The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) are a European Commission Funding programme which supports researchers across all research disciplines and in all employment sectors.

MSCA fund excellent and innovative research training as well as attractive career development and knowledge-exchange opportunities through cross-border and cross-sector mobility of researchers, to better prepare them for current and future societal challenges. This funding aims to reinforce cooperation between academia and all types of non-academic organisations (companies, CSOs, hospitals, public bodies etc.) in terms of research training, career development and knowledge transfer.

All funding in MSCAs is bottom-up; there are no thematic calls or priority areas that are supported. Depending on the Action, the budgets available range from €50,000 to €10 million.

The list below summarises what can typically be achieved through participating in a MSC Action:

  • Doctoral Training Networks: Building an international, inter-sectoral network to train highly employable PhD students
  • Research & Innovation Staff Exchange: Creating and strengthening international and inter-sectoral research partnerships
  • Individual Fellowships (IF): Attracting top-class researchers with a PhD or 4 years FT research experience to academic and non-academic organisations
  • European Researchers’ Night: Promoting research and research careers to society at large
  • Co-funding of regional, national and international programmes (COFUND): Co-financing doctoral and post-doctoral positions on excellent programmes

Open Calls in Doctoral networks and COFUND schemes are published on EURAXESS Jobs.

Resources such as Handbooks and webinars prepared by the Irish Marie Skłodowska-Curie office can be accessed at this link.