All applications are assessed individually by a member of the Student Research Committee and the Head of Graduate Programme. The assessment is based on three general points:

1. The scope of the project
The Head of the Graduate Programme evaluates whether the project is eligible for approval for a Research Year (approved/not approved).
2. The applicant’s qualifications and
3. The research environment
The members of the Student Research Committee and the Heads of Graduate Programmes score both the qualifications of each applicant and the research environment from 1-6 (6 being the best and 1 being not qualified). These two scores are added up to one total score per applicant, which forms the basis of the total ranking of all applicants.

The applicant, in collaboration with the primary supervisor, is required to integrate and document pertinent information on the above assessment points. The assessment criteria are described below.

Recommendation
The Student Research Committee forwards recommendations for approval of enrolment and granting of scholarships to the Vice-dean for Research, Health based on the individual assessments and the applicant’s score.

The Head of the Graduate Programme evaluates whether the project is eligible for approval for a Research Year. The assessment should include to what degree the following questions are satisfactorily illustrated in the project description:

• Is the scope of the project appropriate for 12 months of research?
• Is the scientific level of the project appropriate for a Research year?
• Is the feasibility of the project accounted for, e.g. through calculation of strength?
• Are all relevant permits obtained?  

The members of the Student Research Committee and the Heads of Graduate Programmes evaluate the qualifications of each applicant. The assessment should include to what degree the following questions are satisfactorily illustrated in the applicant’s motivation and CV:

• Is the applicant medical or dentistry student at Aarhus University (this is a requirement)?
• Does the applicant have research experience, e.g.:
  1) coauthor at scientific publications (abstract, poster, peer review paper etc)?
  2) participation in a research environment, journal clubs, congresses or similar?
• What other activities has the applicant participated in, e.g.
  1) relevant elective courses (mandatory curricular courses are not relevant), the course ‘Introduction to Research Training in Health Sciences’, summer school, other relevant courses.
  2) organisational or voluntary work?
• What grades has the applicant achieved?
• What is the applicant’s motivation for applying for a Research Year? E.g.
  1) Engaged
  2) Eager to learn
  3) Has the ability to make an effort
  4) Is interested in research
• Has the applicant taken part in the planning and designing of the project?
• Has the applicant been selected through an open call? 

The members of the Student Research Committee and the Heads of Graduate Programmes evaluate the research environment. The assessment should include to what degree the following questions are satisfactorily described in the application, the supervisor statements, and the motivation:

Main supervisor:

• Is the main supervisor employed at the Faculty of Health at Aarhus University, minimum at associate professor level within the relevant research field (requirement)?
• Does the main supervisor’s short CV indicate a strong scientific research environment within the field?
• How many Research Year and PhD students does the main supervisor currently supervise?
• Has the main supervisor described a schedule for supervision to illustrate that he/she has the time needed for supervision?
• Has the main supervisor described the contribution to the completion of the Research Year?
• Has the main supervisor described his/her supervision history?
• Does the main supervisor have a maximum of two applicants in the current application round? (NB! Only two applicants from each main supervisor can be approved in each application round)
• Is there a match of expectations between the applicant and the main supervisor?

Co-supervisors:

• Does the co-supervisor hold at least a Master’s degree within the relevant research field? (requirement)
• How many Research Year and PhD students do the co-supervisors currently supervise?
• Has the co-supervisor described a schedule for supervision to illustrate that he/she has the time needed for supervision?
• Does the project include a max of three co-supervisors? (NB! Up to three co-supervisors can be affiliated with the project)
• Has all co-supervisors described their contribution to the completion of the Research Year?

Research environment:

• Is the research environment supportive and broadly put together?
• Is the research environment at an international level?
• Does the research environment involve one or more journal clubs?
• Does the research environment include international researchers with whom the applicant can network?
• Does the research environment include researchers with other academic backgrounds to support the research?
• Which learning goals are set for the Research Year student, e.g.
  • Participation in national or international conferences?
  • Research question, literature search, protocol, formalities, collaboration, statistics, drafting publication etc.?
  • Coauthor at publications, abstracts, posters etc.?
  • Specific skills?
• Does the Research Year include an industrial or international corporation (to support the faculty’s strategic work)? (e.g. stay or visit abroad)