CONNECT

Follow-up program for participants of Frontiers of Research Symposia

• Brazilian-German Frontiers of Science and Technology Symposium
• British-German Frontiers of Science Symposium
• German-American Frontiers of Engineering Symposium
• German-American Frontiers of Humanities Symposium
• German-American Frontiers of Science Symposium
• German-Israeli Frontiers of Humanities Symposium
• Indo-German Frontiers of Engineering Symposium
• Japanese-American-German Frontiers of Science Symposium
• Japanese-German Frontiers of Engineering Symposium
• Japanese-German Frontiers of Science Symposium
• Middle East and North African-German Frontiers of Science and Technology Symposium
• Sino-German Frontiers of Science Symposium
• Sino-German Frontiers of Science and Technology Symposium
• Turkish-German Frontiers of Humanities Symposium
• Turkish-German Frontiers of Social Science Symposium
• UK-German Frontiers of Humanities Symposium

Allowances for short working visits in Germany and partner countries

The Frontiers of Research Symposia enable scholars and scientists to establish long-term bilateral cooperations that strengthen the scientific relationship between Germany and the respective partner country. Every Frontiers participant can apply to the dedicated follow-up program CONNECT to conduct working visits in the respective partner countries for up to 30 days per conference to prepare joint research projects or articles.

Application requirements

The applicant has participated in one of our Frontiers of Research Symposia and seeks to further deepen cooperation with at least one participant of the partner country afterwards. Cooperating partners must have attended the same conference. Either the applicant or the hosting partner must be based in Germany. The applicant shall submit a short report (max. 3 pages) to the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation within two months after termination of the working visit.

Allowance rates

There are three different grades according to the position held by the applicant (from 01.09.2025):

The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation does not cover any additional costs (e.g. travel costs). Grants for applicants from Germany are transferred to their bank accounts in Germany or the SEPA zone whereas grants for applicants from a partner country are transferred either to a private bank account in the SEPA zone or to the host university's or institute's bank account in Germany, from where the allowance is paid to the applicant.

Online application

If you have participated in at least one Frontiers of Research Symposium and would like to submit an application, please log in first. You will be given access to an online form which has been partially filled in with your personal details. You can then complete and submit this form. In your personal area "My Humboldt" you can access and continue processing saved online applications at any time.

Please note the following points:

• Submit your online application well in advance and no later than 8 weeks before your planned working visit.
• Please discuss all details (including the dates) of your planned working visit with your academic host before applying.

Complete applications for residence allowances in the CONNECT program shall include the following documents in English:

• application form
• curriculum vitae of the applicant
• description (max. 3 - 5 pages) of the joint collaboration project on the basis of their research intersections including objectives and possible outcomes, milestones, anticipated timetable, possible visits of the cooperating partners to conferences or lectures at the partner institute
• invitation letter of the academic host
• list of key publications (max. one page)

Upon receipt of your application, the processing takes up to four weeks. Retrospective approval is not possible. The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation requires applicants to follow the  Rules of Good Scientific Practice (PDF) and the legally binding principles of scientific ethics.

FAQ

How long after participating in a symposium can one apply for CONNECT?
Any time. There is no deadline for when you can apply for CONNECT. The most important thing is that all application requirements are met, and applications are submitted no later than eight weeks before your planned working visit.

Can you split up the 30 days and use them for two or more visits?
Yes. You can split up your visit into multiple visits to the same researcher, or you can split up the 30 days and visit other participants that also attended your symposium. 

Is it possible to use CONNECT to visit as a group?
Yes. It is possible that one person hosts several participants at the same time. Each person who will travel still has to submit their own application (no group applications), but all are welcome to travel during the same time to the same host. 

I was already visited by a participant. Am I allowed to visit them in their country?
Yes, each participant has 30 days available to them through CONNECT. You can use those days for a return visit or to visit different participants that also attended the same symposium.

What should be the goal of the CONNECT visit?
The idea is for these visits to be used to develop longer-term international collaborations. The visits can include giving guest lectures at the host’s institution, meeting with other members of the host’s research group, and visiting other relevant research facilities in the area. Following each visit, CONNECT recipients are required to submit a short report (max. 3 pages) about their visit.

Can the CONNECT program also be used to visit other scientists in the partner country who did not participate in a Frontiers of Research Symposium?
Visits to other scientists that did not participate in the symposium are possible, but you still need a participant from the same symposium you attended to host you. The visit to the host should be the main activity of the trip, but additional visits are allowed during the time abroad.

What if I participated in more than one symposium? Do I have access to 30 days for each symposium I attended?
Yes. If you attend more than one symposium, you have 30 days for each symposium for CONNECT visits. For example, if you attended one BRAGFOST symposium and one GAFOE symposium, you have a total of 60 days available for CONNECT visits. However, it should be treated as two separate amounts. This means you have 30 days to visit participants from the BRAGFOST symposium and 30 days to visit participants from the GAFOE symposium. 

Contact

Researchers who have participated in a BRAGFOST, GAFOS, GAFOH, GISFOH, TUGFOH, TUGFOSS or UKGFOH Symposium can address questions on the application process to:

Stephanie Dill
Phone: + 49 (0)30 2045 45 26
Email: stephanie.dill[at]avh.de

Researchers who have participated in a GAFOE or JAGFOE Symposium can address questions on the application process to:

Luisa Golfier
Phone: + 49 (0) 30 204555 37
Email: luisa-antonia.golfier[at]avh.de

Researchers who have participated in a INDOGFOE, SINOGFOS or SINOGFOST Symposium can address questions on the application process to:

Matthias Hergenhan
Phone: + 49 (0)30 20 45 55 38
Email: matthias.hergenhan[at]avh.de

Researchers who have participated in a BRIGFOS, JAGFOS, JGFOS or MENAGFOST Symposium can address questions on the application process to:

Anke Teubner
Phone: + 49 (0)30 20 45 45 52
Email: anke.teubner[at]avh.de