MSCA RESERVE LIST 2021

[melk]

I share trina’s point of view. The budget this year was 25,6% smaller than last year (partially due to the UK association issue) meaning that many of us who are high on the reserve list would have been funded from the main list in the previous call. Instead, we are facing the disappointment and the uncertainty about our future in academia. There is nothing beneficial in this situation, at least for me.

I completely understand how you feel. However, me must not lose sight of the fact that the budget for the the call was certainly smaller from the start because the formalization of the association was delayed and, consequently, UK has not contributed its share. So it would have most likely helped us if all this mess had been sorted out earlier. Also, as I mentioned elsewhere, if UK did end up associating with Horizon Europe before the June 14 deadline, the budget would have most likely increased, which, again, would have meant that more people from the reserve list would have been financed.
So we're not actually "benefiting" from this situation, but we're rather (at least for the time being) collateral damage.
As for the association itself, I am certain that any researcher (in their right mind) agrees with you - the complete withdrawal of UK from HE would be a huge loss for both sides.

Hi Trina,

Thanks for your thoughts, but as I understood my host institution/my NCP, we do indeed directly benefit i. e. everyone here on the reserve list that does not have a host in the UK.

Means, it is irrelevant whether the budget was smaller from the start or not. In the end, 227 successful UK applicants received a grant offer (see the attached report by the MSCA German NCP). They cannot change host institutions (that is ERC) but change into the UKRI funding. If that is not done by June 14, they won't have funding. According to my host institution/NCP, those places will go to the reserve list directly. That means both: the grants of UK applicants, who for whatever reasons cannot change into the UKRI funding, and the grants that are transferred to the UKRI funding. So, yes, I have grappled quite a bit with the moral aspect of benefitting from this mess, but as the UKRI funding is available to all of them, that gives me relief. Besides being not so prestigious it gives every one of them the possibility to continue their project and be funded. So, yes, 227 is quite a big number and as we already established the reserve lists are bigger this year, as they will also have to go much deeper into the reserve list this year because of that.

Here is the report in German by the NCP (it was in the last German newsletter):
https://www.nks-msc.de/files/Auswertung ... 2022-05-31

Hey! Thank you for your message and info!
I disagree, though. Of course that the budget matters. If UK would have contributed its share (if the association was formalized) the EC would have been able to finance more projects in this call, hence many here would have already been financed, without any of those with UK hosts being affected.
It's not that straightforward, of course. We cannot know if the boost in budget would have covered all the 227 grants (it probably wouldn't have). That's why they apply corrections to the contributions. Nevertheless, UK's contribution (which, in the past years, was significant, to say the least, and which was expected to be at around £15 billion over 7 years of Horizon Europe) would have massively impacted the budget (€95.5 billion) and ultimately the number of grants.
So if you're quite down on the reserve list and you end up being funded as a result of UK's non-association, you could maybe say that you "benefited" from this mess, although, as you mentioned, fortunately those with UK hosts do get funded by UKRI, so at least you don't have that on your conscience. However, if you're higher on the reserve list, you probably would have ended up getting funded anyway, as a result of the boost in budget from UK's association.

[pjwmx]

Hi everyone,

Very interesting discussion so far. I hope everyone is holding up ok.

I think one thing that has not yet been mentioned is what happens to UK nationals/residents who have applied for global fellowships? If the UK does not associate, UK nationals/long term residents are no longer eligible to apply next year for global fellowships. But what about those that were granted this year, or those in the reserve list? Do their projects get removed from the pool?

[melk]

Hi pjwmx,

UKRI offers to fund the candidates who were granted the global fellowship this year:

Global Fellowships
This type of MSCA fellowship lasts between 2 to 3 years, of which the first 1 to 2 years will be spent in a non-associated Third Country, followed by a mandatory return phase of 1 year to an organisation based in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country.
As well as PFs hosted entirely in the UK, the UK Horizon Europe guarantee covers MSCA Global Fellowships that have a return phase at a UK institution in the original MSCA proposal.

https://www.ukri.org/wp-content/uploads ... -Final.pdf

I don’t know if the candidates from the reserve list are being invited to apply to UKRI guarantee program at this point…

Good luck!

[IndoGeek]

The UKRI informed me that only those who get a GAP invitation from Horizon Europe would be eligible for UKRI's guarantee scheme. It is their subtle way of saying that UK based projects in the reserve list will only be considered for the guarantee if and only if they receive an invitation. So people like me who are in the reserve list with UK hosts are unsure what will happen after 14th June if UK does not associate. Will our projects be deemed ineligible?? It's like a no man's land kind of situation.

Hi pjwmx,

UKRI offers to fund the candidates who were granted the global fellowship this year:

Global Fellowships
This type of MSCA fellowship lasts between 2 to 3 years, of which the first 1 to 2 years will be spent in a non-associated Third Country, followed by a mandatory return phase of 1 year to an organisation based in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country.
As well as PFs hosted entirely in the UK, the UK Horizon Europe guarantee covers MSCA Global Fellowships that have a return phase at a UK institution in the original MSCA proposal.

https://www.ukri.org/wp-content/uploads ... -Final.pdf

I don’t know if the candidates from the reserve list are being invited to apply to UKRI guarantee program at this point…

Good luck!

