The Research Council of Finland (RCF) has earmarked a considerable sum of money, even by international standards, to support Finnish universities in the recruitment of researchers from outside Finland. The first stage of the call for applications from universities closed on 22 May and attracted a lot of interest.

The RCF’s initiative was one of the first funding calls of its kind in Europe, and the amount of funding on offer is considerable compared to similar schemes.

Finland is significantly increasing public funding for research and development until 2030. Alongside this upturn in public funding, the aim is also that the private sector will increase RDI investment so that Finland’s overall R&D spending as a percentage of GDP will reach 4% by 2030.

The objective is to create framework conditions for growth in Finland based on a high level of skills and competence. The additional funding will be directed towards scientific research, research organisations and academia-industry collaboration.

Finland’s research environment is more attractive and competitive than ever before

Finland is home to several internationally leading research groups and flagship projects as well as state-of-the-art infrastructures such as high-performance computing environments.

Universities in Finland also actively engage in international collaboration. According to the Research Council of Finland’s State of Scientific Research in Finland report, foreign nationals accounted for around 40 per cent of all doctoral and postdoctoral research and for around 15 per cent of senior-level academic personnel in 2023.

In addition, public trust in science institutions and scientists remains high in Finland. The latest Science Barometer shows that trust in science in Finland is very high by international standards: in 2024, 86 per cent of respondents had a high or fairly high level of trust in science and research.

Robust RDI requires skilled research staff

In a country the size of Finland, developing world-class expertise requires international collaboration. The RCF’s funding to support the recruitment of international experts is part of a broader effort to strengthen Finland’s position as a leading country in science and innovation.

The funding call is implemented under a funding scheme that aims to strengthen the research profiles of Finnish universities. The profiling is supported by enabling universities to recruit international, high-level researchers from outside Finland, for example from the United States. In the latest application round, the RCF received letters of intent from all Finnish universities.

The RCF is prepared to fund the universities with a total of 50 million euros between 2026 and 2030. The funding call has two stages, and the first stage closed on 22 May 2025. In their letters of intent, the universities presented their plans for the profiling areas they wish to strengthen and for how many international researchers they intend to recruit. The RCF will decide on 25 June which plans will advance to the full application round. The second call stage opens on 29 October 2025. The funding decisions will be made in two sets: the first in January 2026 and the rest in June 2026.