Funding programs for national, regional and international projects

International financing

Hubert Curien partnerships

The aim of CHPs is to develop scientific and technological exchanges of excellence between the research laboratories of two scientific communities, by encouraging new cooperative ventures. They are set up by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development, in partnership with the French Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Research Research.

Research projects must be drawn up jointly by two research teams, one French, the other foreign. The CHP funds the international mobility of the researchers involved in the partnership.

Deadlines vary according to destination:

  • May: Lebanon, Egypt, Turkey, Switzerland, Latvia, Brazil, Italy, Algeria, Slovenia, Hungary.
  • June: Germany, Belgium, Palestine, Brazil, Hong Kong, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Iran and Netherlands.
  • July: New Zealand, Serbia, Thailand.
  • August: Taiwan.
  • September: Iceland

The amount of assistance depends on the destination and length of stay. Average costs and deadlines for each destination can be found on the Campus France website.

The Project Engineering and Support Department of the Innovation and Partnerships Division is available to help you put together your proposal.

COFECUB

COFECUB (Comité Français d'Évaluation de la Coopération Universitaire et Scientifique avec le Brésil) was set up in 1979 to evaluate and manage research and training exchanges with Brazil.

This program represents a total of 134 projects and around 530 missions per year. They cover a wide range of disciplines, and the projects supported by COFECUB have given rise to numerous scientific publications.

Two agreements are currently in place:

  • The CAPES-COFECUB agreement is designed to perpetuate high-level exchanges. It provides equal co-financing for short missions by researchers and full funding for Brazilian scholarship holders.
  • The mission of the USP-COFECUB agreement is to create a system of academic exchanges through which Brazilian and French teacher-researchers develop high-level joint research.
ECOS South

The Evaluation - Orientation de la Coopération Scientifique (ECOS) program is designed to support projects of excellence in scientific collaboration with Latin American and Caribbean countries. It finances exchanges between researchers in the form of short-term missions, advanced training courses and doctoral scholarships. The program is open to all fields of knowledge. Its approach is based on two fundamental principles: partnership and transparency.

Partnerships begin at the institutional level, with teams of academics and researchers working together on a scientific project, in which their intellectual involvement must be equivalent.

Post-graduate cooperation programs

Post-Graduate Cooperation programs (PCP) aim to promote training and further training for all those involved in higher education and research. PCPs enable the valorization of joint research results and the implementation of international training and research initiatives. The co-directed or cotutelle thesis system is the main instrument of this program, which involves doctoral training for students from France and the countries concerned.

The PREFALC program

The Programme Régional France Amérique latine - Caraïbe (PREFALC) is a French program for academic and scientific cooperation with Latin, Central American and Caribbean countries.

Program objectives:

  • develop academic and scientific exchanges between French universities and their partners in Latin America and the Caribbean;
  • encourage the creation of joint Masters courses and/or introduce French training modules into existing Masters courses at partner universities;
  • encourage the establishment of double Master's degrees and joint Doctorates;
  • contribute to the emergence of a "European Union-Latin America-Caribbean higher education area".

Eligibility and operating conditions: projects must involve students at Master/Maestria level in the partner institutions, and present the organization of training modules. Inter-university partnerships of a renewable two-year duration can be formed between at least one higher education establishment in France and one in a Latin American or Caribbean country.

Each project is the subject of an annual report, as well as scientific and educational follow-up.

PUF Program

The PUF program promotes Franco-American exchanges in higher education and research. The program is sponsored by the French American Cultural Exchange Foundation.

PUF funding is open to all American and French higher education and research institutions. Any type of project is eligible for funding (collaborative research, student or teacher-researcher mobility, establishment of joint transatlantic degrees, etc.). All disciplines are eligible.

The France-Canada Fund for the Research (FFCR)

The FFCR supports Franco-Canadian research projects and develops scientific exchanges in all fields of knowledge, from the "hard" sciences to the humanities and social sciences. It operates on the basis of an annual call for proposals, and applications are evaluated by a panel of Canadian experts and the French Ministry of Research.

For more information, visit the website of the French Embassy in Canada.

Samuel de Champlain Program

The Samuel de Champlain Program is aimed at academics and research professionals at research centers and institutes in France and Quebec. In particular, it supports the international mobility of researchers and students involved in Franco-Quebec research projects.

European funding

Horizon 2020

For the first time, Horizon 2020 brings together in a single program European research and innovation projects such as the CCPRD, Euratom, innovation actions under the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Program, and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology.

This new program refocuses funding on three priorities that correspond to the expectations of French players:

  • Scientific excellence
  • Industrial primacy
  • Societal challenges

International cooperation is an integral part of the Horizon 2020 program.

Erasmus +

Erasmus + programming 2021-2027 is the European Commission's program for training-related aspects.

