Dr Simone Heß provides support and advice on EU applications.
Science manager for researchers: Dr Simone Heß. Copyright: Karin Kaiser / MHH
Research needs funding, which means writing applications. These are particularly complex when it comes to the coveted funding pots of the European Union. This is where Dr Simone Heß, co-head of the MHH's Office for Research – Knowledge – Translation – Transfer (FWT2), provides support. As a scientist, she understands the needs of researchers, and as a science manager, she knows how to implement these in a successful EU funding application. She has been advising on research funding at the EU level for 16 years – such as the ‘Horizon Europe’ framework programme for research and innovation or the ‘EU4Health’ health programme.
From microbiologist to project manager
‘I'm something of a guide in the funding jungle,’ says Dr Hess. As a young scientist, she found herself in this jungle years ago when she moved to the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin after studying medical microbiology at the MHH and completing her doctorate. “There, I initially supervised my own research projects and wrote funding applications,” she recalls. Gradually, she took on additional tasks, supported colleagues in advancing their research, took over the project management of collaborative research projects and found herself increasingly in the fast lane of science management. ‘I found this so fascinating that I eventually returned to the MHH and helped set up the EU department and then the FWT2 office.’
Enabling time for scientific work
Here, the research manager is responsible for strategy development and, as spokeswoman for the network of EU units from university hospitals and medical faculties, has contributed to a position paper on health research in the upcoming EU research framework programme. What she loves about her work is that, on the one hand, she is close to science and, on the other hand, she can provide researchers with concrete support so that they have to deal less with funding regulations, financial planning and the different guidelines for each funding line. This leaves them more time for their actual scientific work.
‘By taking as much of the enormous administrative burden off the applicants as possible, my team and I actively help advance their research,’ says Dr Heß. “We look for suitable funding formats, calculate budgets, fill out extensive forms, get consortia off the ground and take on the demotivating tasks of the application process for the researchers.” Each applicant decides for themselves how much support they want. The range of services extends from helping post-docs who have never before submitted a third-party funding application to providing experienced researchers with a final polish for their project funding proposal. And if the application is successful, the science manager is pleased to have contributed to getting a wonderful idea off the ground.
Text: Kirsten Pötzke