The York-Maastricht Partnership: A Shared Vision
The York-Maastricht Partnership (YMP) is a deep strategic partnership between a historic UK powerhouse (York) and one of the world's Top 10 Young Universities (Maastricht). Our institutions are united by a common ‘problem-solving DNA’.
By merging York’s world-class research with Maastricht’s signature Problem-Based Learning (PBL) model, we have created a ‘living lab’ across the UK and the Netherlands. Together, we work to address the most pressing societal and environmental challenges through a unique ecosystem of high-impact research and innovative teaching.
Our mission & impact
We aim to cultivate a resilient and sustainable society by training the next generation of researchers and fostering multilayered collaborations. Our work focuses on four themes:
- Culture & Heritage
- Health & Imaging
- Robotics & AI
- Sustainable Planet (biodiversity, bioeconomy, farming and sustainable food systems)
Five Years of Success in Numbers:
- £4,607,000 secured in external research funding.
- 110 co-authored publications released since 2019.
- 14 collaborative research projects funded.
- 60+ students engaged in YMP co-taught modules.
- 9 summer schools and student conferences hosted.
- 6 subject areas established with study abroad agreements.
What we do
The YMP serves as a bridge for staff and students to exchange knowledge and drive global change. Our core activities include:
- Research Synergy: Identifying new collaborative opportunities and hosting development workshops.
- Funding Guidance: Assisting with applications for international grants, seed funding, and travel bursaries.
- Educational Innovation: Developing informal co-taught modules and workshops to co-supervision and double PhDs
- Physical and Virtual Mobility: Staff and student mobility and sharing good practice
- Knowledge Exchange: Building vital links with industry partners and policymakers to turn academic research into real-world solutions.
Two cities, one future
Our partnership is built on the belief that universities are a force for good. By combining our expertise, we solve problems that neither institution could tackle in isolation, leading the academic contribution toward a more sustainable and equitable world.
Would you like to join our community? For inquiries regarding funding, research collaborations, or educational partnerships, contact us at:
Email: katherine.benson@maastrichtuniversity.nl or ymp@york.ac.uk
Funding
York-Maastricht Partnership funding is specifically designed to facilitate and support cross-border collaboration. We provide a range of funding streams designed to support every stage of your collaboration, from the first introductory chat to the submission of large international research grants.
Whether you are looking to develop a new research collaboration, spend time at the partner university accessing new equipment and skills or teaching a masterclass, or whether you’d like to hold a workshop to develop new grant applications or include industry and policy partners, YMP offers you the support to make it happen. There are four funding streams, each designed to be a catalyst for your research and wider collaboration plans.
These funding calls prioritise research in YMP’s current thematic areas, which include:
- Culture and Heritage
- Imaging and Health
- Robotics and AI
- Sustainable Planet (This theme includes biodiversity and ecology, biobased materials, crop and plant science, agritech, sustainable food systems, future farming.)
Current funding streams
Mobility grants Best for: Building individual relationships
Innovation starts with a conversation. We offer rolling travel grants (up to €500 per person) to support York and Maastricht researchers visiting our partner institution. These grants allow you to develop new relationships, meet potential co-investigators, deliver visiting lectures, access specialised equipment, and facilitate project development.
Visiting Research Fellowship - Call open 23 March to 30 June 2026. Best for: Developing new projects and accessing facilities
Call open 23 March to 30 June 2026.
These fellowships take your collaborations and projects to the next stage. They offer up to €3,400 for one long or several short visits to the partner university, to develop new skills or to develop a new project and put together large funding applications. They also offer the opportunity to give masterclasses and to embed yourself in a different academic culture.
Visiting Research Fellowship call details
Visiting Research Fellowship application form (MS Word , 449kb)
Workshop funding Best for: Scoping new themes and building large-scale networks
Do you have a group of colleagues across both universities ready to tackle a specific challenge or showcase specific areas of research? Would you like to include external partners – including industry, policymakers, or universities – to sharpen your project? We provide workshop funding (up to 5,000) to host project planning intensives, networking and development workshops, or post-project showcases. This rolling fund cover venue costs, catering, and travel for larger groups, helping you move from individual collaboration to institutional networks.
Research seed funding - Call open 30 March to 30 June 2026 Best for: Launching high-impact, collaborative pilot projects
Call open 30 March to 30 June 2026.
Our seed funding call is the cornerstone of the partnership’s research strategy and support. We provide early-stage investment for joint projects that align with our core themes and is intended to provide the ‘proof of concept’ needed to position you well for securing external grants from bodies like UKRI, NWO, or Horizon Europe.
Seed funding application form (MS Word , 450kb)
Seed funding guidance notes (PDF , 210kb)
Ready to apply for YMP funding?
Checklist
Before you submit your application for YMP funding, make sure you have worked through these steps to increase your chances of success:
- Identify a co-investigator: All YMP funding applications must be a joint effort including both York and Maastricht researchers. Have an idea, but no partner yet? Contact the YMP team (ymp@york.ac.uk) to help you find a suitable collaborator.
