{"id":66806,"date":"2025-11-15T11:56:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-15T11:56:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/opportunitiesforyouth.org\/?p=66806"},"modified":"2025-11-15T11:56:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-15T11:56:10","slug":"call-for-applications-connecting-europe-fellowship-2026-in-brussels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/?p=66806","title":{"rendered":"Call for Applications: Connecting Europe Fellowship 2026 in Brussels"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The European Policy Centre (EPC) invites applications for the <strong>Connecting Europe Fellowship<\/strong>, a unique programme designed to bring young professionals from EU enlargement countries into Brussels\u2019 policy conversations. The fellowship supports two researchers in advancing their own policy projects while deepening dialogue on the future of Europe. It aligns with the <em>Thinking Enlarged<\/em> initiative, which integrates candidate-country perspectives into EU debates.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Host:<\/strong> European Policy Centre (EPC)<br \/>\n<strong>Location:<\/strong> Brussels, Belgium<br \/>\n<strong>Type:<\/strong> Fully funded 3-month fellowship<br \/>\n<strong>Deadline:<\/strong> <strong>4 December 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2><strong>About the Fellowship<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Each fellow will spend <strong>three months<\/strong> at the EPC in Brussels, conducting an independent research project that links <strong>EU enlargement<\/strong> with current policy issues. The programme is open to early- to mid-career professionals from the <strong>Western Balkans, Turkey, and the Eastern Neighbourhood<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2><strong>What the Fellowship Offers<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Two positions<\/strong> (each 3 months, Feb\u2013Dec 2026).<\/li>\n<li><strong>\u20ac2,500 monthly mobility grant<\/strong> plus <strong>covered travel<\/strong> to\/from Brussels.<\/li>\n<li>Opportunity to <strong>develop and publish<\/strong> a policy-oriented research paper.<\/li>\n<li>Integration into EPC programmes and exposure to EU-level debates.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Access to Brussels policymakers<\/strong>, networks, and civil society.<\/li>\n<li>Workspace at EPC and support in research, fieldwork, and publication.<\/li>\n<li>Peer learning, mentorship, and long-term engagement.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h2><strong>Who Can Apply<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Early to mid-career professionals (min. 1 year experience) in think tanks, universities, NGOs, or civil society.<\/li>\n<li>Nationals\/residents of eligible EU enlargement countries: Albania, Bosnia &amp; Herzegovina, Georgia, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine.<\/li>\n<li>Strong interest in European affairs and enlargement-related issues.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Master\u2019s degree required<\/strong>; relevant fields include political science, EU studies, law, economics, etc.<\/li>\n<li>Excellent written and spoken English.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h2><strong>Project Focus Areas<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Applicants should propose research that links EU policy with enlargement. Priority themes include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Rule of law &amp; democratic resilience<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Green Deal &amp; climate alignment<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Digital governance &amp; cybersecurity<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Foreign policy &amp; strategic alignment<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The final output must be a <strong>policy paper<\/strong> with practical recommendations for both the EU and the fellow\u2019s home region.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2><strong>How to Apply<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Submit <strong>one PDF<\/strong> to <strong><a href=\"mailto:cv@epc.eu\">cv@epc.eu<\/a><\/strong> by <strong>4 December 2025<\/strong> containing:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>CV (max 2 pages) + publication list<\/li>\n<li>Project proposal (max 1,000 words)<\/li>\n<li>Motivation letter<\/li>\n<li>Preferred fellowship period (3 months between Feb\u2013Dec 2026)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Email subject and file name:<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>CEFE_FirstName_LastName<\/strong><br \/>\n(Applications not following this format will not be considered.)<\/p>\n<p>Shortlisted candidates will be invited for an online interview.<\/p>\n<p>For more information click <a href=\"https:\/\/www.epc.eu\/vacancies\/connecting-europe-fellowship\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HERE<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2><strong>About Connecting Europe<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Connecting Europe is an EPC project funded by Stiftung Mercator. It links civil society with EU institutions and fosters cross-border policy engagement. The network includes <strong>65+ organisations<\/strong> across Europe, focusing on democracy, enlargement, climate, digital transformation, and foreign policy.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; The European Policy Centre (EPC) invites applications for the Connecting Europe Fellowship, a unique programme designed to bring young professionals from EU enlargement countries into Brussels\u2019 policy conversations. The fellowship supports two researchers in advancing their own policy projects while deepening dialogue on the future of Europe. It aligns with the Thinking Enlarged initiative,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":66807,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33,38,45],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-66806","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-europe","8":"category-fellowship","9":"category-grants","10":"article","11":"","13":"has-excerpt","14":"has-avatar","15":"has-author","16":"has-nickname","17":"has-date","18":"has-comment-count","19":"has-category-meta","20":"has-read-more","21":"has-title","22":"has-post-media","23":"thumbnail-","24":"has-tfm-share-icons"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66806","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=66806"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66806\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=66806"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=66806"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opportunitiesconnect.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=66806"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}