NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY CORPORATION

Their core work

Northwestern University is a major US research university near Chicago that serves as a transatlantic host for European researchers through Marie Skłodowska-Curie mobility programmes. Across H2020, it hosted visiting fellows and participated in staff exchanges spanning materials science, astrophysics, neuroscience, and social sciences. Its role is almost exclusively as a third-party or junior partner, providing world-class lab facilities, supervision, and cross-disciplinary expertise to European-led consortia. The breadth of topics reflects a large multi-faculty institution rather than a single research group.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In 2016–2019, Northwestern's H2020 involvement centred on digital health technologies (wearable devices, remote CNS monitoring) and environmental sensor networks, with early materials science projects in perovskites and thermoelectrics. From 2020 onward, the portfolio shifted markedly toward humanities and social sciences (medieval archaeology, migration communication) alongside continued materials work (printed electronics) and plant biology — topics absent from the early period. The consistent thread is astrostatistics, with ASTROSTAT-II directly continuing the original ASTROSTAT project across both periods.

Northwestern's H2020 engagement is broadening away from STEM-only into social sciences and humanities, reflecting growing European interest in US-based interdisciplinary collaboration through MSCA exchanges.

How they like to work

Northwestern never coordinates H2020 projects — it joins exclusively as a third-party or minor participant, which is typical for non-EU institutions in MSCA mobility schemes. With 92 unique partners across 27 countries from just 15 projects, it functions as a high-connectivity node that rarely works with the same consortium twice. This signals an institution open to new partnerships but not one that drives EU proposal writing or consortium assembly.

Northwestern has collaborated with 92 distinct partners across 27 countries, an exceptionally broad network for 15 projects, driven by the multi-partner nature of MSCA-RISE staff exchanges. The geographic reach is truly global, connecting European consortia with a top-tier US research base.

What sets them apart

As one of the top US research universities, Northwestern offers European consortia access to American labs, talent pools, and research infrastructure that most EU-only partnerships cannot provide. Its participation is almost entirely through MSCA mobility, making it an ideal host for researcher secondments and staff exchanges rather than a co-developer of deliverables. The extraordinary topical breadth — from astrophysics to medieval archaeology to printed electronics — means consortium builders across nearly any discipline can find a relevant department willing to host.

Highlights from their portfolio

• RADAR-CNS
  Longest-running project (2016–2022) and one of only two where Northwestern was a full participant rather than third party, focusing on digital biomarkers for neurological disorders.
• ASTROSTAT-II
  Direct continuation of ASTROSTAT, showing sustained commitment to astrostatistics — the only topic where Northwestern engaged in a multi-phase programme.
• UNOPIEZO
  Bridges Northwestern's materials expertise with biomedical sensing, combining printed piezoelectric fabrication with non-invasive biosignal monitoring.