Call for Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions: 17 "Postdoctoral Fellowships" Funded for the University of Bologna

The European Commission is funding 17 research projects under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions - Postdoctoral Fellowships 2024 call to the University of Bologna, breaking the previous record with 17 fellowships and 4 on the reserve list, for a total funding of almost 6 million euros (€5,709,992.92).

The Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) are the main instrument at European level for promoting and supporting the careers of researchers. They have become the European reference programme for doctoral and post-doctoral training, with the aim of strengthening and developing the excellence of the European Union's science base and consolidating the European Research Area, making it more competitive at global level. The 2024 call for MSCA - Postdoctoral Fellowships funded 17 projects with the University of Bologna as host institution, 6 in the European scheme and 11 in the Global scheme. This is a historic achievement for the University of Bologna, which reaches the highest national and European standards in the number of projects won and in attracting new talent.

The European scheme, open to researchers of all nationalities, funds fellowships of 12-24 months at host institutions in Europe, while the Global scheme, open to researchers who are nationals of an EU Member State or Associated to Horizon Europe, funds fellowships of 24 or 36 months. These are characterised by an initial period in a third country (i.e. a non-EU or non-associated country), followed by a 12-month return phase at a European host institution. The scheme aims to foster the acquisition and transfer of knowledge and generate a structural impact on European institutions.

The total funding of €5,709,992.92 will make it possible to implement outstanding projects proposed by talented researchers and strengthen significant national and international collaborations. The winning projects will cover different subject areas, including 6 of the 8 disciplinary panels (Social Sciences and Humanities, Engineering, Chemistry, Environment, Life Sciences, Physics) and will be hosted by 13 different departments of the University of Bologna. In addition to the 17 winning projects, there are 4 projects on the reserve list and 18 others that have been awarded the European Commission "Seal of Excellence - MSC Actions", making a total of 22 projects out of 292 at European level. The Seal of Excellence is an award given to project proposals submitted under Horizon Europe that have achieved high standards of excellence during the evaluation process but are not funded due to budget constraints. With the Seal of Excellence, the European Commission not only recognises the value of these proposals, but also encourages other funding organisations to invest in high quality projects.

At the European level, 10,360 project proposals were submitted for this call (9,303 in the European scheme, 1,057 in the Global scheme), with a 29% increase in participation compared to the previous year, a success rate of 16.6% and a total of € 417.2 million to fund 1,696 postdoctoral researchers. The University's success rate was 21.52%, which was higher than the call percentage rate at European level.

The projects were supported by the ARIC Research Area office - Research Development Sector - Social Sciences and Humanities & Excellent Science to which we refer for further details (es@unibo.it).