DN: Is it possible in a DN proposal to have a fourth year of a PhD funded through a different contractual arrangement, such as a research fellowship or other university/departmental funding outside the MSCA project?

Yes, it is possible, but it is recommended to inform the fellow about that scheme during the recruitment interview, so that the researcher is aware of it and is ready to get a national scholarship during the last year of the doctoral programme. Moreover, it is not mandatory for fellows to complete their PhDs within the duration of the Doctoral Network.

For better management, many proposals indicate that the recruitment process will start before Month 1 and this has been accepted by REA, ensuring that the Doctoral Candidates can begin much earlier, typically around Months 3–4 of the project. This approach allows part of the fourth year (funded through other sources) to fall within the duration of the MSCA Doctoral Network project.