1. Career
Opportunities in
the Marie
Skłodowska-Curie
Actions’
Dr. Jennifer Brennan
National Contact Point
National Delegate

2. Irish Marie Skłodowska-Curie Office
Sponsored by the Irish Research Council
(www.research.ie)
• Promote the Actions to Irish researchers and
research organisations
• Support researchers in preparing funding
applications
• Contribute to policy initiatives relevant to the
Actions

3. • ‘One-stop-shop’
centralised support on
issues related to
mobility, incl.
immigration
• Linked to central EU
EURAXESS Site
• Website in each
European Country (and
beyond)
• Jobs Portal
• CV Database
EURAXESS
www.euraxess.eu www.euraxess.ie

5. Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions in Horizon 2020:
€6.2 billion budget
Funds ALL RESEARCH AREAS
(no thematic calls or priorities)
Implemented via Annual
Calls for Proposals
Training
Marie
S-Curie
Actions
Career Mobility
Squo-dovska

6. Job & Fellowship Opportunities

7. Opportunity 1: Apply for a job in an
FP7 Marie Curie Action
• Projects funded during FP7 (2007 – 2013)
• Initial Training Network (ITN)
• Industry-Academia Partnerships & Pathways (IAPP)
• Need PhD or four years of research experience after
primary degree (Experienced Researcher): for ITN, no
more than five years of experience (includes years spent
completing PhD, if relevant)
• All advertised on EURAXESS Jobs
• Search filter for “Marie Curie Vacancies”

8. Mobility Rule
• To be eligible you must not have resided in the country of
host organisation for > 12 months in the last 3 years on the
day you begin your employment contract.
• Example 1: If applying for a Marie Curie job in France, you must
not have resided in France for > 12 months in the 3 years before
starting the job.
• Example 2: If you have lived in Ireland for < 12 months in the last
3 years, you can apply for a Marie Curie job at an Irish
organisation.
• No nationality/citizenship/age restrictions

10. Opportunity 2: Apply for a
Marie S-Curie Individual Fellowship
• Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
• Annual Calls for Fellowships (next deadline Sep 2015)
• Need PhD or four years of research experience after
primary degree (Experienced Researcher)
• Researcher applies with support of host organisation
• Operated by European Commission (Research
Executive Agency)

11. Individual Fellowships
• A personal fellowship to support a
period of mobility
• For Experienced Researchers
• Post-PhD or equivalent
• No upper age or experience limit
• Fully-funded fellowships
• Salary, research costs etc.
• Minimum duration 1 year
• Supports Career Restart and
Reintegration into Europe
• Optional secondment during
fellowship

12. Mobility rule
Cannot apply for a fellowship in a
country where you have lived for
>12 months in the 3 years before
the Call deadline, or for >3 years in
the 5 years before the deadline for
the Career Restart and
Reintegration Options.
European
Fellowships
IF – European and Global
Global
Fellowships
1 – 2 years
2 – 3 years (incl. 12 months back in Europe)

13. Opportunity 3: Apply for a fellowship in a
COFUND Fellowship Programme
• National or International Fellowship Schemes
• Co-funded by FP7 MCA/Horizon 2020 MSCA, but
operated by national/international organisations in
European Countries
• Need PhD or four years of research experience after
primary degree (Experienced Researcher)
• Each scheme is different, with different
eligibility/mobility rules. In the main, Researcher
applies with support of host organisation

14. https://maps.google.be/maps/ms?msid=213886836935025775306.0004ce712744501893f6c&msa=0&ll=48.019324,3.999023&spn=25.732753,67.631836&dg=feature

15. Sample COFUND Programmes open now
• ASSISTID
– International Training and Career Development programme
– Assistive Technologies for People with Intellectual Disabilities and Autism
– Operated by DOCTRID Research Institute http://www.assistid.eu/
• BEWARE FELLOWSHIPS Academia
– Operated by the Federal Government of Wallonia (Belgium)
– Funds all research areas
– Goal to attract researchers to Wallonia (over 100 fellowships available)
– http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/index.cfm/jobs/fgDetails/68458
• Frias COFUND Fellowship Programme
– Operated by the University of Freiburg, Germany
– Offering 3 – 24 month positions at the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies
– Funds any research area relevant to the activities of the Institute
– http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/index.cfm/jobs/fgDetails/73212
All open calls advertised on EURAXESS Jobs

