Doctoral funding radar ·
Doctoral and Early-Career Research Funding Calls Worth Preparing For
Planning your next application starts with reading each call for what it actually funds and where its timing meets your own. The calls below cover doctoral training, postdoctoral programmes, a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions fellowship and a European Research Council grant for researchers consolidating their own teams. Read each entry alongside its status and route line, then decide where your preparation time will count.
Of the five calls below, three 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.
ERC Consolidator Grant
ERC Consolidator Grant
Open Closes on 71 days left
Who applies. The individual researcher applies directly, together with a chosen host organisation.
The Consolidator Grant supports Principal Investigators who are consolidating an independent research team or programme, so it belongs to a career stage some distance beyond the doctorate. For an early-career researcher it shows what this funder will look for later: a record that demonstrates research independence. The description also allows a duly justified request for additional resources when the proposed work requires them, which rewards careful thinking about what a project genuinely needs.
Preparation step. Start by checking every eligibility condition on the official topic page. If the call fits your situation, write a one-page outline of the programme you are consolidating that names the results showing your independence, then open an early conversation with a prospective host organisation about the resources the work would require, including any costs that could justify a request for additional funding.
MSCA COFUND (doctoral programmes)
MSCA COFUND 2027
Opens on Closes on 155 days left
Who applies. Institutions or consortia apply. Individual positions are recruited openly after the grant is awarded.
This call funds doctoral programmes, and the proposals come from organisations, not from candidates. Once a programme is awarded, the doctoral candidates it supports are selected later through open vacancies, so its value to you lies in the positions it will eventually create. The description stresses a broader range of research and professional competences, interdisciplinary and cross-sector exposure, and stronger communication with peers and the general public.
Preparation step. Map the universities and research centres in your field that run doctoral programmes under this instrument, follow their news and vacancy pages, and watch for the doctoral positions they advertise once funding is confirmed. In the meantime, build evidence of communicating your research to non-specialist audiences, which the description names as an expected outcome.
MSCA COFUND (postdoctoral programmes)
MSCA Choose Europe for Science 2027
Opens on Closes on 155 days left
Who applies. Institutions or consortia apply. Individual positions are recruited openly after the grant is awarded.
Choose Europe for Science funds postdoctoral programmes. Organisations compete for the funding, and postdoctoral researchers are hired into the resulting programmes later through those programmes' own calls. The description puts weight on concrete career prospects and career stability, together with greater research autonomy. It also expects participating organisations to align recruitment and progression practices with the European Charter for Researchers and the Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment.
Preparation step. Shortlist organisations in your discipline that publicly commit to the European Charter for Researchers and to research assessment reform, since the description ties this programme to those frameworks. Track their career pages so you are ready when the funded postdoctoral posts are advertised, and refine a CV that presents the full range of your contributions.
MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships
MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2027
Opens on Closes on 310 days left
Who applies. The individual researcher applies directly, together with a chosen host organisation.
Postdoctoral Fellowships let a researcher propose their own project together with a host organisation, which makes them a vehicle for setting your own research agenda after the doctorate. The description centres on gaining new research skills, working across countries, sectors and disciplines, and widening your professional networks. It also expects host organisations to offer sound training, supervision and working conditions in line with the European Charter for Researchers, which gives you a practical lens for choosing where to go.
Preparation step. Verify the mobility rule and every other eligibility condition on the official topic page before committing time. If they fit, draft a short project outline and contact a prospective supervisor to discuss how their group would support your training and supervision during the fellowship.
MSCA Doctoral Networks
MSCA Doctoral Networks 2027
Opens on Closes on 386 days left
Who applies. Institutions or consortia apply. Individual positions are recruited openly after the grant is awarded.
Doctoral Networks are proposed by groups of organisations working together, and doctoral candidates are selected only after a grant is awarded, through separately advertised vacancies. The description points to integrated training across partners, knowledge transfer between sectors and disciplines, and, where relevant, turning ideas into products and services. For someone weighing a doctorate, this means a structured programme spread across several partners, not a single lab.
Preparation step. Identify research groups and companies in your area that have taken part in this instrument before, and follow them for vacancy announcements over the coming period. Strengthen your profile with experience that bridges sectors, such as an internship or an applied project.