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Applications for European research grants increased in 2025. Scientists say they’re feeling the competition.
Scientists are facing stiff competition for funding to be able to pursue careers in research. Credit: Guillaume Souvant/AFP via Getty
Success rates for Europe’s leading research grants are declining — some to single percentage points — as a surge in applications far outweighs the funds available. Data gathered by Nature show that researchers, especially those at the start of their academic journeys, are facing increasingly fierce competition to pursue research careers (see ‘Funding competition’).
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Nature 646, 1036-1037 (2025)
doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-025-03119-z
References
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