Estonia trials Seal of Excellence scheme to attract talent from abroad

17 Jun 2025 |

Runners-up in Horizon Europe’s postdoc fellowship competition are invited to move their projects to Estonian universities

Photo credits: Ruslan Valeev / Unsplash

Scientists who have good marks but fail to get funding from Horizon Europe’s Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) postdoctoral fellowship programme can now move their project to Estonia. 

With many excellent proposals going unfunded, “we wanted to offer those researchers an opportunity to carry out their research project in Estonia,” said Allan Padar, head of research mobility at the Estonian Research Council (ETAG). 

The programme offers postdoctoral positions to MSCA applicants who hold the Horizon Europe Seal of Excellence. The Seal means their applications got excellent marks but failed to secure an EU grant due to limited…