TYKS Foundation Grants – Spring 2026
The TYKS Foundation awards both research and travel grants, and for the first time also a major grant from the Marita and Heikki Vaistee Named Fund Fund.
Application period: March 16 – April 6, 2026 by 3pm.
Decisions: May 2026
Payments: June 2026
More information: tykssaatio@varha.fi
General working and travel grants
The TYKS Foundation (the Education and Research Foundation of Turku University Hospital) is a non-profit foundation whose mission is to promote and support research in clinical medicine as well as university-level nursing and health sciences at Turku University Hospital (TYKS) and within its catchment area. The supported research must meet the criteria defined by the foundation, particularly regarding the location where the research is carried out.
A TYKS Foundation grant may be awarded if the applicant:
- has not received a TYKS Foundation grant in the previous year,
- has not received Varha’s VTR research funding during the current year, and
- has a Finnish personal identity code and a Finnish bank account with online banking credentials.
The grant is paid directly to the applicant’s personal bank account.
The TYKS Foundation primarily supports early-stage doctoral researchers, but also considers funding applications from more experienced researchers.
The first grant call of the year usually opens in March, after Varha’s VTR research funding decisions have been made. During this call, working and travel grants can be applied for. In addition, a second call for travel grants opens in the autumn.
The foundation provides funding to enable research work. Funding is not granted for professional training or educational travel. When applying for a travel grant, it is advantageous if the applicant has a presentation or other research-related activity at the event. For congress travel grants, an accepted congress abstract is required, but it may be submitted to the foundation even after the application deadline. Travel grants must be applied for before the trip takes place.
A report on the completed research and the use of the grant must be submitted through the foundation’s grant system by the end of the following year.
The TYKS Foundation collaborates with the Anne and Rauno Puolimatka Foundation. The TYKS Foundation’s grant committee evaluates the recipients of the Puolimatka Foundation grants.
Marita and Heikki Vaistee Named Fund
The Marita and Heikki Vaistee Named Fund awards annually one major grant of €50,000–€100,000 to a single researcher. The grant is intended for research on type 1 diabetes, as well as research on other forms of diabetes that appear in childhood or adolescence. The grant will be available for the first time in the spring 2026 call.
The grant is awarded for one year at a time. Funding may also be granted to the same applicant in the following year if the research has progressed successfully.
Receiving the grant requires that the researcher has an institution where the research will be carried out. The application must include the contact details of the authorized representative of the research institution that has granted permission for the research work.
From the fund, applicants may apply for:
- a project grant,
- a personal working grant, or
- both simultaneously.
The total amount applied for may not exceed €100,000. The amount awarded may vary from year to year.
Note: The applicant must be an individual person, not a research group.
Project grant
The project grant awarded to the researcher may be transferred to a project account managed by a Finnish university or another research institution (e.g. Varha).
The applicant defines the use of the grant in accordance with the general rules and practices governing grants at the university or research institution. The project grant may be used to cover:
- the applicant’s personal working grant,
- salary costs for other personnel working on the project,
- research-related expenses.
The project grant may include an overhead cost share for the university or research institution of up to 7.5%. The project funding can only be paid to a Finnish organization’s account.
Personal working grant
The personal working grant may be up to €31,000 per year, including the MELA insurance contribution, and it is paid directly to the applicant’s personal bank account.
The applicant must have:
- a Finnish personal identity code, and
- a Finnish bank account and online banking credentials.
The grant recipient is responsible for paying the MELA pension insurance contribution. The recipient must also provide documentation of leave of absence for the grant-funded working period.
A report on the research and the use of the grant must be submitted through the foundation’s grant system by the end of the following year.
Examples
An applicant may apply for:
- only a project grant, up to €100,000. If the maximum project grant is applied for, a personal grant cannot be requested.
- only a personal working grant, up to €31,000.
- both a personal working grant and a project grant.
For example:
If an applicant requests the maximum personal working grant (€31,000), they may apply for up to €69,000 in project funding, so that the total requested amount does not exceed €100,000.
Read researcher stories
Writing a doctoral dissertation on neonatal oxygen deficiency while completing a medical degree
Niina Viitaharju, a fifth-year medical student, spun her advanced studies topic on neonatal oxygen deficiency into a doctoral dissertation project. Since 2023, she has worked for a clinical research programme on the topic in Turku. At the moment, her Lic. Med. degree and part of her dissertation work is set to be completed by spring–summer
