation. The RGC will not seek or accept supplementary information/revision after the application deadline. The CGF will also verify the applications of the Hong Kong applications from the RGC. Applications containing inconsistent information may lead to disqualification. Any applications whose proposals are found to exceed allowable page limits or contain excessive attachments will also be disqualified.

Conference/Workshop Grants
Hong Kong and the French applicants are required to submit applications in parallel. Application procedures will follow those of Travel Grants.

To view the call circular, please click here.
To download the application form of Travel Grants, please click here.

To download the application form of Conference/Workshop Grants, please click here.