The European Commission is unveiling a new plan to fund scientific research and attract talents for local universities, with a total of €1.25 billion in grants and other funding opportunities in 2025 alone.
“We put research and innovation, science, and technology at the heart of our economy. Universities are pillars of our societies and our way of life. We are the continent where innovation serves humanity, where global talent is welcomed,” said Ursula von der Leyen, commenting on the new scheme.
The funding is part of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA). The Commission plans to have two new calls in 2025, in addition to the three already activated. The first new one, MSCA Doctoral Networks, is worth €597.8 million in recruiting and training doctoral candidates in academia and other sectors. The second one, called MSCA & Citizens, is smaller in size with only €16 million and aims to bring science out of academia and towards citizens towards events and campaigning.
An additional €10 million is allocated to support displaced Ukrainian researchers through a fellowship scheme. Attempting to attract talent and help careers within academia is a core part of the Choose Europe for Science pilot programme, which will have an initial €22.5 million funding for 2025. It targets researchers and post-doc students with more stable career paths. The funding is open for researchers from all over the world. Science has no passport, gender, ethnicity or political party. Ekaterina Zaharieva, Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation, said, “we want Europe to be the best and most attractive place in the world for science and researchers.”
