MSCA COFUND 2027

Home Funding Calls for proposals MSCA COFUND 2027 MSCA COFUND 2027 HORIZON-MSCA-2027-COFUND-01-01 Topic Call for proposal Internal navigation General information Topic description Destination Conditions and documents Budget overview Partner search announcements Start submission Topic Q&As Get support General information Programme Horizon Europe (HORIZON) Call MSCA COFUND 2027 (HORIZON-MSCA-2027-COFUND-01) Type of action HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-Cofund-D HORIZON TMA MSCA Cofund Doctoral programme Type of MGA HORIZON Unit Grant [HORIZON-AG-UN] Forthcoming Deadline model single-stage Planned opening date 08 December 2026 Deadline date 06 April 2027 17:00:00 Brussels time Topic description Expected Outcome: Projects results are expected to contribute to the following outcomes: For supported doctoral candidates Deeper and more diverse set of research-related and transferable skills and competences; Improved employability and career prospects both 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 Enhanced quality and sustainability of research training; Increased global attractiveness, visibility and reputation of the participating organisation(s); Stronger R&I capacity and output among participating organisations; Increased contribution of the participating organisations to the local, regional and/or national socio-economic ecosystems; Regular feedback of research results into teaching and education at participating organisations. Scope: Applicants submit proposals for new or existing doctoral programmes with an impact on the enhancement of human resources in R&I at regional, national or international level. These programmes will be co-funded by MSCA COFUND. Proposed programmes can cover any research disciplines ("bottom-up"), but exceptionally can also focus on specific disciplines, notably when they are based on national or regional Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation (RIS3 strategies). In this case, the range of covered disciplines should allow reasonable flexibility for the researchers to define their topic. Funding synergies with Cohesion Policy Funds and other EU funding sources are strongly encouraged. A Career Development Plan must be jointly established by the supervisor and each recruited researcher upon recruitment. In addition to research objectives, this Plan comprises the researcher's training and career needs, including training on transferable skills, teaching, planning for publications and participation in conferences and events aimed at opening science and research to citizens. The Plan must be established at the beginning of the recruitment and should be revised (and updated where needed) within 18 months. Doctoral programmes offer research training activities to allow doctoral candidates to develop and broaden their skills and competences. They will lead to the award of a doctoral degree in at least one EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country. The training activities should be based on the EU Principles on Innovative Doctoral Training. The doctoral programmes should develop substantial training modules, addressing key transferable skills and competences common to all fields, including digital ones (e.g. generative AI) and fostering the culture of Open Science, knowledge valorisation[1], and when applicable innovation and entrepreneurship as well as good scientific conduct such as research integrity. In particular, doctoral programmes should adequately prepare doctoral candidates to pursue a career in research and adequately prepare them for increased research collaboration and information-sharing made possible by new (digital) technologies (e.g. collaborative tools, opening access to publications and to other research outputs including data, FAIR data management, societal engagement and citizen science, etc.). On top of compulsory international mobility, applicants are encouraged to include elements of cross-sectoral mobility and interdisciplinarity into their programmes. Collaboration with a wider set of associated partners, including from the non-academic sector, will be positively taken into account during the evaluation. These organisations may provide hosting or secondment opportunities or training modules in research or transferable skills. Particular attention is paid to the quality of supervision and mentoring arrangements as well as career guidance. The selection procedure for doctoral candidates must be open, transparent and merit-based, in line with the European Charter for Researchers. The vacancy notice (to be widely advertised internationally, including on the EURAXESS[2] website) must mention if the published rates include all employer and employee's taxes and contributions. If possible, the gross salary (net salary + employee’s taxes and contributions) should be published. [1] “Knowledge valorisation” is the process of creating social and economic value from knowledge by linking different areas and sectors and by transforming data, know-how and research results into sustainable products, services, solutions and knowledge-based policies that benefit society” (EUR-Lex - 32022H2415 - EN - EUR-Lex). For more guidance on specific areas of knowledge valorisation, see the European Commission’s