- Align with YMP’s themes: Does your proposed activity or project contribute to one of our key themes?
- Define tangible outputs: Are you clear on what this funding will produce? Examples might be a joint publication or external funding application, a new co-taught module, or a prototype.
- Check the timeline and scope: Is your proposed activity or output achievable within the call
timeframe and funding? - Consult your department: Have you notified your head of department or research lead about your intent to apply for funding and to develop a new collaboration?
Application support
The YMP team and colleagues are here to help you succeed. We recommend that all applicants:
- Read the YMP Funding Guidance document (PDF to download)
- Contact YMP early in the process for advice on eligibility, budget, and partner matchmaking (ymp@york.ac.uk)
- Review the applicant checklist to ensure your proposal is robust
Visiting Research Fellowships
YMP is delighted to announce the launch of a new York-Maastricht Visiting Research Fellow Scheme.
This new scheme is designed to support the development of new research collaborations, enabling researchers to cross-pollinate ideas, develop new collaborative research projects, access partner equipment, and develop joint publications or funding bids.
Key themes for 2026
For this call, we are open to applications working in any area of our four core themes:
- Culture and heritage
- Health and neuroscience
- Robotics and AI
- Sustainable planet (including biodiversity, planetary health, crops, agritech, food systems, green chemistry)
The scheme is designed to be as flexible as possible to support the development of new joint research collaborations and ideas, and so the scheme offers a support package that can be used to support activities over a jointly agreed time period (max one year).
Selected YMP Visiting Fellows will receive a comprehensive support package to ensure a productive set of visits:
- Travel and subsistence: A stipend of up to £3,000 / €3,400 to cover travel and accommodation costs across a minimum of two visits to the partner university
- Institutional access: Library, laboratory, and desk space access at the host institution
- Networking: YMP facilitated introductions to relevant researchers, research clusters and faculty leads
- Grant application: support to find and apply for relevant external funding applications
- Public platform: Opportunity to deliver a keynote lecture or lead a masterclass
Eligibility and application
Researchers at all levels currently employed at either York or Maastricht.
You must already hold a PhD, and have a good working knowledge of English.
Spring call deadline: 30 June 2026.
Visiting Research Fellowship application form (MS Word , 449kb)
Seed funding
We are pleased to announce the 2026 call for the York-Maastricht Research Seed Fund.
This fund is the third round of YMP seed funding and is designed to catalyse high-impact, international research collaborations that address themes of strategic importance to both universities.
The YMP Seed Fund provides funding for one-year collaborative research projects on key themes, and we are looking for projects that use this internal investment to build a robust foundation — including preliminary data, proof of concepts, and strong team relationships — to make the collaboration highly competitive and help prepare you and your project for major external research grants such as Horizon Europe, ERC, UKRI, or NWO as the next step.
The key themes for 2026
- Bioeconomy (including biodiversity, planetary health, crops, agritech, green chemistry)
- Culture and heritage
- Robotics and AI
- Sustainability
- Health and neuroscience
The YMP seed funding aims to:
- Encourage effective collaboration between academics from Maastricht and York to drive high quality research
- Develop new collaborations on joint priority themes, emphasising scale and focus
- Provide a pathway – and support to develop applications for – major external research grants
- Provide international research training opportunities
- Establish strong and sustainable continued research collaboration between the participating academics and departments
- Support the development of long-term strategic research alliances between the two universities.
- Actively promote and facilitate academic exchanges for research visits between Maastricht and York
Eligibility
Applications for round three are open to researchers of any discipline at Maastricht and York, whose proposed research project falls into one of the key thematic areas outlined above. Any member of research staff at the University of York or Maastricht University is eligible, provided that they hold a PhD at the time of application, and that their employment contract extends beyond 31 July 2027. The project budget will be split between both universities and funding at each institution will be managed by Maastricht and York research offices according to the regulations of each university.
Eligible applications must also include a defined plan and outcomes, and a pathway to one or more external funding applications built into their proposed collaborative project.
Evaluation criteria
Applications will be assessed by a joint Maastricht-York panel, and must clearly demonstrate:
- Academic excellence: a novel and rigorous approach to a well-defined project
- Research synergy: how the combined expertise of Maastricht and York creates a "value-add" for this project that neither partner could achieve alone
- Sustainability: a clear pathway to external funding, with a concrete identification of the specific external funding body and call the team intends to target following the seed phase
- Feasibility: A clear timeline for achieving preliminary results (and making an external funding application?) within the 12-month window
Application process
- Download the YMP Seed Funding Application form
- Take note of the YMP Seed Funding Guidance Notes
- Secure departmental approval from both institutions
- Submit the final PDF of your application to ymp@york.ac.uk
Deadline: 30 June 2026, 12 midnight GMT.