MSCA Choose Europe for Science 2025

For supported researchers:

• Concrete career prospects and increased career stability
• Access to diverse career pathways in and outside academia
• Deeper and more diverse set of research-related, academic and transferable skills and competences, leading to greater autonomy

For participating organisations:

• Better alignment of research and Human Resources practices, including recruitment, career accession and progression systems, at participating organisation(s) with the European Charter for Researchers and the Council Recommendation of 18 December 2023 on a European framework to attract and retain research, innovation and entrepreneurial talents in Europe and the Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment;
• Increased global attractiveness, visibility and reputation of the participating organisation(s);
• Stronger R&I and teaching capacity and output;
• Increased contribution to the local, regional and/or national socio-economic ecosystems;
• Stronger synergies across institutional research, management and teaching structures.

The objective of this new scheme is to tackle brain drain and precarity of researchers' careers to make Europe more attractive to the most promising young talents. Applicants submit proposals for talent recruitment programmes that will provide researchers holding a doctoral degree with excellent research and academic opportunities, potentially coupled with management activities, to lead them to concrete and attractive career prospects. This will have an impact on the enhancement of human resources in R&I at institutional, regional, national or international level. These programmes will be co-funded by MSCA Choose Europe for Science.

The programmes will be divided into two phases. A first phase (24-36 months) in which the EU funding is equivalent to the minimum gross salary for the recruited researcher during this phase and a second phase (24 months) in which the applicant is expected to continue to employ the researcher, set salaries attractive at a national level and ensure availability of the necessary internal or external funds.

Proposed programmes can cover any research disciplines. The selection procedure for candidates must be open, competitive, merit-based and with a transparent international peer-review in line with the European Charter for Researchers^[1]. Alignment with the principles outlined in the Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment^[2] is also encouraged. Selection criteria should be based primarily on excellence. Additional selection criteria require clear alignment with local human resources needs identified in the relevant institutional, regional or national strategies. These must be described in the proposal and must be listed in the vacancy notice (to be widely advertised internationally, including on the EURAXESS website^[3]) alongside the gross salaries applicable to the two programme phases (net salary + employee’s taxes and contributions). Selected fellows will be able to work in research, teaching or management positions and, where relevant, define their own research topic at their host institution(s). The programmes should aim at offering excellent working conditions to researchers, including salary, professional resources, and career development.

The career development should incorporate transversal skills but also job-specific skills and, where relevant, language courses to ensure that the training is in line with the career opportunities offered following the fellowship. These opportunities must include concrete and attractive long-term career prospects, such as pathways towards open-ended contracts, which can be subject to assessment and evaluation. There must be a fair, equal, inclusive, transparent, structured career accession and progression system providing access to these opportunities in line with the Council Recommendation of 18 December 2023 on a European framework to attract and retain research, innovation and entrepreneurial talents in Europe, the European Charter for Researchers in its annex and the Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment.

A Career Development Plan must be maintained throughout the period of the Choose Europe for Science programme. In addition to research objectives, this Plan comprises the researcher's career development needs, including training on languages, transferable skills, teaching, planning for publications and participation in conferences and events. The Plan should outline the projected career progression paths in the host institution.

[1] Council Recommendation of 18 December 2023 on a European framework to attract and retain research, innovation and entrepreneurial talents in Europe

[2] agreement_final.pdf (coara.eu)

[3] EURAXESS |