Prix du Collège de France - Edition 2024

The Collège de France 2024 Prize will be awarded in the fields of natural sciences, chemistry, physics, mathematics and computer sciences.

The theme of the prize is : " Water on our planet ".

The habitable conditions of our planet depend to a large extent on the presence and distribution of water on Earth. Scientific research is enabling us to better understand the complexity of the water cycle, and to preserve this precious resource that is essential to sustaining life on Earth and the well-being of human societies.

The prize is worth 20 000 euros. The winner is also invited to give a public lecture on his or her work at the Collège de France.

Entries will be received from March¹ to April 30 2024, exclusively by electronic means.

The 2024 jury, comprising four professors from the Collège de France and one external member, will be chaired by Edouard Bard, geochemist and paleoclimatologist, holder of the Climate and Ocean Evolution chair at the Collège de France.

The other members of the jury are :

• for Collège professors: Mme Françoise Combes, M. Jean-François Joanny, M. Clément Sanchez.
• for the external member: Françoise Vimeux, climatologist, research director at IRD, attached to the Laboratoire des sciences du climat et de l'environnement and the Laboratoire Hydrosciences Montpellier.

Candidates currently working in a public research laboratory in France are required to contact an active university professor or research director, who will support their application with a letter of introduction and recommendation. The application must be submitted by the candidate via a dedicated digital platform.

Before submitting their application, candidates are invited to carefully read the full prize regulations, available below.

Submission of applications will open on this page^on march and will close on april 2024 at midnight.

Every year, the Collège de France awards the Prix du Collège de France to a young researcher chosen for the excellence of his or her career and the innovative nature of his or her contributions to public research.
The prize consists of a cash award of 20 000 euros and an invitation to give a public lecture at the Collège de France.

Article 1 - Eligible candidates

Eligible candidates must, at the time of submitting their application, have their administrative residence in France and be employed, on a permanent or contract basis, in a research laboratory, unit or team located within the French public higher education and research establishments. They must have successfully defended their thesis less than seven years ago, and have an outstanding research record as evidenced by publications and contributions to scientific events.

If candidates :

• have direct family ties with one of the members of the jury ;
• have collaborated or published jointly with a member of the jury within the last seven years, either as part of their thesis or since obtaining it.

The jury member concerned will withdraw while the dossier is examined.

Article 2 - Prize endowment

The prize is awarded at a public ceremony by the Administrator of the Collège de France and is worth 20 000 euros.

It also includes :

• an invitation to give a public lecture at the Collège de France by the winner ;
• communication and promotion of the winning research on the Collège de France website and social networks ;
• the award of the Collège de France medal engraved with the winner's name.

The prizewinner undertakes to attend the award ceremony and to respond to any communication requests from the Collège de France.

Article 3 - Eligibility requirements

• The thesis must have been defended less than seven years before the closing date of the call for candidates, i.e. April 30 2024.
  The eligibility period indicated may be extended beyond seven years in the following circumstances, duly documented : maternity leave (extended by eighteen months for each child born after obtaining the doctorate), paternity leave, adoption leave, long-term illness (extended for the period of the leave).
• Reside in France and be employed (tenured or contract) by a laboratory of a French public higher education and research institution.
• Applications must be accompanied by a detailed letter of recommendation from a university professor or research director working for a public research or higher education establishment in France.

Article 4 - Evaluation criteria

• The research work must fit in with the annual theme proposed by the Collège de France : for the 2024 prize, the theme will be " Water on our planet : the habitable conditions of our planet depend to a large extent on the presence and distribution of water on Earth. Scientific research is helping us to better understand the complexity of the water cycle and to preserve this precious resource, which is essential to sustaining life on Earth and the well-being of human societies ".
• Scientific excellence (track record and publications).
• Innovative nature of the work.

Article 5 - Submission of applications and selection procedures

Completed applications must be submitted by the deadlines indicated, and must be accompanied by a letter of recommendation from a university professor or a tenured member of a body assimilated to university professors within the meaning of article  1of the decree ofJune15 1992 establishing the list of bodies of civil servants assimilated to university professors, in active employment.

The application is submitted by the candidate on a dedicated platform, open during the annual application deadlines at www.college-de-france.fr/prix-2024

The following documents must be enclosed, in French or English only :

• curriculum vitae ;
• cover letter (maximumtwo pages) describing the main contribution of the candidate's work to the award criteria and the theme of the year ;
• list of publications, patents and prizes ;
• thesis summary (one page maximum) ;
• letter of introduction and recommendation of the candidate written by the presenter, a university professor or active research director (one letter, maximum two pages). This person may not be a member of the selection panel, nor be related to the candidate ;
• adocument attesting to the candidate's position within a laboratory or research unit.

No other documents will be taken into consideration.

A university professor or research director may support only one application.

Applications areaccepted exclusively via the digital platform. No paper files will be examined. In the event of multiple applications, whether intentional or accidental, only the last application submitted will be considered.

At the time of submission, all candidates acknowledge that they have read the present regulations and accept their provisions in full.

An internal committee at the Collège de France will check the administrative admissibility of applications against these rules. Any application which is incomplete, completed after the closing date, submitted after the deadline or which does not meet the conditions of these rules will not be evaluated.

Article 6 - Jury composition

A scientific jury will examine the eligible applications and select the year's winner.

The jury is made up of five members : four professors from the Collège de France appointed by the administrator after consultation with the extended Bureau of the Collège de France assembly, and one outside personality appointed by these four professors.

In 2024, the jury will be chaired by Edouard Bard, professor at the Collège de France and holder of the Climate and Ocean Evolution chair. The full composition of the jury will be announced on the Collège de France website on the opening date for applications.

Candidates will not be informed of the evaluations of their applications. The jury is sovereign and does not justify its decisions.

Article 7 - 2024 Prize timetable

• Submission of entries : between March¹ march 2024 andApril30 2024 before midnight, Paris time, the date of submission of the complete file on the platform being taken as proof.
• Announcement of the winner : September 2024.
• Presentation of the prizes by the Administrator of the Collège de France at a public ceremony : November 2024.

Article 8 - Contact and information :

Collège de France
11, place Marcelin-Berthelot
75231 Paris Cedex 05

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