Researchers from EUNICE member universities can apply for grants of up to €10,000 to develop new joint research initiatives.
The EUNICE Seed Funding for Research Programme marks the first research funding call launched by the EUNICE European University for Customized Education alliance. The initiative is designed to support the creation of new international research collaborations among researchers from EUNICE member universities.
The programme will provide up to €10,000 per project to fund preparatory activities aimed at building research consortia, developing joint research agendas, and exploring future competitive funding opportunities. The official call will open in September 2026 through the EUNICE website –https://eunice-university.eu/-, while selected projects will run between November 2026 and September 2027.
The initiative is intended to stimulate new scientific collaborations, strengthen interdisciplinary and international research networks, promote researcher mobility, and enhance researchers’ readiness to participate in future European funding programmes. Particular encouragement is given to proposals led by early-career and mid-career researchers, although the call is open to researchers at all career stages.
Unlike traditional research grants, the programme focuses exclusively on capacity-building and preparatory activities rather than direct research costs. Eligible activities include consortium-building meetings, workshops and networking events, short-term research visits, stakeholder engagement activities, proposal development training, and feasibility studies that help define future joint research projects.
Applications must involve a consortium of at least three researchers from three different EUNICE universities, coordinated by a principal investigator from an eligible member institution.
Building on the EUNICE research ecosystem
The new funding scheme complements a growing European research ecosystem within EUNICE, offering researchers access to collaboration opportunities across the alliance’s ten universities and more than sixty associated partners. Additional resources include researcher mobility programmes, the EUNICE Research Radar platform, alliance-wide research publications and results, and tools for connecting with experts, research infrastructures, and innovation opportunities.
Through this first Seed Funding call, EUNICE aims to lay the foundations for stronger international research partnerships and increase the participation of its researchers in major European funding programmes.
