ERA Fellowships

Expected Outcome:

This action builds on the MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2027 action (HORIZON-MSCA-PF-2027). The target group are host organisations located in Widening countries. Project results are expected to contribute to the following outcomes :

For supported ERA Fellows:

• Increased set of research and transferable skills and competences, leading to improved employability and career prospects of fellows within academia and beyond;
• New mind-sets and approaches to R&I work forged through international, inter-sectoral and interdisciplinary experience;
• Enhanced networking and communication capacities with scientific peers, as well as with the general public, that will increase and broaden the research and innovation impact;

For participating organisations in the Widening countries:

• Increased alignment of working conditions for researchers in accordance with the principles set out in the European Charter for Researchers [1] ;
• Enhanced quality and sustainability of research training and supervision;
• Increased global attractiveness, visibility and reputation;
• Stronger R&I capacity and output; better transfer of knowledge.

For Widening Countries:

• More postdoctoral researchers attracted to Widening countries with competitive grants and attractive working and employment conditions.

Scope:

Fellowships should be provided to excellent researchers, undertaking cross-border mobility. Applications must be made jointly by the researcher together with a legal entity in the academic or non-academic sector located in a Widening country. ERA Fellowships should take place in a Widening Country. Fellowships are open to researchers of any nationality who wish to engage in R&I projects by either coming to the EU from any country in the world or moving within the EU to a Widening country. Secondments Researchers receiving an ERA Fellowship may opt to include a secondment phase, within the overall duration of their fellowship in any country worldwide. The secondment phase can be a single period or be divided into shorter mobility periods. Secondments cannot exceed half of the requested duration of the action (excluding from the duration of the action any additional period for a non-academic placement) and should be in line with the project objectives, adding significant value and impact to the fellowship. Placements in the non-academic sector ERA Fellowships can provide an additional period of up to six months to support researchers opting for a placement at the end of the project to work on R&I projects in an organisation from the non-academic sector established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country. While this possibility is also available to fellows recruited in the non-academic sector, such a placement should be implemented at a different non-academic host organisation established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country. The request for such a non-academic placement should be an integral part of the proposal, explaining the added value for the project and for the career development of the researcher, and will be subject to evaluation. This incentive aims at promoting career moves between sectors and organisations and thereby stimulate innovation and knowledge transfer while expanding career opportunities for researchers. Training activities The training activities implemented under the ERA Fellowships should include training for key transferable skills [2] , foster innovation and entrepreneurship, (e.g., commercialisation of results, Intellectual Property Rights, communication, public engagement and citizen science), foster good scientific conduct such as research integrity and promote Open Science practices (open access to publications and to other research outputs, including data, FAIR data management, societal engagement and citizen science, etc.). Career Development Plan In order to equip ERA Fellows with skills that enhance and expand their career opportunities inside and outside academia, a Career Development Plan should be established jointly by the supervisor(s) and the researcher. In addition to research objectives, this plan should comprise the researcher's training and career needs, including training on transferable skills, teaching, planning for publications and participation in conferences and events aiming at opening science and research to citizens. The Plan has to be submitted as a project deliverable at the beginning of the action and can be updated when needed. [1] Charter for Researchers, annexed to the Council recommendation C/2023/1640 of 18 December 2023 on a European framework to attract and retain research, innovation and entrepreneurial talents in Europe (OJ C, C/2023/1640, 29.12.2023), https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=OJ:C_202301640. [2] As an illustration, Eurodoc published a list of such transferable skills at: http://eurodoc.net/skills-report-2018.pdf

Submissions open on 07 April 2027.

Part of call HORIZON-WIDERA-2027-03

Type of action: HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

Programme period: 2021 - 2027

Priorities: DigitalAgenda, AI

"> General conditions

1. Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout

described in Annex A  and  Annex E  of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.

Proposal page limits and layout: described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.

2. Eligible Countries

described in Annex B  of the Work Programme General Annexes. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide .

3. Other Eligible Conditions

See these exceptions and specific conditions for the MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships at the end of the MSCA Work Programme part. To be eligible to this call the host organisation must be located in a Widening country.

described in Annex B  of the Work Programme General Annexes.

4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion

described in Annex C  of the Work Programme General Annexes.

5a. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds

Seals of Excellence will be awarded to applications exceeding all of the evaluation thresholds set out in this work programme but which cannot be funded due to lack of budget available to the call.

are described in Annex D  of the Work Programme General Annexes.

5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes

are described in Annex F  of the Work