The ‘Choose Europe’ initiative, which is currently being piloted, will be extended in 2027 with double the budget, draft plans show.
The European Commission plans to launch a €51.25m call in 2027 as part of the Choose Europe initiative, which will make the continent a more attractive place to pursue a research career.
The Commission launched a €22.5m pilot call in October, which will close on 3 December.
However, a draft 2026-27 work programme for the Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions (MSCA), Horizon Europe’s researcher training scheme, has revealed plans to extend the support.
What is Choose Europe?
The Choose Europe initiative aims to tackle brain drain and the precarity of research careers by co-funding the recruitment of postdoctoral researchers for up to five years.
EU funding will cover the positions for two to three years, while the host institutions must provide funding for an additional two years. Each programme that receives funding must recruit at least three researchers.
Europe’s credentials in research are impressive and expansive. It is home to over two million researchers – around 25% of the global total – and leads in critical sectors such as green technology, health, engineering, and digital science.
The pillars of Choose Europe are:
- Scientific freedom and openness
- Robust funding and long-term support
- Innovation to market – faster
The extension offers more flexibility for researchers
While the research community welcomed the initial Choose Europe pilot, there have been concerns that national cuts to research budgets in several EU countries could make it difficult for research organisations to cover their share of the funding.
The new extension offers universities greater flexibility by allowing EU funding to cover either the first or the second phase of the programme.
Attracting foreign talent
A key priority is to attract international talent to Europe, particularly as researchers from around the world find fewer opportunities in the US than before.
Recruited researchers may be of any nationality and must not have resided in or carried out their main work or studies in the country of the recruiting institution for more than 12 months in the previous three years.
The draft work programme allows researchers to implement their MSCA-backed project on a part-time basis for personal, family, or professional reasons, which could benefit international scientists who still have family ties in their home country.
In her speech announcing the initiative earlier this year, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasised the need for global talent.
“We are choosing to be the continent where innovation serves humanity, where global talent is welcomed,” she said. “To every young girl and boy who dreams of a life in science, as Marie Curie once did – Choose science. Choose Europe.”With the Choose Europe initiative, the EU is setting the stage for a new golden age of scientific achievement – where research in Europe drives global progress. The extension of the programme will only take this further.
