Celebrating MSCA at 30        

First established in 1996 as the Marie Curie Fellowships, the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions were created by the European Union to foster excellence and push the barriers of researcher mobility, training and career development. Their creation also helped to reinforce the idea of a fellowship community. The name is highly appropriate for this bottom-up programme as it embodies Marie Skłodowska-Curie’s approach to international mobility and to scientific excellence in her own work – she was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the only person to win Nobel Prizes in two different scientific fields. Anchored by key levers such as researcher mobility, interdisciplinary and intersectoral training, and international collaboration, the MSCA transformed and reshaped research careers in Europe over the past 30 years resulting in sustained structural impact in researcher recruitment, training and supervision.

This year Europe will celebrate 30 years of the MSCA. A range of celebratory events are planned across Europe to showcase the impact of the programme and its benefits for European research talent and the European Research Area. For more information on the impact of the programme and events planned across Europe, visit the website. If you are planning to host an event marking 30 years of the MSCA, please get in touch with us! 

MSCA Presidency Conference 2026    

As part of the presidency of the EU Council, Ireland will host the annual MSCA Presidency Conference on 04-05 November 2026 in TU Dublin. The conference will focus on resilient research careers as the central unifying policy lens through which levers such as mobility, attractiveness and the triple-I dimensions of collaboration are examined. Marking the 30th anniversary of the MSCA, the conference will also examine the past, present, and future of the MSCA in light of Europe’s changing research and innovation ecosystem. Registration for the conference will open in the summer.

Ireland’s Results in the MSCA

With just two years remaining of Horizon Europe, and the focus shifting to the next framework programme (FP10), it is encouraging to see that Ireland maintains its reputation as a high-performing country in the MSCA.

To date under Horizon Europe, €162 million has been awarded through MSCA calls to organisations based in Ireland, from across academia, industry, civil society and beyond. This vital funding stream in Ireland supports the development of highly skilled human capital, funding curiosity-driven, bottom-up research across all disciplines and sectors and building strong international research partnerships. 

Included in this drawdown are the recent results from the 2025 Postdoctoral Fellowships call with €8.7 million awarded to Irish organisations. The funding will support 32 fellowships in Ireland across the social sciences and humanities, chemistry, engineering, physics and life sciences. Given the focus on international, intersectoral and interdisciplinary mobility in the scheme, these fellowships will help to strengthen and sustain a vibrant and diverse multi-cultural research talent base in Ireland. 

A further €14.3 million was awarded to applicants in Ireland through the 2025 Doctoral Networks call. The funding enables organisations from academia and other sectors, including private-for-profit organisations, based in Ireland to participate in 23 pan-European PhD training networks. These networks will advance the state of the art across a range of research disciplines and strengthen Ireland’s global reputation for research excellence and talent development.

2026 Postdoctoral Fellowships Call and Webinar 

A major selling point of the MSCA is the reliability and predictability of its research and innovation calls. This year is no different. With the deadlines for the 2026 MSCA COFUND and Staff Exchanges calls closing in April, we look ahead to the 2026 Postdoctoral Fellowships and Doctoral Networks calls (deadlines in the autumn), but not before we wish our COFUND and Staff Exchanges applicants the very best of luck in the evaluation process!

The 2026 Postdoctoral Fellowships call opened on 09 April with a deadline of 09 September 2026. The call offers the opportunity for researchers holding a PhD to secure their own funding to carry out their research activities abroad, acquire new skills and develop their careers. With a focus on international, intersectoral and interdisciplinary mobility, Postdoctoral Fellowships help researchers gain experience in other countries, disciplines and non-academic sectors.

Proposals for the Postdoctoral Fellowships call are prepared by organisations from all sectors and disciplines, in collaboration with a pre-identified researcher. To support interested applicants and organisations based in Ireland, the MSCA national support service in Research Ireland is hosting a webinar on the call on 22 April 2026. Find more information and register for the webinar here. 

To contact the MSCA national support service, now based in Research Ireland, you can email us at [email protected].