Programme PRESTIGE post-doc (incoming)

As the PRESTIGE programme is approaching its end, we are no longer accepting new applications.

Open to all, regardless of their field of research, the PRESTIGE programme encourages the mobility of French and foreign researchers, from and to France. It cofinances their French hosting/sending institution and thus helps fund their research project.

This project has received funding from the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration under grant agreement n° PCOFUND-GA-2013-609102

Coordinated by Campus France, the PRESTIGE programme supports the international mobility of researchers to and from France. It is co-financed to the amount of 6 million euros by European Union via the Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions. Launched in 2014 for a period of 5 years, as of July 2017, almost 185 researchers had received PRESTIGE subsidies.

Presentation

The PRESTIGE programme, coordinated by Campus France, is co-financed under the Marie Curie Actions-COFUND of the FP7. PRESTIGE officially started on the 1stSeptember 2014 for a total duration of 5 years (01/09/2014 - 31/08/2019).

PRESTIGE aims at fostering the international mobility of post-doc researchers.

Three mobility schemes are available:

• Incoming, allowing foreign or French researchers complying with the Marie Curie Actions mobility rules to carry out their post-doctoral research work in France;
• Outgoing, for researchers already working in French research institutions and universities (French citizens or other nationalities) wishing to carry out a post-doctoral research project in another country
• Re-integration, targeted at nationals of EU Member States or Associated Countries working in research for at least 3 years in another Third Country to come to France to further develop their career.

PRESTIGE is a co-financing programme, funding about 1/3 of the post-doc fellow’s living, mobility and research allowance, while the remaining 2/3 are financed by another partner, either public or private.

PRESTIGE should help to strengthen and broaden various existing mobility initiatives, thus making both France and the European Research Area (ERA) more attractive to researchers.

PRESTIGE is open to all scientific fields provided that each proposed research project is in compliance with the EU ethics rules. Co-financing partners may however limit the eligible scientific fields, according to their own prioritised thematic areas.

The PRESTIGE Call for applications is open all year long with four cut-off dates:

• 31/03
• 30/06
• 30/09
• 31/12

Application and selection procedure

Any post-doc level researcher complying with the Marie Curie Actions mobility rules (not have resided or carried out his/her main activity - work, studies, etc. - in the country of his/her host organisation for more than 12 months in the three years immediately prior to the application deadline) may apply for funding through PRESTIGE programme. Furthermore, each applicant has to secure a co-financing for his/her PRESTIGE mobility from the host organisation (for Incoming and Re-integration schemes) or sending organisation (for the Outgoing scheme).

Eligible applications will be evaluated by an international scientific panel and the final decision will be taken by the PRESTIGE Steering Committee. Each selected researcher will be entitled to be mentioned as both “PRESTIGE Fellow” and “Marie Curie Fellow”.

EU co-funding

Researchers will be partly financed through PRESTIGE by a EU grant (roughly 1/3 of the salary) paid by Campus France to the host or sending institutions which commit themselves to finance the remaining amount. Please note that the actual grant amount will be prorated depending on the duration of the mobility.

Scientific fields

The programme is open to any scientific field and research topic, as far as in compliance with EU ethics regulation and rules.

Eligibility

• The applicant must be in possession of a doctoral degree or having at least 4 years of research experience (full-time equivalent). PhD students can apply provided that they will be in possession of their doctoral degree by the start of the post-doc mobility.
• The applicant must comply with the Marie Curie Actions mobility rules (not have resided or carried out his/her main activity - work, studies, etc. - in the country of his/her host organisation for more than 12 months in the three years immediately prior to the application deadline)
• The hosting/sending research institution must be in France
• There is no age limit and no nationality requirement (although for the Re-integration mobility some restrictions apply)
• The applicant should not already benefit grant from another EU grant
• The applicant must provide a letter of recommendation from the host institution
• The applicant must provide a commitment letter from the hosting/sending institution on the co-financing of his/her research mobility
• The online application must be complete and sent by the relevant cut-off date
• If selected for funding, the researcher must be paid from the hosting/sending institution at least the PRESTIGE minimum living, mobility and research allowance

How to find a co-financing partner?

PRESTIGE partner financing organisations/grant schemes are available here.

Nevertheless, applicants are free to find a different financing organisation/grant scheme, as far as the funding commitment is clearly stated in the letter attached to the application. In this case, applicants are required to provide the contact details of a referee from the partner institution, so that Campus France may duly validate the co-financing commitment and sign a bilateral agreement with that organisation.

Application procedure

Applications should be submitted online before one of the four cut-off dates (midnight, Paris time) and according to the foreseen start date of the mobility period as indicated in the table on the website.

Applicants may create an online application at any time and save it into their online PRESTIGE account for a later submission at one of the four cut-off dates.

Evaluation & selection

The evaluation procedure will take place within two months after each cut-off date and the results will be published online on the PRESTIGE website. The final selection of the PRESTIGE fellows will be known after the formal meeting of the programme’s Steering Committee.

Starting of the fellowship

The fellowships may start after the formal decision of the Steering Committee. This will depend on available co-financing from partner organisations and will be at the very earliest three months and at the very latest six months after the relevant cut-off date for applications.