Scholars Programme

The Scholars Programme is a two-year policy and leadership course for the most talented, energetic and committed doctoral candidates from within the Europaeum network – the people who will make a difference to Europe. It is multi-disciplinary, multi-university, and multi-locational and focuses on contemporary European policy. Entry is via open competition for up to 36 places every other year. It is the flagship programme of the Europaeum.

About the programme

The Europaeum Scholars Programme is taken alongside a doctorate in 7-8 intensive modules, each of 3-5 days, in universities across Europe. The modules include seminars, debates and workshops with leading academics and practitioners; professional skills training; and substantial teamwork. Over the two years, the Scholars operate in small multidisciplinary groups on a project designed and conducted entirely by them to “make Europe a better place”. The final proposals are evaluated by a panel of experts and presented at an international conference.

The Europaeum Scholars Programme offers a unique opportunity to be part of a network of some of the brightest people of your generation who are interested in shaping the future of Europe. You will be able to connect your doctoral research with the world of policy making, to draw on the combined resources of eighteen of Europe’s leading universities, to learn how to work as a team, to learn what leadership entails, and to understand the complexity of policy making. You will learn more about yourself. You will have the opportunity to visit key European institutions and learn about how they function in conversation with leading academics, practitioners, and policy makers aiming to tackle societal and cultural challenges. You will directly engage with people facing some of the most difficult circumstances in contemporary society and you will emerge with knowledge and a set of skills and contacts equal to any group anywhere.

Each student is fully funded by a scholarship covering all accommodation, travel, food and tuition. No funds are transferred direct to Scholars but the scholarship is worth about €12,000.

In 2018, following an intensive selection process, 30 students embarked on their journey as the first Europaeum Scholars. 70 further Scholars have now completed the Programme. They have all presented their work at international conferences and many have or will shortly present their work to international bodies such as the OECD, Venice Commission, and World Forum on Democracy.

To find out more, please click the following links for Scholar profiles, details of some completed projects, and the Europaeum YouTube channel containing a growing collection of videos about the Programme and the Scholars’ projects.

Latest updates:

Cohort 4 (2024-25)

Cohort 4 will start the Scholars Programme in March 2024. We invite applications from interested candidates. To learn more visit our application pages, sign up for one of our information sessions, and watch our informational video where the Programme Director herself explains everything you need to know about the programme.

Cohort 3 (2022-23)
We were delighted to receive a strong field of applications. 36 highly talented students from across Europe started the Europaeum Scholars Programme in March 2022. Click to read more about Cohort 3 or about how Lena and Sophie, two of the new intake, felt as they prepared to start their new adventure.

Cohort 2 (2020-21)
In 2020, 34 Scholars were appointed. Only slightly delayed by Covid, they commenced in June 2020 and successfully completed their projects in time to present at a major international conference in Madrid in October 2021. Click to find out more about the Scholars and to see the policy recommendations that concluded their projects. You might also like to read personal reflections on their experiences from two Scholars: Nils Renard of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University and Lukas Spielberger of the University of Leiden.

Programme content

See an outline of the course and explore the programme content of previous cohorts, including themed modules on Global Governance, the Media and Rule of Law, as well as discussions on inclusion and sustainability.

Brochure

Find out more

Eligibility & applications

See who is eligible, what kind of candidates we seek to attract and what the application process entails. Applications are now open for the fourth cohort of Scholars. The next call for applications will be launched in the autumn of 2025.

Find out more

Scholars

Explore previous and current Europaeum Scholars’ profiles

Teaching Fellows

See who helps deliver the programme through moderating group discussions and refining project ideas

Group Projects

In each cohort, small teams work on a project each that will “make Europe a better place"

Testimonials

What previous Scholars say about the Programme:

“I am grateful for the positive impact that this is having on me. I am learning from every single exchange and dialogue… it is a different way of learning together and engaging with our everyday world… learning to cultivate ourselves to openness, friendship and engagement.”

“It is really an incredible experience: gaining a real multidisciplinary experience, improving my skills in so many fields, meeting so many interesting people and so having an extraordinary opportunity for networking … Last but not least, the teamwork presents the most essential part of this all: putting all the experience and knowledge gained into practice, combined with ethical and moral issues… To be honest, I am really overwhelmed!”

“There have been many benefits of the Programme … working with and befriending an international group of other PhD students; receiving training that will support my career development; networking and debating with leading scholars and practitioners; and visiting various NGOs, research centres and policy institutions across Europe.”

“The Europaeum has been a defining part of my PhD journey. A valuable learning process; I have learned much about myself, other people, collaboration, Europe, history, politics – and I could keep going! It has been full of ups and downs, frustrations and successes. I would go back and do it all again.”

“The Europaeum was not something I expected to be part of my PhD, but I have felt extraordinarily lucky to have been part of it, and the insights it has given me into contemporary European issues and academic engagement, plus the opportunity to travel and meet people from across Europe, has been an unexpected highlight of the last two years.”

“I had a great time meeting interesting people, listening to a range of different topics from different experts as well as learning new things. Though group work could be tough, I realised in the final module how it had shaped me, and how I had to reach out to experts and others outside the project for more info which made me work outside of my academic bubble.”