Research community urges the EU to preserve MSCA’s bottom-up approach

MSCA is the EU’s flagship programme to support doctoral and postdoctoral training through research and mobility.

The draft work programme proposes introducing a top-down thematic focus – or ‘directionality’ to MSCA, by means of targeted calls aligned with EU political priorities. Instruments supporting investigator-driven research and scientific curiosity — such as MSCA — must remain shielded from short-term political agendas.

Alongside the European Research Council (ERC) and the EIC Pathfinder Open, MSCA is a pillar of Europe’s research excellence. These programmes must remain bottom-up and free from policy directionality.

Less than a year ago, a broad coalition of European higher education and research stakeholders issued a joint call — We need much more MSCA! — highlighting the programme’s strategic importance and calling for a strengthened budget to fully realise its potential.

Today, the research community states that MSCA must remain bottom-up. No directionality.

Alongside EUA, the joint statement is endorsed by: the Young European Research Universities Network (YERUN), the Coimbra Group, EU-LIFE, the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities (ALLEA), Aurora Universities Network, CESAER, the European Alliance for Social Sciences and Humanities (EASSH), the European Consortium of Innovative Universities (ECIU), the European Council of Doctoral Candidates and Junior Researchers (Eurodoc), the Initiative for Science Europe (ISE), the League of European Research Universities (LERU), the Marie Curie Alumni Association (MCAA), the Polish Science Contact Agency (PolSCA), SPARC Europe, the Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities and the Network of Universities from the Capitals of Europe (UNICA).

Any other organisation wishing to support this initiative is welcome to help raise awareness by sharing the statement.