P JAC: Excellence in Research

The call for Excellence in Research (Czech only) from the Johannes Amos Comenius Programme (P JAC) is aimed at supporting research of a preferably interdisciplinary nature with a high potential for creating top-notch and, in the future, applicable research results, research built on excellent research teams and the development of international collaboration between research organizations.  

Information about the obligations relating to open science: Rules for Applicants and Beneficiaries (Czech only), pp. 17–19. The Managing Authority of P JAC has also published a detailed Handbook of Open Science Practices (Czech only).

In the P JAC Programme Excellence in Research, open science is an integral part of the evaluation criteria. 

This is a combined criterion (V2.4.1), where evaluators assess the extent to which the applicant and partner apply the principles and practices of open science in the project, both mandatory (open access, research data management) and optional (e.g., citizen science, open peer review, preregistration, etc.). The minimum point threshold for fulfilling this criterion is 6 points out of 10.  

Applicants should describe whether they are ready and able to ensure the following:  

• Open access to scientific publications, which are a result of research financed as a part of the programme;  

• Management of research data (including data on which scientific publications are based) according to FAIR principles and open access to such data in accordance with the principle “as open as possible, as closed as necessary”.  

In addition, the evaluators look at whether applicants have agreed to fulfil the optional practices of open science in the project and whether they are ready and able to ensure them. These are, for example:

• Early and timely open sharing of research results, for example, through preregistration, registered reports, or preprints. 

• Sharing research results above and beyond peer-reviewed publications and research data, e.g., software, models, algorithms, workflow, open lab notebooks.

• Participation in open peer review, e.g., by publishing in journals and on platforms that provide open peer review. 

• Engaging other relevant actors (end-users, academia and industry, public authorities, non-profit organizations, etc.) in the open co-creation of research aims (citizen science). 

• Creating open educational resources.