Research contracts, conventions, and agreements

When a research project is carried out jointly by several different institutions, it ismost recommended to define the terms of the collaboration in a contract. The format and contents of the agreement depend of the type of collaboration and research. Researchers are encouraged to pay particular attention to intellectual property rights (clauses related to publications, data property, etc.). UNIL legal office and UNIL-CHUV joint technology transfer office (PACTT) can advise you on these aspects.

According to UNIL Directive 4.1, , all research contracts and agreements, including those without financial compensation, must be announced to the Faculty’s Dean and validated by UNIL lawyers. This means you must send all research contracts and agreements to UNIL legal office (which may send it to PACTT if deemed necessary), adding in cc: the Faculty’s research office. Except for confidentiality agreements, all research contracts and agreements must be signed by the Dean of the Faculty.

To get a contract signed, draft a collaboration agreement and for any question related to a research contract, please contact: recherche.ssp@unil.ch

Letters of support are increasingly often required when applying for research grants. Please check the funding agency’s requirements for the specific type of letter: these vary depending on the type of grant and the funder. In addition, specific procedures may apply in the Faculty for certain applications, e.g. finance for reduction of teaching commitments for SNSF projects, certificates of support for applications for Eccellenza, Ambizione grants.

To request signature by the Office of the Dean of a letter of support, and for any question related to a formal document to be signed by the office, please contact: recherche.ssp@unil.ch

All letters of support should, as far as possible, be correctly drawn up, and approved by the director of the host institute before submission to the office of the Dean.

Letters which only need to be signed by the director of the host institute can be sent directly to the institute’s administrative office (secrétariat).