The ORION program “Open up to Research through Integrated and Optimised traiNing” is the response of the University of Lorraine (UL) and its partners : CNRS, INRAE, INRIA, INSERM, CHRU de Nancy, AgroParisTech and Georgia Tech Lorraine to the SFRI (“Structuring training through research in the Initiatives for Excellence”) call for projects of France’s “Investments for the Future” program (PIA). Its objective is twofold, the first is to expose students to research before they reach the Master 2 and PhD levels, the second is to mix students from its different training components and from different disciplines of the University of Lorraine.
Purpose of the call
As part of the implementation of the ORION program, a call for applications is open for the financing of « Master Grants » for foreign students wishing to carry out a research internship at Master II level in UL laboratories.
The coordination committee of the projects of the lorraine site (UNYS PROJETS) wishes to include these grants in the context of the development of international partnerships of our laboratories. This call is thought of as a mean to host excellent candidates studying at our international partner institutions for a research internship.
The laboratories are expected to consider the students awarded such a grant as high potential candidates for thesis funding (in line with the LUE 2023 doctoral contract campaign for example, without however giving priority to candidates selected in this call) or co-funding of a co-tutored thesis with the partner in question.
This call therefore aims to strengthen the international structuring partnerships of UL laboratories.
The research internships can last 4 to 6 months. If the internship is carried out in a restricted access laboratory (ZRR), the internship supervisor will have to take into account the additional time needed to examine the student’s application, which impacts the starting date of the internship and access to the laboratory premises.
Funding modalities
The funding for the Master Grants includes :
- A stipend for a 4-6 month internship of €1000 per month
- Financial support of €1000 for return travel.
Successful applicants will receive a maximum stipend of €7000[1].
In the event of withdrawal during the placement, the student receiving the mobility grant must undertake to reimbursement of the amount received.
Selection criteria
The selection criteria and associated scores adopted for this call for proposals are listed in the following table.
Evaluation criteria of the Master Grants ORION
| Criterion | Considerations |
| Impact and link to LUE policy | ● Consistency with the international partnership policy of LUE’s partner institutions and link with LUE’s actions ● Evidence of a long-term vision / possibility of a thesis ● Plan to exploit the Master Grants scheme ● Plan to disseminate the results. |
| Scientific and Technical quality | ● Originality of the proposed research ● Clarity of objectives ● Clarity of theoretical and experimental framework ● Feasibility in the requested internship period ● Quality of the supervisors |
Evaluation of the candidates
| Criterion | Considerations |
| Academic experience | ● Grades and rankings of Master I and II levels ● Notoriety and level of the University of Origin ● Number of years to obtain the Master II degree ● Testified recommendations |
| Research Potential | ● Correspondence between acquired skills (courses, grades..) and the research topic ● Ability to work independently and take responsibility ● Collaborations and partnership ● International experience ● Publication of research work (dissertation, Internship Report, …) ● Ability to disseminate (oral presentation, videos and teaching) |
| Career development objectives | ● Professional project and fit with interest in the research internship |
Each of the criteria will be annotated: Excellent, Very good, Good, or Insufficient.
Application and selection procedure
The application file should include :
- A short description of the nature, history, and strength of the partnership between the two teams involved
- A description of proposed topic of the internship and details on supervisor(s), context, expected results,…
- CV, Master I and II grades, cover letter, letters of recommendation, and any other information deemed relevant to assess the quality of the proposed student’s application
- Letter of commitment on honour to mention the ORION programme in publications resulting from the internship
This information should be entered using the following form : https://enquetes.univ-lorraine.fr/index.php/711299
The supervisor and the student should take note of the practical sheet for the reception of foreign students before finalising the application.
An adhoc committee will evaluate the applications and determine the selected students. This. evaluation will then be reviewed and the list of grants to allocate will be validated by the CCOPROLOR.
Calendar of the call
The call for applications for Master Grants funding will will consist of two campaigns during the year. There will thus be two evaluation sessions carried out by the adhoc committee.
The calendar of this 2025-2026 call will be as follows:
First campaign:
- Opening date of the call: early October according to the schedule of the scientific divisions
- Closing date of the call: 14/11/25 at noon
- Evaluation session: from 17/11/25 to 01/12/25
- Announcement of results: before 08/12/25
- Start of research stay: from January 2026
- End of research stay: before 31/08/26
Second campaign:
- Opening date of the call: april 2026
- Closing date of the call: according to the schedule of the scientific divisions
- Evaluation session: according to the schedule of the scientific divisions
- Announcement of results: before 30/06/26
- Start of research stay: from September 2025
- End of research stay: before 31/08/27
The results of the applications will be communicated to the supervisors and candidates by email.
[1] This lump sum grant will be paid as follows €1000 paid on presentation of visa, then, in the case of a six months tenure, 6 payments of €1000 over the months following the start of the work-based training at the University of Lorraine.