The ORION programme “Oser la Recherche durant la formatION” is the response of the Université de Lorraine (UL) and its partners: CNRS, INRAE, INRIA, INSERM, CHRU de Nancy, AgroParisTech and Georgia Tech Europe to the call for projects “Structuring education through research in Excellence Initiatives” (SFRI) of the Programme d’Investissement d’Avenir (PIA). Its objective is twofold, the first is to expose students to research before Master 2 and doctoral level, the second is to bring together students from its different training components and from different disciplines of the Université de Lorraine.
Purpose of the call
As part of the implementation of the ORION programme, a call for applications (AAC) is open for the funding of incoming mobility support Master Grants ORION[1] for international students wishing to carry out a research stay at Master II level in the laboratories of the UL and its partners of the Lorraine site.
Unys Projets (formerly named CCOPROLOR) wishes to position these grants within the context of the development of international partnerships of Université de Lorraine laboratories and its partners of the Lorraine site; that is to say, a means of hosting for a research stay students from established international partners of the laboratories.
Laboratories are expected to consider students awarded such a grant as high-potential candidates for obtaining doctoral funding (in line with the LUE 2025 doctoral contract campaign for example, without however giving priority to candidates from this AAC) or co-funding of a joint PhD with the partner in question.
This call therefore aims to strengthen the structuring international partnerships of UL laboratories.
Research stays may last from 4 to 6 months. In the case where the research stay is carried out in a laboratory classified ZRR (Restricted Regime Zone), the supervisor will have to take into account the additional processing time of the student’s file impacting the start date of the research stay and access to the laboratory premises.
Funding arrangements
The funding of the Master Grants ORION mobility support includes:
- An allowance for a research stay of 4 to 6 months amounting to €1000 per month;
- A financial support of €1000 for round-trip travel.
Selected candidates will benefit from a maximum allowance of €7000[2].
In the event of withdrawal during the research stay, the student benefiting from the mobility support will have to commit to reimbursing the amount received.
Selection criteria
The selection criteria adopted for this Call for applications are shown in the table below:
Evaluation of ORION Master Grants Applications
| Criterion | Considerations |
| Impact | Existing collaborations with the applicant’s home institution Evidence of a long-term vision / possibility of PhD Plan for use of the Master Grants scheme Plan for dissemination of results. |
| Scientific and technical quality | Originality of the proposed research Clarity of objectives Clarity of the theoretical and experimental framework Feasibility within the requested research stay period Quality of supervision |
Evaluation of Candidates
| Criterion | Considerations |
| Academic background | Grades and ranking at L3 and M1 levels Reputation and level of the home university Documented recommendations |
| Research potential | Match between acquired skills (courses, grades…) and the research topic Ability to work independently and take responsibility Collaborations and partnerships International experience Publication of research work (thesis, research stay report, …) Dissemination capacity (oral presentation, videos and teaching) |
| Career plan | Professional project and alignment with the interest in the research stay |
Each criterion will be rated: Excellent, Very good, Good, or Insufficient.
Application and selection procedure
The application file must include:
- Short description of the nature, history and intensity of the partnership between the two teams involved
- Proposed research topic for the research stay and details on supervisor(s), context, expected results
- CV, L3 and M1 transcripts, certificate of enrolment from the home university for the current academic year, motivation letter, recommendation letters, and any information deemed relevant to assess the quality of the proposed student’s application
- Letter of commitment on honour mentioning the ORION programme in publications resulting from the research stay, see template to download.
This information must be entered via this online form .
The supervisor and the student must read the practical sheet for welcoming international students before finalising the application submission.
An ad hoc committee composed of members of the scientific clusters will evaluate the applications and determine the selected files.
Call timeline
The call for applications for Master Grants funding will consist of two campaigns per year. There will therefore be two evaluation sessions carried out by the ad hoc committee.
The first campaign took place from 16/09/25 to 19/12/25
The schedule for the second campaign of the call for applications will be as follows:
- Opening date of the call: 02/04/26
- Closing date of the call: 31/05/26 at noon
- Evaluation session: 01/06/26 to 23/06/26
- Announcement of results: before 30/06/26
- Start of the research stay: from September 2026
The results of the call for applications will be communicated to supervisors and candidates by email.
Support by the International Relations Directorate (DRIE) and more specifically its International Welcome sub-division.
It has been agreed that the International Welcome sub-division of the DRIE will inform incoming ORION students about the preparation of their research stay (visa, accommodation, social security coverage, etc.) through several actions (notably through a collective webinar). You are invited to contact this service as soon as the list of laureates is received so that support can be implemented ahead of their arrival at the following address: drie-orion-contact@univ-lorraine.fr
This connection will allow:
- To assess readiness for international mobility (comfort zone, level of autonomy, context and status).
- To offer sociocultural support for mobility and settlement in Lorraine (in coordination with student associations).
- To inform the student about the cost of living in Lorraine according to their situation (alone or with family) and the procedures to be completed before arrival and once on site
Warning:
Students awarded the ORION programme will be enrolled at the Université de Lorraine in a programme labelled “Orion” and will therefore not be considered as being on a research stay placement. Consequently, students from non-EU countries must apply for a Student visa and not a Trainee visa for France. This type of visa will allow better support upon arrival in France in terms of health insurance, housing assistance, etc. Once issued and upon arrival in France, it is no longer possible to change the type of visa, therefore it is essential that students apply for the Student visa. The International Welcome sub-division will support them in this process.
- Contact: drie-orion-contact@univ-lorraine.fr
- Welcome! website in French and English (Student section > Practical information): https://www.univ-lorraine.fr/welcome/
For any question regarding this call for applications, please write to: isite-orion-cellule@univ-lorraine.fr
[1] The designation “Incoming mobility support Master Grants ORION” refers here to the Master Grants covered by the Board decision of 17/12/2019.
[2] This lump-sum grant will be paid as follows: €1000 upon presentation of the visa then 6 payments of €1000 in the months following the start of the research stay at the Université de Lorraine in the case of a 6-month research stay.