The project began from October 1st 2020 and first created a rather complete Web Site (
https://www.destiny-phd.eu/(odnośnik otworzy się w nowym oknie)) that is highly visited and advertised through social media which opened on Nov. 20th, 2020 to advertise on 29 topics offered in 11 EU countries for Cohort#1. A detailed "guide for applicants" was created. The Call for applications was widely advertised by the networks into which DESTINY participates (ALISTORE, RS2E, BATTERY2030+, ..) and the institutions. The process for applications was secured by the official Job Portal of the CNRS (European HRS4R label). And many other recruitment platforms. Overall, 3690 people visited the Job Offer Portal and 507 people initiated an application procedure! The Call for Applications for Cohort#1 closed on January 17th, 2021, resulting in 195 applications from 45 countries, with 28% of female candidates.
* For Stage #1 (Eligibility Check) EB members and the administrative team read all the applications and checked the eligibility of the candidates under the MSCA and ESR rules. 84 applicants were declared eligible.
* Stage #2 consisted in grading the paper applications by 63 experts from 17 different countries, so as to secure a fair evaluation of the candidates. Each candidate was evaluated by seven independent experts. Globally, 58 applicants who passed the threshold of 70 points were declared admitted for the next round.
* Stage #3 consisted in conducting interviews (March 29th and 30th, 2021) online. A Selection Committee (SC) of 10 experts was constituted. After 15' of interview with each of the 50 candidates, 26 applicants were declared "recommended for funding", 6 were placed in the Reserve List and 18 were declared non-eligible.
* Stage #4 consisted in attributing the topics to the candidates based on their wishes and their rankings. The process went well as out of the 26 selected candidates, only 2 declined and hence 2 topics were offered to applicants from the Reserve List.
The 26 Awarded Fellows for Cohort#1 come from 19 countries, mostly non-European. On Dec. 14th and 15th 2021, the DESTINY Kick-Off Meeting of Cohort#1 took place at the same time as the bi-annual meeting of ALISTORE ERI, in Amiens, France. A large part was dedicated to DESTINY and this was an opportunity ALISTORE partners to promote Cohort#2. Each of the 26 students of Cohort#1 (except 1) attended the Meeting and presented their PhD topic to the whole public through a 1’ pitch. They all participated to the ALISTORE Workshop, attended the lectures and were invited to the large dinner offered.
The Call for applications for Cohort #2 started on October 15th, 2021 with 24 new topics advertised on the DESTINY www site. These involved 9 European countries and the CNRS Job Portal was opened from Nov. 16th, 2021 till Jan. 23rd 2022. DESTINY received 250 Applications from 38 countries, with 30% of female candidates. Grading from paper applications was finalized on March 4th, 2022 and interviews conducted online on 4th and 5th of April 2022. A first list of DESTINY Fellows was established on April 26th 2022. The final admission of the DESTINY Fellows was sometimes delayed as, depending on the country and the host laboratory, applicants are subject to security checks (ZRR in France). 2 Awarded Fellows received a negative ZRR, and then 2 others withdrew, leaving 4 topics of Cohort#2 free again. An extension of the project has been requested to the P.O. until Dec. 31st, 2025 so as to launch a new Call for Applications. The Call #2 started on Sept. 1st, 2022 till Sept. 22nd, 2022 and three new selected fellows have been recruited.
Regarding training, the project is ongoing well. Training schools have been organized by the partners, open to DESTINY fellows who apply for it. A first T.S. was organized online by the head of the Ethics Committee, mandatory for the 26 trainees of Cohort#1, on May 9th, 2022. A second T.S. was organized in Ljubljana, Slovenia, from May 3rd to May 6th, on "Impedance Spectroscopy Applied to Electrochemical Systems". A third T.S. was organized in Amiens, France, from Nov. 14th to Nov. 18th, 2022, on "Multiscale Modelling for Batteries". Three other schools are scheduled for the first quarter of 2023.
An international Ethics Board has been set up. Composed of 5 members. Its global role consists in defining and implementing the necessary ethical procedures that meet the H2020 ethics guidelines and principles. In order to ensure a global vision on the project on these issues, each member of the E.B. comes from a different sector: CNRS, Universities, Company, Education Sector outside DESTINY. Ethics contact points have been nominated for all the partners. The Ethics Board will follow up DESTINY's activities along three axes: the project in general, the PhD topics, the PhD fellows & partners trainings.