The program comprises two main types of action:

  • Actions linked to the mobility of students and staff from higher education establishments, as well as strategies for the creation of joint master's degrees.
  • Cooperation to foster educational innovation, academic excellence and closer ties with the business world

KEY ACTION 1: Mobility

Joint Masters

The program supports the establishment of integrated courses of excellence at Master's level, proposed by consortia of higher education institutions from at least 3 European countries and possibly third countries, including the funding of mobility grants for students and academics.

Programs must involve mobility between consortium member institutions, and lead to the award of a double, multiple or joint degree recognized by the competent authorities in the countries concerned. All disciplines are eligible.

The European grant for joint Masters programs covers management costs and scholarships for excellence for the best students in the world. The duration of the project is divided into a first preparatory year and three cohorts of students, renewable under certain conditions. Thus, the duration of a project can vary between 4 and 5 years, depending on the length of the Master's program (1 or 2 years).

KEY ACTION 2: Cooperation for innovation and best practice

Strategic partnerships in higher education

Strategic partnerships support cooperation between organizations active in the field of higher education in the joint development of curricula, intensive programs, new pedagogical approaches and the exchange of best practice.

Activities funded under a strategic partnership are grouped into the following categories:

  • Project implementation and management.
  • Intellectual production.
  • Transnational meetings.
  • Study/learning/teaching mobility activities.
  • Multiplier events: actions likely to ensure greater dissemination and development of the program.
  • Exceptional activities.
  • Activities involving the participation of people with special needs are encouraged, and specific financial support is provided.

These partnerships can finance student mobility, long-term teaching assignments and short-term training seminars for staff.

Finally, the program encourages "cross-sectoral" cooperation activities, bringing together a wide range of players in the same partnership (training organizations, local authorities, higher education establishments, companies, etc.).

For further information on eligibility criteria and participation rules, please consult the "Penelope +" interface.

Knowledge Alliances

Knowledge Alliances promote transnational alliances between companies and higher education institutions to enhance the quality and innovation potential of European higher education.

The activities financed under this program are as follows:

  • New learning and training methods
  • New training programs
  • Training programs and activities with and in companies
  • Methods for developing cross-disciplinary skills in cooperation with companies
  • Interdisciplinary awareness of entrepreneurship
  • Exchanges of students, researchers, teachers and employees

For further information on eligibility criteria and participation rules, please consult the " Penelope + " interface.

Capacity building

Capacity Building" projects are aimed at university cooperation to support the modernization of higher education systems in partner countries in Europe, Asia, Russia and Latin America (150 countries involved).

This program finances two types of action:

  • Joint projects: based on multilateral partnerships between higher education institutions in the EU and partner countries. They help to develop, modernize and disseminate new curricula, teaching materials and methods, foster a culture of quality assurance, and modernize the management and governance of higher education establishments;
  • structural measures: these contribute to the development and reform of higher education systems and institutions in partner countries, improving their quality and relevance.

For further information on eligibility criteria and participation rules, please consult the " Penelope + " interface.

Structural funds

The aim of the INTERREG program is to encourage regional convergence and competitiveness in order to ensure more harmonious development of the European Union. Under certain conditions, the University of Montpellier is eligible for four specific INTERREG IV programs:

Calls for projects Eurorégion Pyrénées-Méditerranée

Mobility assistance for cotutelle theses

Eurocampus aims to promote the exchange of knowledge and the mobility of students, teachers and researchers within the Pyrenees-Mediterranean Euroregion, and to increase the attractiveness of higher education in the Euroregion. Among other things, Eurocampus provides support to higher education and research players through assistance with student mobility (Eurocampus mobility vouchers), research (cotutelle doctoral theses) and online information and services (Eurocampus internet portal).

The present call for applications aims to deepen academic cooperation through mobility grants for cotutelle theses. These grants are designed to support Eurocampus doctoral students working on a thesis as part of a partnership between Euroregional doctoral schools of different nationalities; the grant covers the extra cost of mobility between France and Spain. A bonus is awarded to projects that include collaboration with a company, to promote professional integration and links between business and academia.

The call is open to all fields of knowledge, but particular attention will be paid to applications in the fields of e-health, sustainable water resource management, agrifood and tourism.

Support for the creation of Euroregional double degrees

Euroregional cooperation between Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées in the fields of higher education, research and innovation has been taking shape since 2009 with the creation of the Pyrenees-Mediterranean Eurocampus, Europe's leading campus in terms of student numbers. The Eurocampus aims to promote the exchange of knowledge and the mobility of students, teachers and researchers within the Pyrenees-Mediterranean Euroregion, and to increase the attractiveness of higher education in the Euroregion. Among other things, it provides support to higher education and research players through assistance with student mobility (Eurocampus mobility vouchers), research (cotutelle doctoral theses) and online information and services (Internet portal).

