18 Feb 2026
MSCA Seal of Excellence awarded to 9,847 outstanding postdoctoral researchers
The European Commission has awarded Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Seal of Excellence certificates to 9,847 applicants under the MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025 call. These applicants submitted excellent proposals but did not receive funding due to an insufficient budget. The Seal of Excellence will allow MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships applicants to seek alternative funding for their excellent projects. The proposals that received the certificate had host organisations in 38 countries.
The fifth Postdoctoral Fellowships call under Horizon Europe received a total of 17,066 proposals. This is the highest number of proposals ever for any funding action in the 40 years of EU research and innovation Framework Programme. 16,836 proposals were eligible and evaluated, out of which 1,610 projects were selected.
The MSCA Seal of Excellence is a quality label awarded to applicants under MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships and MSCA COFUND actions who scored 85% or higher in the assessment. The Seal of Excellence is a guarantee of the outstanding value of the research project, recognised by a comprehensive and thorough assessment process. Beneficiaries can use this award to apply for alternative funding for their research. Thanks to the MSCA Seal of Excellence, other funding bodies can use the Horizon Europe evaluation process if they wish. A proposal which has earned the MSCA Seal of Excellence may be supported by national and regional support programmes.
The next call for MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships will open on 9 April 2026.
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