The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions: Navigating Hypercompetition and Charting a Course for Enhanced Impact and Equity

The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) program, a cornerstone of the European Union's research and innovation framework, is critically examined in this report to assess its effectiveness and fairness. While lauded for fostering research excellence and mobility, the program faces significant systemic challenges. This report is primarily focused on the Innovative Training Networks (MSCA-ITN) under Horizon 2020 and on the Doctoral Networks (MSCA-DN) under Horizon Europe. Analysis reveals pervasive hypercompetition, characterized by consistently low success rates and exceptionally high cut-off scores across both Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe. This intense environment leads to a disproportionate investment of effort from applicants and a substantial waste of talent, inadvertently favoring established institutions and experienced applicants. Furthermore, the evaluation process exhibits biases, with an overemphasis on "Excellence" at the expense of robust "Implementation" plans, and an inherent element of chance around the funding threshold. Operational challenges, particularly the project management paradox where academic leads are burdened with full-time management responsibilities, further compromise project efficiency and outcomes. While numerous European entities strongly endorse MSCA’s values, they consistently advocate for simplification, increased funding, and greater inclusivity to address these critical issues. A fundamental paradigm shift is thus imperative to ensure MSCA remains a truly equitable, effective, and attractive cornerstone of European research.