MSCA 2018

The purpose of Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions / MSCA is to bring together organisations such as Universities, SMEs (small/medium enterprises), public and private (non-commercial) research centres, non-profit organisations etc. in order to train early-stage researchers in professional environments. MSCA • Encourage researchers to explore multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary avenues in responding to current and future challenges; • Enhance researchers’ career prospects and exposure to both academic and non-academic fields, through international and intersectoral mobility; • Convert knowledge and ideas into products and services for economic and social benefit; • Provide researchers with a set of transferrable skills for the purpose of innovation and long-term employability. Better preparation for work in business, industry and the public and private sectors, effectively moving away from the focus of research as being purely academically centred can be attained. MSCA celebrated their 20th anniversary in 2016. The past 20 years have shown how flexible these actions were adapted to current demands and needs of researchers and the research community. While the focus on the research theme and the project is prevailing the career development scheme has a strong meaning. The work programme for the last three years of Horizon 2020 and therefore MSCA was adopted; the next two years will be implemented as up to now. The third and last year will be depending on the discussions on the next Framework Programme and underline the expected transition period and therefore relevant projects helping to change from one scheme to the other. The draft of the next Framework Programme is expected to be released in May 2018 and will subsequently be one of the priorities during the Austrian Council Presidency. This gives the opportunity to discuss the draft and to gather input from different stakeholders relevant to the process and to the scientific and research community.