Thirty years of MSCA Programme is more than an anniversary. It’s a chance to look honestly at what mobility has enabled across Europe, what still blocks talent circulation, and how MSCA can better help close gaps between research and innovation ecosystems as the FP10 debate approaches. This event is designed as a working conversation participatory, practical, and built around real experience rather than ceremony. REGISTER NOW and join us on 21 May in Brussels!
The event is designed for researchers at all career stages, research managers, institutional representatives and policy stakeholders who are actively engaged in shaping or supporting research careers and international collaboration.
It will be relevant for those working on research policy, shaping the current implementation as well as future of the MSCA programme, as well for all those interested to apply for MSCA, hosting fellows, building consortia, etc. By combining high-level policy perspectives with practical, experience-based discussions and structured networking formats, the event offers a rare opportunity to move beyond general narratives and engage directly with peers, decision-makers and potential partners. Participants will gain concrete insights, identify collaboration opportunities and contribute to a forward-looking discussion on how MSCA can more effectively support talent circulation, institutional development and stronger research ecosystems across Europe.
By its design, the event is for people who want to move beyond talking about “success stories” and get into the practicalities: mobility, institutional barriers, pathways for returning home, building capacity in Central European countries, and how MSCA instruments can do even more to help shape a more coherent European Research Area.
Programme highlights
This will not be just another event on researchers’ mobility that ends with general statements. The programme has been designed to combine a European policy perspective, practical experience in MSCA implementation, and networking that can lead to real contacts and meaningful cooperation.
At the heart of the programme will be a discussion on what has built the importance of MSCA in Europe over the past 30 years and what may lie ahead for this instrument in the years to come, also in the context of work on FP10. That is precisely why the programme includes representatives of the European Commission and the European Parliament.
In the discussion part of the event, participants will take a closer look at how MSCA works in practice: how it influences careers, mobility, institutional choices and the development of cross-border cooperation. Instead of promotional slogans, the focus will be on real benefits, limitations and differences between research systems across Europe.
There will also be space for a discussion on how talent circulation, capacity building and well-designed mobility can strengthen the European Research Area and help reduce existing inequalities. This part of the programme is intended to encourage exchange of experience, different perspectives and active participation from attendees.
In the afternoon, the programme will move from debate to practical action. Participants will join one of several small, moderated discussions devoted to PhD and postdoctoral careers, intersectoral mobility and pathways beyond academia, as well as the role of research management, HR and institutional support in the effective implementation of MSCA.
The programme will be complemented by matchmaking and networking sessions designed to make it easier to find partners, host institutions, project contacts and practical support. The day will conclude with short presentations offering concrete takeaways, followed by a closing session that will connect participants’ experiences with a wider discussion on the future of MSCA in Europe.
Event agenda HERE
REGISTRATION
Registration is now open for all. Please click the link below. The form remains open till 11 May 2026.
In the registration form, participants may also indicate their interest in contributing individually to selected parallel sessions, either within the discussion formats or the networking sessions. These expressions of interest will be reviewed by the organisers individually during the registration confirmation process.
Organisers
Event organised in collaboration with the Polish Academy of Sciences (PolSCA PAS Office in Brussels and Excellence in Science Department of the PAS in Warsaw – NAWA-MSCA Contact Point for Central Poland) and the Marie Curie Alumni Association (MCAA) Chapters Benelux, Hungary and Poland. Local partners of the event in Brussels include the liaison offices: KoWi (Germany), Neth-ER (Netherlands) and NRDIO (Hungary).
