MSCA Individual Fellowships
Preparing for Success
Gill Wells
Head of Research Services
European & International
Finding your place
All these schemes are
highly competitive and
generally difficult to
access successfully.
The key is to ensure that,
at each stage you are the
most ‘fundable’applicant
you can be
For all Fellowships you
need to be
a great researcher ….
with a great idea ….
and a great place to host
you
Preparing for Individual Fellowships
Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions
Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions
• “.. Ensure excellent and innovative research training
as well as attractive career and knowledge-exchange
opportunities through cross-border and cross-sector
mobility of researchers to best prepare them to face
current and future societal challenges”
Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions in H2020
• Operates on a ‘bottom-up’ basis
• Open to all research and innovation domains – from
basic research to market take-up
• Mobility is a key requirement
• Aim: develop new knowledge / enhance skills of people
behind research and innovation
• Dissemination and public engagement through public
outreach activities
• Total budget: €6.2bn (compared with €4.7bn in FP7)
Eligibility criteria & definitions
• Mobility – At the time of the relevant deadline for submission of proposals
researchers shall not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc)
in the country of their host organisation for more than 12 months in the 3 years
immediately prior to the reference date
• ER - At the time of the call deadline (IF), must be in possession of a doctoral degree
or have at least 4 years of full-time equivalent research experience
• Academic Sector - Includes universities and higher education institutions (public and
private) awarding degrees, non-profit research institutions (public and private), and
international European interest organisations
• Non-Academic Sector - Includes any socio-economic actor not included in the
academic sector
IF Project
• Completely bottom up – any excellent research project in any
research / innovation field
• Calibre of researcher important
• Host institution & Supervisor important too!
• No age or career stage restrictions
• Researcher and host institution work together on application
• Grant beneficiary is the host institution
• Grants can exceptionally be portable and flexible
• Expectation of full-time research fellowship but can incl. some
supervision, teaching etc.
• Requests for part-time working may be possible during grant
negotiation / life-time of grant
Project Activities
• ‘Training-through-research’ at the host institution of Fellow’s choice,
with named Supervisor
• Realistic and well-defined objectives in terms of research project
• Career advancement, including a Career Development Plan
• Develop and significantly widen the competences of the researcher,
including multi-interdisciplinary expertise, transferable skills and
inter-sectoral experience
• Optional secondment (should significantly add to the impact of the
research project) of up to 3-6 months (in Europe)
• Public engagement and dissemination activities
• Two-way knowledge exchange between Fellow and Supervisor
How to apply
• Host organisation (‘Supervisor’ or other ‘Contact’) or the Fellow registers the
draft proposal
– PIC code
– Draft acronym, draft summary, choice of panel
– Involve the Department and EU Support team at Host Institution &
• Supervisor, other Contact or Fellow give each other access onto the
proposal
• Proposal is completed
– Administrative forms (‘Edit forms’)
– Part B (‘Download template’ and ‘Upload’)
• Proposal is submitted by the Supervisor or other Contact at the host
organisation
• Submission system checks (‘Validate forms’ and ‘Print preview’)
• ‘Submit’ as many time as required until the deadline
Use the portal ….
Proposal
• PART B
– addresses the evaluation criteria
– Becomes Annex I – Description of Action or the Grant Agreement
• Structure of Part B for IF:
– Cover Page, Table of Contents
– List of Participants
– Summary
– Excellence
– Impact
– Implementation
• CV of the Researcher (max 5 pages)
• Capacities of the participating organisations (1 page beneficiary, 0.5pages partner(s))
• Ethical aspects
• Letters of commitment of partner organisations (Global Fellowships only)
10 pages
Evaluation Criteria –the ‘exam questions’!
