The mentorship grant serves the aims of the EULAR Mentorship Programme for young investigators in low and middle income EULAR-affiliated countries. Its purpose is to:

• Build an internationally recognised research team.
• Achieve sustainable and high-quality scientific activity.
• Enable research centres in countries with as yet less research productivity to level up to currently leading European RMD research centres.

To accomplish these goals, the programme provides career-development counselling to the selected candidate, equipping them with outstanding research organisational skills and facilitating access to the international scientific community. In parallel, it fosters the institutional development of the applicant’s research centre by improving organisational and management procedures. This process requires the active support of both the mentored institution and the head of the applicant’s department, which must be explicitly confirmed in the application.

Duration and structure​
The programme runs for three years and is built on close collaboration between:

• The mentee and their research centre.
• A leading RMD research centre in a EULAR-affiliated country.
• A recognised mentor affiliated with the hosting centre (e.g., a EULAR Centre of Excellence).
  
  

Eligibility
Applicants must:

• Have initial research experience.
• Be in the ascending phase of their scientific career.
• Be affiliated with an RMD research centre in a low- or middle-income country.
• Be under 40 years old at the time of application.

Before You Apply
Before submitting your application:

• Identify a suitable mentor at an eligible Mentor (host) institution. Applicants are strongly encouraged to seek mentors affiliated with a EULAR Centre of Excellence. A list of recognised EULAR Centres of Excellence is available on the EULAR website.
• Contact the mentor and obtain their agreement to participate in the programme.
• Develop the mentorship plan, including the objectives, activities, timeline, and expected outcomes.
• Submit the completed application with the required supporting documents, including letters of approval from the selected Mentor and from the Mentee (home) institution.

What the programme covers
Unlike research or travel grants offered by EULAR, the mentorship grant is exclusively for:

• Administrative costs of institutional development.
• Exchange visits between mentor and mentee institutions.
• Mentee’s participation in international meetings aligned with the programme goals.

Expected outcomes

By the end of the programme, the mentored centre is expected to achieve:

• Renewed and efficient operating procedures.
• A motivated and skilled research team with clear goals.
• Organised access to research methodologies and infrastructure.
• Strong international collaborations relevant to their research.
  
  

→  More information on how to apply will be published soon.