This is the edition of 13 October 2026. The dates and statuses below are as they stood on that day and may have changed since. Read the current edition.
European research funding spans a wide range of career stages and disciplinary contexts, and knowing which calls align with your current position can shape the trajectory of your doctoral or early-career path. This radar brings together calls from Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions and the European Research Council so you can plan your next move with the clearest possible picture of what is on the horizon.
Of the four calls below, two are applied for by institutions or consortia, with individual positions recruited after the grant is awarded, and two are applied for directly by the individual researcher, together with a host organisation.
MSCA Doctoral Networks 2026
Open, closes 24 November 2026. MSCA Doctoral Networks.
Who applies. Institutions or consortia apply. Individual positions are recruited openly after the grant is awarded.
Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Networks bring together universities, research institutes, and non-academic partners to build structured doctoral training programmes with genuine cross-sector and cross-disciplinary reach. For a doctoral candidate, the significance lies in what these funded networks eventually produce: structured cohorts, supervision arrangements designed for quality and sustainability, and training environments built around both research excellence and broader competence development. Understanding which consortia are active in your field, and how they frame their training priorities, gives you a head start when positions are advertised after awards are made. The networks are explicitly designed to boost research and innovation capacity across participating organisations, so the recruited candidates benefit from an infrastructure that has been peer-reviewed and resourced.
Preparation step. Map the research groups and organisations in your field that have previously coordinated or partnered in Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Networks, set up alerts for their vacancy pages, and begin building a profile that speaks to the cross-sector and interdisciplinary training emphases the programme rewards, so you are well positioned when recruited positions are advertised following the award.
Official topic page: HORIZON-MSCA-2026-DN-01-01
ERC Consolidator Grant
Open, closes 12 January 2027. ERC Consolidator Grant.
Who applies. The individual researcher applies directly, together with a chosen host organisation.
The ERC Consolidator Grant targets Principal Investigators who are at the stage of consolidating an independent research team or programme and who can already demonstrate research independence. For an early-career researcher thinking several years ahead, this call defines a concrete milestone to plan toward: building a record of independent work, assembling a coherent research vision, and identifying a host environment where that vision can be executed. The grant supports up to sixty months of work, with the possibility of requesting additional funding for justified cost categories, giving a funded team meaningful runway to pursue ambitious questions. Studying the scope and the evidence of independence the call expects helps you understand what your publication record, supervision experience, and project leadership need to look like before you are genuinely competitive.
Preparation step. Draft a one-page outline of the independent research programme you would propose, identify a prospective host organisation where the infrastructure and intellectual environment match that programme, and open an early conversation with a departmental contact there to understand what internal support processes look like.
Official topic page: ERC-2027-COG
MSCA Choose Europe for Science 2027
Opens 8 December 2026, closes 6 April 2027. MSCA COFUND (postdoctoral programmes).
Who applies. Institutions or consortia apply. Individual positions are recruited openly after the grant is awarded.
The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions COFUND instrument for postdoctoral programmes funds organisations to run fellowship schemes that are explicitly aligned with the European Charter for Researchers and the Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment. For postdoctoral researchers, this means that positions created through funded programmes are expected to offer concrete career prospects, increased stability, and a broader and more diverse skills base. The call also emphasises the global attractiveness and visibility of participating organisations, which can matter when you are weighing where to build your postdoctoral profile. Watching which organisations receive funding in this round will tell you where well-structured, charter-aligned postdoctoral fellowships are likely to be advertised in the coming years.
Preparation step. Identify research institutions in your field whose human resources and recruitment practices already reflect the European Charter for Researchers, monitor their funding announcements, and strengthen the elements of your profile, such as cross-sector experience and research output, that COFUND-funded programmes typically look for in candidates they recruit after a grant is awarded.
Official topic page: HORIZON-MSCA-2027-COFUND-02-01
MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2027
Opens 7 April 2027, closes 8 September 2027. MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships.
Who applies. The individual researcher applies directly, together with a chosen host organisation.
Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowships support individual postdoctoral researchers working with a host organisation, with the programme explicitly aiming to develop new approaches to research and innovation through international, inter-sectoral, and interdisciplinary experience. The call frames outcomes in terms of broadened research impact, stronger networking and communication with both scientific communities and the public, and host organisations that improve their working conditions in line with the European Charter for Researchers. This makes it a meaningful opportunity for researchers who want to move their work into a new context while building a more autonomous and visible research profile. Because the fellowship is proposed jointly with a host, the quality of that relationship and the fit between your project idea and the host's environment are central to a strong application.
Preparation step. Before investing significant time, verify the mobility rule and all eligibility conditions on the official topic page; then begin identifying potential host organisations whose research environment complements your proposed project, and reach out to a prospective supervisor early to discuss whether a joint application is feasible and mutually beneficial.
Official topic page: HORIZON-MSCA-2027-PF-01-01
Deadlines, statuses, and call identifiers are drawn from the
EU Funding and Tenders Portal and were verified against it on the date shown above. Confirm each call's current status on its own topic page before you rely on it. These calls close at 17:00 Brussels time on their stated deadline. Clau is a free companion for doctoral candidates and early-career researchers that helps with the project text and application materials behind calls like these.