EXCELLENCE
• Quality and credibility of the research action (level of novelty, appropriate
consideration of inter/multidisciplinary and gender aspects
• Quality and appropriateness of the training and of the two-way transfer of
knowledge between the researcher and the Host
• Quality of the supervision and of the integration in the team/institution
• Capacity of the researcher to reach or re-enforce a position of professional
maturity/independence
IMPACT
• Enhancing the potential and future career prospects of the researcher
• Quality of the proposed measure to exploit and disseminate the action
results
• Quality of the proposed measure to communicate the action activities to
different target audiences
Evaluation Criteria
IMPLEMENTATION
• Coherence and effectiveness of the work plan
• Appropriateness of the allocation of tasks and resources
• Appropriateness of the management structure and procedures,
including risk management
• Appropriateness of the institutional environment (infrastructure)
IN ADDITION
• Gender aspects – in the research content as well as training
• Ethics (Section 7 of Part B)
– Crucial for all research domains - to identify any potential ethical
issues and describe how they will be addressed
– All proposals considered for funding subject to Ethics Review
Approaching the proposal writing
• Work with your Supervisor / Fellow
• Keep the Guide for Applicants in front of you
• Treat the criteria as examination questions
– It may feel repetitive – addressing issues from different angles
• Think about your evaluators
– Clearly address the main objectives
– Use clear and concise language
– Explain country specific jargon
– Provide them with the evidence they need
• Find ‘critical friends’ to review
Highly competitive – threshold is 70% but in reality you will need 90%+
Build your profile
• Be active in relevant social media
• Negotiate attendance at key workshops & conferences
– It is always easier to collaborate with someone you have already met!
• Any meeting is a potential networking opportunity
– Also utilise internal opportunities (workshops etc)
• Join web-based communities
– LinkedIn Groups (H2020; Marie Curie etc)
• Take advantage of funding awards for travel/conference
attendance
• Make a plan – identify mentors who can help you
Questions for you and your
supervisor/host institution ….
Questions about your project ….
• How is your project interdisciplinary / multidisciplinary?
• Is it timely and relevant? How is it relevant to your research area?
• How will you show that your profile and experience make the project
credible?
• Is your methodology appropriate, thoroughly described, well detailed,
innovative, focused, challenging?
• Does it use recent techniques? Is it appropriate to objectives and well
explained?
• If appropriate can you demonstrate that you understand the
importance of gender considerations?
• Are there ethical implications and if so, what is in place for approvals
etc?
Questions about your future ….
• How will the fellowship enhance your career opportunities? What are your
aspirations and how will the fellowship help? What will the fellowship give
you that you could not get from another route? What new competencies /
knowledge / practical advantages do you expect to acquire?
– These could include lasting (international) collaborations and networks, working in a worldrenowned
centre of excellence, exposure to the non-academic sector, linguistic skills,
broadening of experience, specialisation, addressing a skills gap …
• What plans do you have for continued collaboration between host and fellow
beyond the end of the project?
• What will the host institution – university / department / group / supervisor (as
relevant) gain from the fellowship?
– This could include enhanced visibility for research excellence in your field, new networking,
future possibilities for collaboration between institutions. Or you might bring unique skills and
experience to the fellowship.
• Are the transfer of knowledge objectives clear, for you and for your host
organisation?
Questions about your supervisor ….
• How will knowledge be shared? Will there be any teaching element to the
fellowship? Will training include aspects of innovation (close to market
elements, IPR management …)?
– Note that training can include transferable skills as well as research – e.g. language, project
and team management, gender awareness, teaching … (any teaching commitment must be
small and relevant to your project).
• Can you demonstrate your supervisor’s excellence as a research leader and
his/her experience in effective supervision?
• Do you know their track record, including main international collaborations,
publications, patents etc.?
• Can you describe the dynamism of the research group?
• Has your supervisor supervised students / fellows in the past? What have
they gone on to achieve?
Questions about your host …..
• What is it that make the proposed supervision and host arrangements high
quality?
– Examples might include mentoring, measures that integrate new researchers into the
Department, regular peer group workshops, existing interaction with the non-academic
sector.
• Can you describe the nature and quality of your host research
group/environment? How will you be fully integrated into it? How will you and
your host gain from this integration?
• Is your project design realistic? Do you have a sensible timeline? Are your
research objectives clear, feasible and practical? Is this reflected in your
milestones and deliverables?
