EU empowers over 1 300 mobile researchers with grants
The European Commission has announced today, 29 January 2018, the awarding of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships to 1 348 highly talented researchers to create a game-changing impact on our society and economy. The funding, part of the EU's Horizon 2020 programme for research and innovation, is worth €248.7 million in total, an increase of €30 million as compared to the previous call, and will give the scientists' careers a real kick-start.
This is the second Individual Fellowships call for proposals with a specific Society and Enterprise panel, dedicating €10 million to fellowships in companies or other organisations outside of academia. As a result, 58 highly-skilled postdoctoral researchers will spend two years in public bodies, non-governmental organisations, or firms. The fellows will significantly increase both their own expertise and the innovation capacity of their employers.
In addition, 78 Individual Fellowships were awarded to researchers who are returning to work in Europe after a period spent elsewhere in the world and 46 after a career break. Another 137 are Global Fellowships for researchers based in Europe, who wish to gain new skills and experience elsewhere in the world. They will return to spend the final year of their Global Fellowship applying their knowledge back in Europe.
Over 9 000 project proposals submitted
The 2017 call for proposals for Individual Fellowships sparked huge interest, receiving more applications than ever before. A total of 9 089 proposals were submitted in response to this call, the highest of any single call in Horizon 2020. The high scores awarded to several thousands of applications show that the scheme attracts the most brilliant researchers from Europe and other parts of the world.
The programme is very competitive, due to the large number of outstanding submissions. Even high scores do not guarantee MSCA funding. All Individual Fellowship proposals with a score of 85% or above but that cannot be funded will receive a Seal of Excellence. Applicants who have just missed out on an MSCA grant can use the Seal of Excellence to approach other funders at national or regional level. Introducing the Seal of Excellence further strengthens the MSCA as a benchmark for how nations and regions can keep, attract and develop the best research talent.
Join the Individual Fellowships
MSCA Individual Fellowships aim at enhancing the creative and innovative potential of experienced researchers, wishing to diversify their individual competence in terms of skill acquisition through advanced training, international and intersectoral mobility. Individual Fellowships provide opportunities to researchers of any nationality to acquire and transfer new knowledge and to work on research and innovation in Europe and beyond. 95% of grantees have employment positions two years after the end of their fellowship.
There are two main types of Individual Fellowship. European Fellowships last from one to two years and are held in EU Member States or Horizon 2020Associated Countries. Global Fellowships enable researchers based in these countries to spend up to two years elsewhere in the world, followed by a mandatory year back in Europe. The budget earmarked for the 2018 MSCA Individual Fellowships call amounts to €273 million, and will further increase to €295 million in 2019 and €325 million in 2020.
The MSCA-IF 2018 Call will OPEN on 12 April 2018 with a submission DEADLINE on 12 September 2018.