8th April: Prestigious grants Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Individual Fellowships (MSCA-IF)
Dear employees and PhD students,
Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Individual Fellowships (MSCA-IF) support international mobility, when researchers go abroad to pursue their research intentions.
The prestigious MSCA-IF grants support the continuing education and career development of researchers who have been working for example at a home university for several years and who already gained experience in their field. Professional and personal development of scientists is ensured primarily by support of their international mobility, either short-term or long-term internships.
Researchers who have earned a PhD or have at least 4 years of research experience may apply for MSCA-IF grants. Participation is not limited by age or nationality. The topic of the project is up to you (so-called bottom-up approach). The EU funding rate is 100%. Chances are high this year. Fewer applications are expected, so the possibility of obtaining a grant is higher than in previous years.
How to apply:
The types of MSCA-IF actions and application steps are summarized briefly below. We would like to remind you of the Information Day on Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions Individual Fellowships (MSCA IF), where you can find out all information about MSCA-IF in detail. The program is here. The Information Day will be broadcast on-line in English on 23th of April 2020 from 10:00 to 15:00. Registration is possible via e-mail: sechterova@tc.cz until April 21st, 2020 (17:00). During the information day, there is also room for your questions.
Applications are submitted electronically via the Funding & Tenders Portal. The call for applications is expected to open on 8th of April 2020. The deadline will be in September 2020.
You can choose from 5 types of MSCA-IF. The most interesting for you are following:
Standard European Fellowships [MSCA-IF-EF-ST] – standard European internships in EU countries and so-called associated countries (Iceland, Norway, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey, Israel, Moldova, Switzerland, Faroe Islands, Ukraine, Tunisia, Georgia, Armenia), length of stay is 1-2 years
Global Fellowships [MSCA-IF-GF] – internships in third countries, the stay consists of outgoing phase to a host organization in a third country (1-2 years) and a return phase to the beneficiary country (EU or associated country – 1 year), a total of 2-3 years.
other types are:
Career Restart Panel [MSCA-IF-EF-CAR] – for researchers returning to work in research after a pause (for instance after maternity leave, after working outside the scientific field)
Reintegration panel [MSCA-IF-EF-RI] – Return of experienced researchers from third countries to EU countries
Society and Enterprise Panel [MSCA-IF-EF-SE] – for experienced researchers who want to work outside the academic sector
The host organization / supervisor helps you with the proposal. Big European institutions and universities have experience with MSCA-IF participants and many have already prepared sections for applications such as host organization description, etc. You can find in the Funding & Tenders Portal VIEW / EDIT PARTNER SEARCH section, where various institutions are interested in MSCA-IF who would come to their institution under the program. If you have no idea where to go, check out this option.
One applicant may submit one application.
The application consists of:
- part A, information about you, about the host institution / supervisor
- part B, project description – Excellence (state of the art, current situation), Impact (what would you gain by participating, what would you learn at host institution) and Implementation (work plan)
The maximum number of pages for Part B is 10, followed by CV and annexes. Your application will then be scored by independent evaluators.
If your application fails but reaches a minimum score of 70%, it is automatically included in the Widening Fellowships grants. With this step, the EU wants to support countries (including applicants from institutions in the Czech Republic) that do not yet achieve the scientific excellence of the most scientifically developed EU countries.
Another possibility is the program: MŠMT – OP VVV – International mobility of researchers MSCA-IF. If your project has reached score min. 70%, but still has not reached funding through Widening Fellowships, it is possible to get a grant from the Ministry of Education. The success rate is high – up to 80%.
Attached, please find well-structured presentation of one of the evaluators of MSCA-IF applications (Dr. Sychrová). Here you can find out where to pay attention when writing an application, what is being evaluated and what to not forget when writing section B – Excellence, Impact and Implementation.
If you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact me: Laura Míčková