External funding is becoming increasingly important in all areas of research. If you want to pursue a career in research, it is more or less inevitable that you apply for, and obtain, funding from the outside.
When thinking about applying for funding, you will do well to consider your options in light of your previous career choices, your long-term goals, and your current, professional situation.
You might want to a) pursue an “excellency”-career, funded by grants awarded individual researchers on account of their CV and prior, independent achievements, or b) you might want to pursue a career that depends upon participation in large national or international, collaborative projects.
The choice is entirely yours, but you should always consider what possibilities either remain or disappear as a consequence of your career choices.
Below you find a brief explanation of the difference between “excellency”- and consortia/collaborative grants: