SCHOLARSHIPS FOR UNIVERSITY GRADUATES FROM ENPI COUNTRIES
TO STUDY AT THE COLLEGE OF EUROPE

CALL FOR PROPOSALS (EAC/15/2007)

For the implementation of an EC-funded pilot project aiming to offer scholarships to university graduates from the ENPI countries to study at the College of Europe

In the last Communication on the European Neighbourhood Policy[1] the European Commission claims that after the first period (18 months) of its implementation, the policy has laid substantial basis for strengthened relationships between the EU and its neighbours.

The Communication points out that the strengthening of relationships should be developed through mutual commitments in a single policy framework. It is mutual interest of both parties to build stronger and deeper links.

The development of educational ties can promote shared values and reinforce the links to enhance the citizenship dimension of this neighbourhood.

Following an amendment to the European Commission budget by the European Parliament, 800,000 ˆ (of which 735,000 ˆ for scholarships) have been made available to launch a pilot project aiming to offer full study scholarships to university graduates from the 17 countries[2] covered by the European Neighbourhood Policy Instrument (ENPI) to study at the College of Europe in the academic year 2007-2008.

According to the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities a pilot project may be implemented without a basic act as long as the actions which they are intended to finance fall within the competence of the Community or the Union. This pilot project has been included in the "Education and Culture" Directorate General Work Programme for 2007. The implementation of the project is conditional to the adoption of the Work Programme.

The project is managed jointly by the European Commission "Education and Culture" Directorate General and the European Commission Delegations in ENPI countries. The European Commission will be assisted by external academic experts in the assessment of the applications.

The College of Europe, founded in 1949 and based in Bruges (Belgium) and Natolin (Poland, near Warsaw), is a centre of academic excellence preparing individuals to work and live in an international environment. The College of Europe focuses on postgraduate European studies in the legal, economic, political, international relations and interdisciplinary domains, while also providing a range of tailor-made seminars and training courses targeted at executives and public sector officials. At present the College of Europe hosts 400 students in its two campuses (Bruges and Natolin). All these students follow a one-year programme leading to a masters degree in European studies.

Further information on the College of Europe is available at http://www.coleurop.be/.

2. OBJECTIVES

The general objective of the pilot project is to enhance the attractiveness of European studies for individuals from the ENPI countries (see footnote 2).

To this purpose the pilot project aims to allocate 35 scholarships for participation in the European study courses offered by the College of Europe.

Without prejudice to the respect of high academic standards and in order to ensure a geographical balance across ENPI countries, the following indicative geographic distribution[3] shall be considered in the selection phase:

The figures for scholarships are indicative. Shifts between countries are possible if supported by qualitative justifications.

3. TIMETABLE

Individual applications must be sent at the latest on 13 April 2007 and reach the European Commission Delegations and the College of Europe no later than 18 May 2007 (please read carefully section 12 of this call for proposals concerning the procedures for submitting applications).

The project publicity and applicant selection activities must start in March 2007. Masters courses will start in August 2007 for a period of one academic year (2007-08). Scholarships will be paid as of August 2007. The project activities must end before October 2008. The maximum duration of the scholarships is 14 months.

The indicative timetable for the project implementation is the following:

• 13 April 2007: Application deadline
• May 2007: Selection of applicants
• June 2007: Applicants informed of the selection decision
• August 2007: Start of courses and payment of scholarships

4. BUDGET AVAILABLE

The budget available for scholarships amounts to EUR 735.000. It will allow awarding 35 full study scholarships. Each grant is worth a lump sum amount of 21.000 euro. It covers registration and tuition fees, travels, stay at the college and all other subsistence costs. The Commission reserves the possibility not to distribute all the funds available.

5. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

Applications which comply with the following criteria will be the subject of an in-depth evaluation.

5.1 Eligible beneficiaries

The following beneficiaries are eligible under the project:

– Only individuals who are national of and resident in ENPI countries are eligible for a scholarship.

– Only applicants having obtained a relevant university degree/diploma (of a minimum duration of 3 years) are eligible for a scholarship.

– Only applicants having an appropriate knowledge of both English and French are eligible for a scholarship. The appropriate level may vary according to the course chosen (for more details on the knowledge of languages requested for each course see website http://www.coleurop.be/).

When selecting scholarship beneficiaries, due respect shall be paid to the principle of gender equality. Furthermore a pro-active attitude should be shown towards potential grantees with special education needs.

5.2 Eligible countries

Nationals of the following 17 ENPI countries are eligible to receive a scholarship:

Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Egypt, Georgia, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Moldova, Morocco, Palestine, Russia, Syria, Tunisia and Ukraine.

5.3 Eligible activities

Not applicable.

5.4 Eligible applications

Only applications submitted using the official application form, respecting all eligibility and selection criteria listed below and received by the specified deadline will be considered for the quality assessment. All instructions on the application form must be followed.

6. EXCLUSION CRITERIA

Applicants must state that they are not in any of the situations described in Articles 93 and 94 of the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002) and set out below.

Applicants will be excluded from participating in the call for proposals if they are in any of the following situations:

a) they are bankrupt or being wound up, are having their affairs administered by the courts, have entered into an arrangement with creditors, have suspended business activities, are the subject of proceedings concerning those matters, or are in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for in national legislation or regulations;

b) they have been convicted of an offence concerning their professional conduct by a judgment which has the force of res judicata;

c) they have been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which the contracting authority can justify;

d) they have not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions or the payment of taxes in accordance with the legal provisions of the country in which they are established or with those of the country of the contracting authority or those of the country where the contract is to be performed;

e) they have been the subject of a judgment which has the force of res judicata for fraud, corruption, involvement in a criminal organisation or any other illegal activity detrimental to the Communities' financial interests;

f) following another procurement procedure or grant award procedure financed by the Community budget, they have been declared to be in serious breach of contract for failure to comply with their contractual obligations.

Applicants will not be granted financial assistance if, on the date of the grant award procedure, they:

(a) are subject to a conflict of interests;

(b) are guilty of misrepresentation in supplying the information required by the contracting authority as a condition of participation in the grant award procedure, or fail to supply this information.

In accordance with Articles from 93 to 96 of the Financial Regulation, administrative and financial penalties may be imposed on applicants who are guilty of misrepresentation or are found to have seriously failed to meet their contractual obligations under a previous contract award procedure.

To comply with these provisions, applicants must sign a declaration on their honour certifying that they are not in any of the situations referred to in Articles 93 and 94 of the Financial Regulation (please, use the model of the Certification with respect to the Exclusion Criteria included in Annex B).

7. SELECTION CRITERIA

The selection criteria shall be such as to make it possible to assess the applicant's ability to complete the proposed action. Applicants must have the professional competencies and qualifications required to complete the proposed action.

In order to permit an assessment of their academic quality, applicants must submit, together with their applications:

– a Curriculum vitae (applicants are invited to create and present their CVs using the Europass Curriculum Vitae template available at the following website: http://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/europass/preview.action ; a copy of the template has been included in Annex C; a translation of the CV into English or French should be included);

– photocopy of identity card and/or passport;

– copy of the university diploma(s) (please, include a translation into English or French);

– language knowledge statement (+ language certificates if available).

8. AWARD CRITERIA

The selection of grantees is a competitive process based on the academic performance and credentials of the applicants. Only high-quality applications will be selected. Eligible applications will be assessed on the basis of the following criteria:

– Relevance of study field of diploma;

– Study results: this criteria will be checked on the basis of the transcript of results (include a translation into English or French);

– Justification and motivation of the application, assessed on the basis of the letters of recommendation from two university teachers or from professional background (originals + translations into English or French);

In the assessment of the applications the European Commission will be assisted by external academic experts. Following the application assessment the best applicants will be invited for interviews in the European Commission Delegation located in their country of origin. The selected applicants from countries where there is no European Commission Delegation will be contacted to appropriately arrange the interview. Based on the results of the assessments and interviews, a final list of potential grantees, including a reserve list, will be established by an internal inter-services award committee[4].

Without prejudice to the respect of high academic standards and in order to ensure a geographical balance across ENPI countries, in the award process, the indicative geographic distribution included at the point "2. Objectives", will be considered. Shifts between countries are possible if supported by qualitative justifications.

Furthermore, in the attribution of scholarships the distribution of students between Bruges and Natolin campuses will have to be considered. According to subject areas, 20 posts are reserved to the Bruges campus and 15 posts for the Natolin campus.

This pilot project has been included in the "Education and Culture" Directorate General Work Programme for 2007. The implementation of the project is conditional to the adoption of the Work Programme.

9. FINANCIAL CONDITIONS

Acceptance of an application by the Commission does not constitute an undertaking to award a financial contribution to the beneficiary. The awarding of a grant does not establish an entitlement for subsequent years.

9.1 Payment procedure

Scholarships will be paid by the College of Europe on behalf of the European Commission on the basis of a nominative list of grantees to be established by the Award Committee after the arrival of grantees in the EU in August. Grant holders will be informed by the College of Europe about the payment modalities.

9.2 Guarantee

Not applicable

9.3 Double financing

Individuals having been awarded a scholarship under this project may not benefit from any other Community funding for the same activity.

9.4 Eligible costs

Not applicable

9.5 Ineligible costs

Not applicable

9.6 Legal entity

Not applicable

10. SUBCONTRACTING

Not applicable

11. PUBLICITY

Not applicable

12. PROCEDURE FOR THE SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS

12.1 Publication

The call for proposals is being published on the Internet site of the European Commission Delegations in the ENPI countries (see website addresses in the list attached to the application form).

12.2 Application form

Grant applications must be drawn up in one of the official EU languages, using the form specifically designed for this purpose. Please note that only typed applications will be considered.

The application form model is attached to this call for proposal.

12.3 Submission of the grant application

Only applications submitted on the correct form (using the attached application form in annex A), duly completed, dated, submitted in one original and a copy and signed by the applicant will be accepted. All additional information considered necessary by the applicant can be included on separate sheets.

Hard copy applications (original and copy) must be sent:

- Original: to the European Commission Delegations located in the applicant's own country. The list of addressess of the European Commission Delegations in ENPI countries is included in Annex A. For those countries where there is no EC Delegation, graduates will send original and copy to the College of Europe only (address is indicated in the application form).

- Copy: to the College of Europe (the address is indicated in the application form).

In addition to the hard copy applications, an electronic version of the application form (without annexes) must be sent by 13 April 2007 to the following European Commission e-mail address: EAC-ColEur@ec.europa.eu ).

Deadline: Hard copy applications must be sent

by 13 April 2007 (date of postmark)

Applications can also be delivered by hand to the Delegations and/or the College of Europe by 13 April 2007 at 4 pm local time.

(Indicate on the envelope: "Subject: Scholarships to the College of Europe)

Applications sent by e-mail will not be accepted unless they are backed up by an original (signed) application received before the 18 May 2007.

Other useful information:

- Applications which are not submitted before the deadline will not be considered.

- Applicants can apply to a maximum of two courses (to be ranked first and second, as indicated in the application form) among those proposed by the College of Europe (for more details on courses organisation and content see the website http://www.coleurop.be/).

- No changes to the dossier can be made after the application has been submitted. However, if there is a need to clarify certain aspects, the Commission may contact the applicant for this purpose.

- Applicants having submitted an electronic application will be informed by e-mail of the receipt of their proposal within 15 working days.

- Only applications that fulfil the eligibility criteria will be considered for a grant. If an application is deemed ineligible, a letter indicating the reasons will be sent to the applicant.

- All unsuccessful applicants will be informed in writing.

12.4 Rules applicable

Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities

Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1248/2006 of 7 August 2006 (rules for the implementation of the Council Regulation)

"Education and Culture" Directorate General Work Programme for 2007

12.5 Contacts

[1] COM(2006)726 final of the 04/12/2006

[2] Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Egypt, Georgia, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Moldova, Morocco, Palestine, Russia, Syria, Tunisia and Ukraine.

[3] The calculation of the indicative number of scholarships per country is based on two sets of parameters: (1) country's total population and (2) country's higher education student population.

[4] At comparable level of qualifications priority will be given to ENPI countries' nationals who are resident in these countries and who have not carried out their main activity (studies, work, etc.) for more than a total of 12 months over the last five years in any of the EU Member States.

• Annex A
• Annex B
• Annex C