Codes of Practice on intellectual assets management, on standardisation, on industry-academia co-creation and on citizen engagement for knowledge valorisation [2] https://euraxess.ec.europa.eu/ Show more Topic destination MSCA Co-funding of regional, national and international programmes (2026-27) MSCA COFUND co-finances new or existing doctoral programmes and postdoctoral fellowship schemes with the aim of spreading the best practices of the MSCA including international, inter-sectoral and interdisciplinary research training, as well as international and cross-sectoral mobility of researchers at all stages of their career. In practice, MSCA COFUND provides complementary funding for doctoral or postdoctoral programmes managed by entities established in EU Member States or Horizon Europe Associated Countries. Those co-funded programmes must follow MSCA’s good practice in terms of international recruitment and minimum standard of employment for the recruited fellows as described in the European Charter for Researchers. MSCA Choose Europe for Science co-funded programmes additionally aim to address brain drain and precarity of researchers' careers in order to make Europe more attractive to the most promising young talents. The scheme will allow applicants to link MSCA grants to competitions leading to long-term attractive positions in universities and other research performing organisations. Expected impact Proposals under this Action should contribute to the following expected impacts: Enhance talent and knowledge circulation across the R&I landscape, through international, inter-sectoral and interdisciplinary mobility, including by supporting regional or national smart specialisation strategies when appropriate; Align practices with MSCA policies based on the European Charter for Researchers; Improve the attractiveness of researchers’ careers notably through better working and employment conditions as well as access to concrete long-term career prospects; Strengthen Europe's human capital base in R&I by training highly-skilled researchers; Increase Europe's attractiveness as a leading R&I destination; Enhance the quality of R&I contributing to Europe's sustainable competitiveness; Establish sustainable collaboration between academic and non-academic organisations; Foster the culture of open science, innovation and entrepreneurship. Show more Topic conditions and documents 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 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 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 Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual. 5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes. 6. Legal and financial set-up of the grants described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes. Specific conditions described in the [specific topic of the Work Programme] Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA): Application form templates — the application form specific to this call is available in the Submission System Standard application form (HE MSCA COFUND) Evaluation form templates — will be used with the necessary adaptations Standard evaluation form (HE MSCA) Guidance MSCA COFUND 2027 GfA HE Programme Guide Model Grant Agreements (MGA) HE Unit MGA Additional documents: HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 2. Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes HE Programme Guide HE Framework Programme 2021/695 HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764 EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509 Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement Show more Budget overview Topic Budget year : 2027 Stages Opening date Deadline Contributions Indicative number of grants HORIZON-MSCA-2027-COFUND-01-01 - HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-Cofund-D HORIZON TMA MSCA Cofund Doctoral programme 51 251 165,00 € Single-stage 8 December 2026 6 April 2027 Items per page: 10 50 100 Showing 1–1 of 1 Partner search announcements 28 Searches of partners to collaborate on this topic View / Edit LEARs, Account Administrators or self-registrants can publish partner requests for open and forthcoming topics after logging into this Portal, as well as any user having an active public Person profile. Start submission The submission system is planned to be opened on the date stated on the topic header. Topic Q&As0 item(s) found General FAQ Get support Please read carefully all provisions below before the preparation of your application. Online Manual is your guide on the procedures from proposal submission to managing your grant. Horizon Europe Programme Guide contains the detailed guidance to the structure, budget and political priorities of Horizon Europe. Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ – find the answers to most frequently asked questions on submission of proposals, evaluation and grant management. Research Enquiry Service – ask questions about any aspect of European research in general and the EU Research Framework Programmes in particular. National Contact Points (NCPs) – get guidance, practical information and assistance on participation in Horizon Europe. There are also NCPs in many non-EU and non-associated countries (‘third-countries’). Enterprise Europe…