• How will resources – including your time - be used to ensure that the
research and training objectives of the project will be reached?
• What monitoring mechanisms will there be to ensure that objectives are met?
Your host department will have project financial management and progress
monitoring mechanisms.
How will your host support you ….
At Oxford we include:
• provision of desk/laboratory space, including unrestricted access to supported PC
facilities, email account, telephone
• assistance with completing the Marie Curie grant agreement and all reporting
requirements through a dedicated Oxford European Team
• assistance with obtaining ethical clearance
• assistance with intellectual property issues through a dedicated Oxford IPR Team
• assistance with commercialising intellectual property arising from your research
(patenting, licensing, spin-out companies) through the dedicated technology transfer
office “Oxford University Innovation”
• free access to specialist libraries and collections within Oxford
• assistance with HR issues, national insurance registration, payroll and pension
• courses available free of charge through the Oxford Learning Institute, which offers
training to researchers in research and transferable skills such as leadership and
project management
Real evaluation comments
The research and innovation related aspects are strong, both in how they
address a challenging issue and how they complement the applicant's existing
expertise
There are clear objectives, discussion of the state of the art and good
justification for the proposal
The research methodology provides the perfect basis to achieve the goals
outlined in the proposal
The credibility of the research is not supported in sufficient detail
The state of the art is not sufficiently addressed; related references from the
literature are not specified
The research objectives are too ambitious for the time frame of the fellowship
The objectives and the project structure are not convincingly described
The methodological approach is inadequately outlined with respect to the
research objectives
Real evaluation comments
The proposal clearly illustrates the new competences and knowledge that the
researcher will gain from the fellowship. The training objectives of the proposal
are clearly explained in the context of the research goals
The proposed transfer of knowledge objectives, both from Host to fellow and
from fellow to Host, are well described
The means of knowledge transfer are insufficiently elaborated. The training
program is not sufficiently described and personal goals for the training are not
clearly identified
The infrastructure of the host institutions is excellent and offers excellent
support and resources
The practical details as well as the academic supervision are appropriately
addressed
The hosting arrangements for the applicant are not provided in sufficient detail
(e.g. housing, lab space, office space)
The responsibilities of the supervisor are not fully described
Real evaluation comments
The MC fellowship is very convincingly integrated in the long term career
development plan of the applicant by emphasizing both further scientific
qualification and application for larger research grants
It is not made clear how the project will help the researcher to reach a position
of professional maturity in research
The impact of the fellowship on the researcher’s scientific skills and new career
perspectives is insufficiently addressed
The description of work packages, the lists of major deliverables and
milestones and the Gantt chart document the coherence and effectiveness of
the work plan. The work plan includes training and teaching, which further
substantiates its credibility
The Work Plan lacks a detailed description of work packages, and the provided
Gantt chart is insufficiently detailed, so it is difficult to fully assess the feasibility
of the project
Final thoughts ….
• Become competitive
• Build your profile
• Plan ahead and be tough with yourself
• Make sure you are ready and give yourself the best chance
of success
• Get help from your current and proposed host institutions
• Seek a mentor and critical friends
• Don’t despair – keep going
• The experience will be invaluable and one day you will
succeed!
• Consider the Widening Fellowships perhaps? …..
2019 Widening Fellowships
• First 5 years of H2020 has shown ‘funding gap’
• Widening Fellowships give additional opportunity for applicants
going to a widening country
– Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and
Slovenia
– Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Faroe Islands, The Republic
of North Macedonia, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia, Tunisia,
Turkey and Ukraine
• If your proposal is above threshold but not funded, it will
automatically be resubmitted to the widening call
• It is about the host institution not the applicant
Useful websites
• EU Participant Portal
https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/programmes/h2020
• National Contact Points
http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/desktop/en/support/national_contact_poin
ts.html
• Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/h2020-section/marie-sklodowska-curie-
actions
• Widening Participation
https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/h2020-section/spreading-excellence-
and-widening-participation
• University of Oxford Gateway to Europe
https://www.europegateway.ox.ac.uk/