This call for applications aims to deepen academic cooperation within the Eurocampus through the creation of binational double degrees. It is open to all fields of knowledge, but particular attention will be paid to applications in the fields of e-health, sustainable water resource management, agri-food and tourism.

Call for projects Culture 2014

The members of the Pyrenees-Mediterranean Euroregion wish to promote the cultural diversity of their territories and make the Euroregion a benchmark for artistic creation. They also want to preserve and enhance their shared natural, historical and cultural heritage, with a view to developing sustainable tourism.

With a view to promoting territorial cohesion, the Euroregion encourages the cultural cooperation that gives structure to the territory, and to this end has created a joint call for projects, managed for the fifth year running by its EGTC.

Life +

The Life + program finances projects aimed at safeguarding or enhancing the natural environment of the European Union.

Since 1992, 270 projects in France have been funded by the Life program.

More information on the European Commission website.

National and regional funding

Eiffel Excellence Scholarship Program for 2024/2025

The French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs has just launched the new call for applications for the Master's/Engineer's and Doctoral sections of the Eiffel Excellence Grants.

This program is not only a tool for French institutions in their search for the best foreign students and doctoral candidates, but also an excellent means of promoting our institution's inter-university collaboration agreements.

Professors and lecturers can send applications for students and PhD students they wish to support to the Service Coopération by December 1, 2023 at 12:00 pm

Students interested in applying 

Applications for Eiffel Excellence Grants must be supported by a teacher from the University of Montpellier.

For applications at Master's/engineer level, please contact the head of the course you are interested in, explaining your approach and introducing yourself.

For doctoral-level applications, your co-director at the University of Montpellier should contact the Cooperation Department. 

The Service Coopération of the Direction des Relations Internationales is at your disposal to provide you with information on this program and to help you prepare your application.

Further information is also available on the Campus France website.

French National Research Agency (ANR)

As part of the national research strategy defined by the French government, the Agence nationale de la recherche has the following missions:

  • To finance and promote the development of basic and applied research, technical innovation and technology transfer, as well as public-private partnerships;
  • Implement the program drawn up by the Minister for Research, who consults the ministers responsible for research organizations and public higher education establishments;
  • Manage major government investment programs in higher education and research, and monitor their implementation;
  • Strengthen scientific cooperation at European and international level, by coordinating its programming with European and international initiatives;
  • Analyze the evolution of research offerings and measure the impact of funding allocated by the agency on national scientific production.

Contact at UM:[Direction de l'Innovation et des Partenariats - Service Ingénierie de Projets. Tel: 04 67 14 39 11

Competitive clusters

A competitiveness cluster brings together small and large companies, research laboratories and training establishments in a clearly identified area, focusing on a specific theme. The aim of a competitiveness cluster is to support innovation. It encourages the development of particularly innovative collaborative research and development (R&D) projects.

Occitanie Region

Research assistance in partnership with companies (ARPE)

The Languedoc-Roussillon Region provides funding to public research laboratories in the Languedoc-Roussillon region involved in the research and development project, in 2 distinct ways that can be combined.

Modality 1: R&D projects

Any public laboratory that, in partnership with a regional company, has won funding in response to a national, European or international call for research projects may apply for ARPE assistance, which can be up to €75,000.

Modality 2: CIFRE THESIS

Your laboratory has set up a CIFRE thesis in partnership with a Languedoc-Roussillon company: + €5,000

Call for Chercheurs d'Avenir projects

This scheme supports talented young scientists and their regional research teams, enabling them to assert themselves more rapidly in their sector and accelerate the emergence of new, innovative research avenues, promoting the economic value of research results and job creation. This call for projects has been open every 2 years since 2009.

French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME)

ADEME helps implement public policies on energy and environmental protection. It is active in the following fields

  • Waste management ;
  • Soil conservation ;
  • Energy efficiency ;
  • Renewable energies ;
  • Air quality ;
  • Noise control.
Associations, foundations

Non-profit associations, foundations and non-governmental organizations support research through calls for projects. Here are a few examples:

Fund it - Platform for research funding in the Humanities and Social Sciences

The Fondation Maison des Sciences de l'Homme and RFIEA (Réseau français des instituts d'études avancées) announce the online launch of the "Fund it" platform, dedicated to funding research in SHS, at the end of May 2016.

This platform centralizes on a single site all calls for applications for research stays in France and abroad, as well as all calls for projects to obtain funding for individual or collaborative research.

The Project Engineering and Support Department of the Innovation and Partnerships Division will be happy to help you prepare your application by [email | rf.re1711655172illep1711655172tnomu1711655172@pi-a1711655172pid1711655172].

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