Seal of Excellence of the University of Lille Excellence Initiative (SoE-IE)
Call for Projects

The University of Lille and its partners, in line with their policy of supporting research excellence and in order to increase the attractiveness of the Lille site, are launching a call for projects (AAP), ‘Seal of Excellence of the University of Lille Excellence Initiative’ (SoE-IE).

This call aims to support research projects that have been awarded the Seal of Excellence under the MSCA PF (Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships) program but did not receive funding.

The Seal of Excellence, awarded by the European Commission, recognizes high-quality research projects with proven potential. By offering targeted support, the University of Lille encourages the submission of promising projects and reaffirms its commitment topromoting research excellence, and enhancing participation in European programs.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligible applicants include researchers and teacher-researchers from the partner institutions of the Excellence Initiative who wish to host a postdoc who awarded the Seal of Excellence under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie (MSCA) Postdoctoral Fellowships (PFs) program.

Researchers and teacher-researchers with an ongoing project funded under the Excellence Initiative program (e.g., WILL International Chair, ERC Generator) are not eligible. However, SoE-IE can be funded by the Cross Disciplinary Projects (CDP) if the MSCA-PF project is in accordance with the CDP program.

Funding will be granted on the condition that the postdoc applies again to the MSCA program or an ERC StG within two years of receiving Excellence Initiative funds.

Depending on the type of projects, this call may align with FEDER support offered by the Region under Specific Objective 1.

Selection Procedure

Since project evaluation has already been conducted by the EU, projects awarded a Seal of Excellence are directly eligible without requiring further assessment.

A selection committee (comprising the VP for Excellence Initiative, VP for Research, VP Europe Cellule Europe Directorate, and a representative of the relevant institution) will convene. The Excellence Initiative Steering Committee (COPIL) will then validate or decline support allocation, based on the project’s alignment with the institution’s strategic priorities.Priority will be given to the project initially submitted with the University of Lille as the host institution.

Timeline and Submission Process

Applicants are invited to submit:

• The CV of the postdoc.
• A letter of intent (maximum 2 pages), formalizing the postdoc's commitment to reapply to the MSCA program.
• The project submitted to the MSCA program – and the evaluation.

The deadline for applications is March, 31st 2026 on this website:

- by clicking on the ‘My submitted projects’ section

Budget

Funding for one year with a maximum budget of 80 000€ per supported project:

-          Post-doctoral position 60K€ (employers and employees contribution included: approximately €2,400/month before income tax)

-          Operational costs 20K€