[pjwmx]

Hi pjwmx,

UKRI offers to fund the candidates who were granted the global fellowship this year:

Global Fellowships
This type of MSCA fellowship lasts between 2 to 3 years, of which the first 1 to 2 years will be spent in a non-associated Third Country, followed by a mandatory return phase of 1 year to an organisation based in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country.
As well as PFs hosted entirely in the UK, the UK Horizon Europe guarantee covers MSCA Global Fellowships that have a return phase at a UK institution in the original MSCA proposal.

https://www.ukri.org/wp-content/uploads ... -Final.pdf

I don’t know if the candidates from the reserve list are being invited to apply to UKRI guarantee program at this point…

Good luck!

Sorry melk, I did not explain my question clearly.

To apply for a global fellowship, you need to be a citizen or long term resident of an EU or associated country. At the time of the 2021 applications, UK citizens/residents were eligible to apply for global fellowships with beneficiaries in other EU countries (e.g. outgoing phase in the US, incoming phase in Germany). But, if the UK does not associate, do these people become ineligible for the grant? There would be no incentive for the UK to fund these projects through UKRI because the UK would not get any benefit from the projects (the hosts are other EU countries). So (in a similar way to any applicants with UK hosts), are they going to be unable to sign their grant agreements if the UK does not associate to horizon europe? But in their cases, they do not have the funding guarantee and so would be left with nothing.

It could mean the reserve list moving even more for global fellowships if this happens.

[melk]

I have always assumed that the return phase involves the country of residence but it's true that if you're not coming back to the UK at the end of your fellowship it makes the situation even more complicated...I would say that in this case you should be funded by EC because the host of your return phase (Germany in your example) associated to the Horizon program and it will benefit from your expertise acquired outside UE but I can only speculate.

Hi pjwmx,

UKRI offers to fund the candidates who were granted the global fellowship this year:

Global Fellowships
This type of MSCA fellowship lasts between 2 to 3 years, of which the first 1 to 2 years will be spent in a non-associated Third Country, followed by a mandatory return phase of 1 year to an organisation based in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country.
As well as PFs hosted entirely in the UK, the UK Horizon Europe guarantee covers MSCA Global Fellowships that have a return phase at a UK institution in the original MSCA proposal.

https://www.ukri.org/wp-content/uploads ... -Final.pdf

I don’t know if the candidates from the reserve list are being invited to apply to UKRI guarantee program at this point…

Good luck!

Sorry melk, I did not explain my question clearly.

To apply for a global fellowship, you need to be a citizen or long term resident of an EU or associated country. At the time of the 2021 applications, UK citizens/residents were eligible to apply for global fellowships with beneficiaries in other EU countries (e.g. outgoing phase in the US, incoming phase in Germany). But, if the UK does not associate, do these people become ineligible for the grant? There would be no incentive for the UK to fund these projects through UKRI because the UK would not get any benefit from the projects (the hosts are other EU countries). So (in a similar way to any applicants with UK hosts), are they going to be unable to sign their grant agreements if the UK does not associate to horizon europe? But in their cases, they do not have the funding guarantee and so would be left with nothing.

It could mean the reserve list moving even more for global fellowships if this happens.

[emancipatedcity]

Hi guys
Pretty soon, I assume, something *sensible* will emerge from this sordid mess. And it will be worth the wait: "UK ready to abandon EU’s €95bn science fund in Brexit dispute."
https://www.ft.com/content/f84e270c-08d ... 3a50fcd56c

[trina_80]

Hi guys
Pretty soon, I assume, something *sensible* will emerge from this sordid mess. And it will be worth the wait: "UK ready to abandon EU’s €95bn science fund in Brexit dispute."
https://www.ft.com/content/f84e270c-08d ... 3a50fcd56c

Thank you for sharing that! This is also an interesting read: https://www.bmj.com/content/377/bmj.o1396
Also (https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news ... 22440.html) it seems that the NIP protocol law may be pushed this week.
News aside, I really hope we'll get some answers next week, after the deadline will have passed.

[emancipatedcity]

Hi guys
Pretty soon, I assume, something *sensible* will emerge from this sordid mess. And it will be worth the wait: "UK ready to abandon EU’s €95bn science fund in Brexit dispute."
https://www.ft.com/content/f84e270c-08d ... 3a50fcd56c

Thank you for sharing that! This is also an interesting read: https://www.bmj.com/content/377/bmj.o1396
Also (https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news ... 22440.html) it seems that the NIP protocol law may be pushed this week.
News aside, I really hope we'll get some answers next week, after the deadline will have passed.

Thanks, Trina. The countdown starts now

[trina_80]

Hi guys
Pretty soon, I assume, something *sensible* will emerge from this sordid mess. And it will be worth the wait: "UK ready to abandon EU’s €95bn science fund in Brexit dispute."
https://www.ft.com/content/f84e270c-08d ... 3a50fcd56c

Thank you for sharing that! This is also an interesting read: https://www.bmj.com/content/377/bmj.o1396
Also (https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news ... 22440.html) it seems that the NIP protocol law may be pushed this week.
News aside, I really hope we'll get some answers next week, after the deadline will have passed.

Thanks, Trina. The countdown starts now

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!