Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions funds 44 projects to bring research closer to education and society across Europe

The European Commission will award 15.4€ million to fund 44 projects organising 

• two successive editions of the European Researchers’ Night in 2024 and 2025  

• the implementation of Researchers at Schools activities during two consecutive years 

The European Research Executive Agency (REA) received 134 applications for this call, 32.8% of which have been selected for funding. 

The two flagship initiatives will take place in over 350 cities across Europe and beyond. A full list of projects with the countries and cities where they will take place will be available on this website in spring. 

An overview of the evaluation results, cut-off scores and statistics has been published on the MSCA and Citizens 2023 call page on the Funding and Tenders Opportunities Portal.  

Once grant agreements are finalised, the complete list of funded projects will be published on the same page and on CORDIS.  

Next steps for successful applicants 

Applicants have received letters from the European Research Executive Agency informing them of the outcome of the selection process. They should be able to access the results of the evaluation on their personal area of the Funding and Tenders Opportunities Portal. 

The letter sent out to the successful applicants contains all the instructions about the next steps to prepare the grant agreement with the agency. 

The first projects will start at the earliest in spring 2024. 

10 projects are on the reserve list and may be contacted afterwards if funding is still available. 

Successful applicants based in the United Kingdom will not be eligible to receive funding, since the UK’s association to Horizon Europe applies for award procedures implementing the 2024 budget and onwards. However, those applicants should be eligible to apply for funding under the UK’s Horizon Europe guarantee. 

About MSCA and Citizens 

MSCA and Citizens brings research and researchers closer to the public through science engagement activities, with a focus on school pupils, families and social groups that do not have easy access to and thus are less inclined to engage in STEAM fields (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) or research activities. 

It does so through 

• the European Researchers’ Night, the largest science engagement and communication event taking place across the EU and countries associated to Horizon Europe. It takes place every year on the last Friday of September and attracts over 1.5 million visitors. Events combine education with entertainment through exhibitions, hands-on experiments, science shows, simulations, debates, games, competitions, quizzes, etc. 

• Researchers at Schools, which supports activities and direct interaction between researchers and primary and secondary education pupils throughout the year. Since its launch in 2022 until 2024, the initiative has reached 323 600 students throughout Europe. 

Aim of the initiatives 

The European Researchers’ Night and Researchers at Schools aim at 

• boosting exchanges between researchers and society 

• increasing awareness of research and innovation activities and boosting public recognition of science and research education 

• showing the role of the researcher for the society and economy, as well as the impact of researchers’ work on citizens’ daily lives 

• raising the interest of young people in research and scientific careers 

These activities have a wide audience, attracting people from all walks of life united in their curiosity and appreciation for science. 

Next funding round coming in 2025

The next call for MSCA and Citizens will open in 2025.  

For more information please see how to apply.