How can I use CERN’s EU projects office?

How can the EU projects office help me?

If you’re a scientist, researcher or engineer working on any kind of new technology or idea, you could benefit from one of the programmes run by Horizon Europe. The flagship research and innovation programme of the European Union, Horizon Europe offers a vast range of funding possibilities.

The EU Projects Office, which is part of the IPT department, is the central point of contact with Horizon Europe for CERN personnel. They can help you identify funding possibilities, support you in applying and accompany you through project implementation if your application is successful.

What types of funding are available to the CERN community?

Horizon Europe is divided into three main pillars:

Pillar 1: Excellent Science

Pillar 1 primarily funds frontier research through the following programmes:

• The European Research Council (ERC) funds individuals pursuing groundbreaking frontier research. Several CERN scientists have won ERC funding in the past, and there are six ongoing projects.

• Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) funds doctoral education and training and postdoctoral experience for researchers. It also provides secondments to industry and exchange opportunities. At CERN, the Marie Curie Steering Group reviews MSCA ideas and proposals.

• The Research Infrastructures call supports the development of large research facilities, resources and services, and is one of the principal ways CERN personnel receive Horizon Europe funding. Successful projects such as I.FAST, AIDAInnova or HitriPlus have all been funded under this programme.

Pillar 2: Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness

These are large collaborative projects clustered around six themes including health, climate and food. Ongoing CERN projects include TRUSTroke, POSEIDON and five projects in the Digital, Industry and Space Cluster.

Pillar 3: Innovative Europe

Pillar 3’s European Innovation Council (EIC) is particularly relevant to CERN personnel. Set up to develop and scale breakthrough technologies, it is aimed at those who have a technology or product that is closer to market-ready or may be a game-changer in the future. This pillar has provided funding for ATTRACT and UNICORN.

I have an idea. How can I submit a proposal?

If you have an idea for a project, you can get in touch with CERN’s EU Projects Office by emailing EU.Projects@cern.ch or visiting our offices in Building 5, floor 4.

The team will talk you through the process and set out the steps that you will need to follow to apply for funding, depending on the type of grant that you are targeting.  They can also help you with the budget and legal side of the proposal, in collaboration with CERN’s external grants team in the FAP Department.

Points to note:

• Before applying for EU funding, you need permission from your department head

• Although the EU Projects Office is there to help, it is the responsibility of the designated project coordinator to take charge of the preparation and submission of the proposal
• All CERN EU proposals will need internal approval before submission.

More information on applying for EU funding can be found on the EU Projects Office website. It’s regularly updated with the latest news from ongoing projects and they also publish information and guides on the latest calls for proposals for EU-funded projects relevant to CERN. You can also sign up for training and subscribe to their newsletter.

Current open calls of interest to CERN personnel If you are working on projects in the fields of artificial intelligence, advanced sensor technologies, batteries, quantum computing or more, read our guide to open funding calls. Deadlines vary per call, usually between September to October 2025.