16. Funding for Principal Investigators

17. ITN • Innovative Training Networks
RISE • Research & Innovation Staff Exchange
• Co-financing fellowship or doctoral
programmes with transnational mobility COFUND
NIGHT • European Researchers’ Night

18. Innovative
Training
Networks
Quality of Research Training
• Research Training Programme for
Masters’ and Doctoral Students
• Improving career prospects
• Equipping with a broad range of
research and transferable skills
• Promoting Mobility during research
training (international and inter-sectoral)
• 3 types of ITN
• European Training Networks
• European Industrial Doctorates
• European Joint Doctorates (transferred
from Erasmus Mundus)
http://www.iua.ie/irish-marie-curie-office/funding-calls/

19. Research & Innovation
Staff Exchange
Promoting transfer of knowledge
between countries and sectors
• Funds exchange visits from 1 month
to 1 year and networking activities
(workshops, meetings, conferences
etc.)
• Minimum consortium 3 participants
from 3 countries
• Can involve countries outside Europe
• Can involve non-academic
participants e.g. industry, NGOs,
charities etc.
• High success rates
http://www.iua.ie/irish-marie-curie-office/funding-calls/

20. COFUND
COFUND began in FP7:
• Co-funded over 175 fellowships programmes (8 are Irish)
Horizon 2020 will offer co-funding for:
• Doctoral programmes and Fellowship programmes (post-PhD and/or
more senior)
Co-funding rate is ~50%
• “Own funding” can come from any source (national, industry,
philanthropic)
https://maps.google.be/maps/ms?msid=213886836935025775306.0004ce712744501893f6c&msa=0&ll=48.019324,3.999023&spn=25.732753,67.631836&dg=feature

21. NIGHT
European Researchers’ Night
• A European-wide public and
media event to promote
research careers
• 4th Friday of September each
year
• Full or part-funding available
• Next Call in 2016
Discover Research Dublin 2014
TCD and Royal Irish Academy award in
2014 NIGHT Call
Events from 3 to 10pm on Friday 26th Sep
2014
http://discoverresearchdublin2014.com/

22. Which subject areas have been most
successful for Ireland?
10% 2%
21%
28% 12%
0%
11%
16%
CHE (21)
ECO (4)
ENG (44)
ENV (25)
LIF (58)
MAT (0)
PHY (22)
SOC (34)
Data for Ireland as of July 2013
Chemistry
Economic Sciences
ICT & Engineering
Earth & Environment
Life Sciences
Maths
Physics
Social Sciences &
Humanities

23. In Ireland, the highest proportion of FP7 MC
Fellowships have been awarded to Social Sciences
and Humanities researchers.
26% of Individual Awards
Of the 56 MC Initial Training Network Contracts
signed in Ireland, 6 are for Social Sciences and
Humanities projects
Same number of projects were funded in Chemistry and in Physics

24. Sample Funded Projects:
• Disability Rights Expanding Accessible Markets
• Bridging the European and Anatolian Neolithic:
Demography, Migration, and Lifestyle at the Advent of
Civilization
• Mental Health Training through Research Network in
Europe
• A Psycholinguistic Investigation of Irish Orthography and
Reading
• Epistemology and Democracy in Complex Societies
• Brahms and the Fabric of Modernist Culture

25. Reasons for HEIs to get involved
Build Links with Research Groups and Industry Worldwide
Increase number of research students & staff
Attracting Leading & Up-and-Coming Researchers
Fund a Sabbatical Abroad (up-skill for ERC)
Significant co-financing opportunity through COFUND

26. How the MSC Office can help
• Email Distribution List (mariecurie@iua.ie)
• Marie Skłodowska-Curie Office Ireland on Linkedin
• Dedicated website www.iua.ie/mariecurie
• YouTube channel MarieCurieActionIre
Information
• Training Webinars for specific Calls (recordings on
website and YouTube)
• Advice on whether your concept ‘fits’ the Call
• Partner search via MSCA NCP network
Support

28. Thank
you!
mariecurie@iua.ie
www.iua.ie/mariecurie
Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Office Ireland