The programme Horizon Europe plans the call for proposals of international projects Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships (MSCA-PF). The call is planned to open on 9. 4. 2025, planned deadline is 10. 9. 2025.

The MSCA-PF grant supports an individual research stay (1-2 years) connected with international mobility (the project must take place in a country different from where the researcher has currently worked or studied). The researcher (applicant – postdoc) must possess a PhD degree and have less than 8 years of full-time research experience since obtaining it. The project can be in any research field. The researcher should prepare the proposal in close collaboration with the potential supervisor at the host organisation.

The European Centre of the rectorate offers assistance to potential supervisors form Charles University in finding a suitable foreign researcher (applicant) for preparation of an MSCA-PF application. Supervisors can submit topics for MSCA-PF projects until 28. 2. 2025. See the faculty news.

Internal guidelines for the Faculty of Science

Applications submitted with Charles University (CU) as the host organisation must follow the rules given by the Rector’s Directive n. 21/2021. Therefore, if you are – as an applicant (postdoc) or as a supervisor – preparing an MSCA-PF project to be carried out at the Faculty of Science CU, please, follow these guidelines:

  • First, the researcher (applicant – postdoc) must get in touch and arrange the preparation of the project with his/her potential "supervisor" at the Faculty of Science CU. (The Project Management Department does not facilitate this contact.)
  • Inform about the proposal the head of the department where the project will be implemented if selected for funding.
  • Contact as soon as possible (yes, even in January), by 28. 7. 2025, at the very latest, the Project Management Department (Ludmila Součková, ludmila.souckova@natur.cuni.cz). The sooner you contact us, the more meaningful support we can provide. (By 1. 8. 2025, we must inform the CU rectorate about all MSCA-PF proposals prepared at the Faculty of Science with CU as the host organisation.)
  • 2 weeks before the deadline at the latest, send a draft version of the full proposal at ludmila.souckova@natur.cuni.cz to be forwarded to the rectorate.
  • In the project proposal submitted via the Funding & Tenders Portal, include as “contact persons” the responsible staff member of the Department of Science and Research at the CU rectorate, and the contact person at the Project Management Department of the Faculty of Science – details will be given after the opening of the call.

If you currently work or study at the Faculty of Science and are preparing an MSCA-PF project to be carried out at a foreign organisation, we also encourage you to contact the Project Management Department (Ludmila Součková, ludmila.souckova@natur.cuni.cz) to learn about the support we can offer.

MSCA-PF is an interesting opportunity for:

  • researchers who want to go on postdoctoral research stay abroad,
  • researchers who have been doing research abroad (for at least 2 years) and are returning,
  • researchers who have recently come (or returned) from abroad,
  • leaders of research teams who want to bring to their research group a postdoc from any foreign country.

Eligibility conditions for the researcher (applicant – postdoc):

  • He/she must at the date of the call deadline hold the PhD degree (he/she doesn’t need to have the certificate itself, but the successful defence of the PhD thesis must have taken place.)
  • At the call deadline, the researcher must have a maximum of 8 years full-time equivalent experience in research since obtaining the PhD degree.
    Years of experience outside research and career breaks, e.g. due to parental leave, won’t be taken into account. Also, in case of nationals or long-term residents of EU member states or Horizon Europe associated countries who wish to reintegrate to Europe from a “third country” (neither EU member state nor a Horizon Europe associated country), years of experience in research in “third countries” won’t be taken into account.
  • In the country, where the fellowship takes place, the researcher must fulfil the mobility rule: He/she must not have carried out his/her main activity (work, studies, etc.) in this country for more than 12 months in the 3 years before the call deadline.
    By the “country of the main activity” is meant both the country where the researcher was physically based and the country of the institution for which the main activity was performed.

Types of MSCA-PF projects:

  • European Postdoctoral Fellowships
    12–24 months research stay at a host organisation in an EU member state or a country associated to Horizon Europe. The researcher must fulfil the mobility rule in the host organisation country and can be of any nationality.
  • Global Postdoctoral Fellowships
    12–24 months research stay at a host organisation in a “third country” (neither EU member state nor a Horizon Europe associated country) where the researcher fulfils the mobility rule. This outgoing phase must be followed by a compulsory 12-month reintegration phase at a “sending organisation” in an EU member state or a Horizon Europe associated country (the mobility rule doesn’t have to be fulfilled in this “reintegration country”). The reintegration phase must be already described in the proposal and is covered by the grant. The researcher must be of the nationality of an EU member state or a Horizon Europe associated country or a long-term resident of such country.

Contact points for MSCA pre-award support at the Faculty of Science:
Ludmila Součková and Martina Holíková.
If you have any questions about MSCA-PF, please do not hesitate to ask.

 

News published by Ludmila Součková on 5. 12. 2024.
Updated 11. 12. 2024 (link to the European Centre offer to look for suitable applicants).
Updated 12. 12. 2024 (small changes of wording).

Not the information you sought? Found a mistake? Please, let us know.

 

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