CRAG’s AGenT (Agricultural Genomics Transversal) postdoctoral programme is one of the 27 outstanding training programmes that have been selected for funding in the highly competitive H2020-MSCA-COFUND 2019 Call. This funding will allow CRAG to provide multidisciplinary and intersectoral research training to twenty postdoctoral researchers.

The AGenT postdoctoral program is an ambitious research and training initiative designed to conduct multidisciplinary and intersectoral research projects at CRAG in conjunction with associated partner organizations (private companies, research centres and academic institutions), both national and international. The program will offer 20 two-year postdoctoral fellowships, and provide ample opportunities for: secondments and research collaborations; training both in specific research areas and in transferable or transversal skills; and networking activities in both the academic and the industrial sectors; all in order to enrich the training of the fellows and enhance their professional development while conducting projects of research of excellence.

“We have made an important effort over the last three years in designing a really ambitious postdoctoral programme that has been very positively evaluated. The program will improve career prospects for plant and farm animal researchers in Europe and will boost the international visibility of CRAG,” explains Maite Iriarte, Head of the Projects and International Affairs Office at CRAG.

The 1st call of the AGenT programme is expected to open in the last quarter of 2020. CRAG will announce the Call through a variety of own and external channels such as Euraxess, Naturejobs or ScienceCareers.

The MSCA COFUND Actions

The EU MSCA-COFUND scheme aims to stimulate regional, national or international programmes to foster excellence in researchers' training, mobility and career development. MSCA-COFUND supports doctoral programmes for PhD candidates, as well as fellowship programmes for experienced researchers.

The MSCA-COFUND 2019 Call has provided funding for four projects in Spain:  three doctoral programmes, and CRAG’s postdoctoral programme. More information on these projects can be found in the pages of the Spanish Science and Innovation Ministry and of the Catalan Agency for Management of University and Research Grants.