Overview
The FPI-ICIQ **** Call targets outstanding postgraduate students worldwide to support their participation in a training and research programme in chemistry, ultimately leading to a Doctoral Thesis. The Doctoral Thesis will be linked to a research project funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, la Agencia Estatal de Investigación, and the Fondo Social Europeo (FSE+) under the framework of the Call **** of Proyectos de Generación del Conocimiento. The PhD students granted will have the opportunity to develop their professional careers in the fields of academia and industry.
Responsibilities
The programme is achieved by performing an individual research project under the direction of an internationally renowned Group Leader, in a creative and stimulating scientific environment. A complementary training programme in both technical and soft skills accompanies the research. The educational framework ensures a successful career: scientific seminars, hands‑on training in state‑of‑the‑art scientific instrumentation, IP management, entrepreneurship, research integrity, knowledge and technology transfer, grant applications, project management, communication skills and career development.
Training Programme (SHARP)
ICIQ provides a personalized annual training programme for PhD students called SHARP (Severo Ochoa PhD Training Programme), which occurs over two weeks each academic year and focuses on their specific PhD year. Opportunities for short stays in distinguished international research institutions are also offered.
Eligibility & Qualifications
The programme is addressed to highly qualified, motivated and talented graduate students with a strong interest in research in Chemistry or related fields. Candidates should have an excellent academic record, a deep commitment to scientific research and a solid working knowledge of English.
* The process of evaluation and selection guarantees the principles of competition, publicity and transparency.
* Available positions: See Annex 1.II.
Application Process
The entire application process will be completed online via the ICIQ's Career Portal. Applications sent by email or any other means will be ineligible. Only one application per person will be considered. In case of multiple applications, only the first application submitted will be taken into consideration. After completing the online form, applicants must attach the following documents:
* Full Curriculum Vitae (in PDF format). It should include the academic background, work or research experience, publications, conferences, grants and awards, previous participation in ICIQ programmes, and other relevant merits and references.
* Personal statement that describes the applicant's academic background, research experience and career goals (maximum two pages, PDF). The candidate must communicate how these interests align with ICIQ and the PhD training programme and mention the research group where they would like to carry out their PhD and why.
* Official transcripts of BSc and MSc studies in PDF format. A scanned copy of the certified academic record of the studies granting access to the PhD programme (BSc and MSc). For academic records not issued in Catalan, Spanish or English, a certified translation in English is required; otherwise the applicant will be ineligible. For degrees obtained in foreign institutions the academic record must include the range of marks used in the corresponding countries and the minimum mark to pass, as well as the hours or ECTS and marks for each subject.
* Contact details for letters of recommendation of two University professors, Researchers in industry or other relevant individuals who can assess the candidate's potential for research. ICIQ will contact the people listed as references only if a candidate is shortlisted. We suggest informing your references.
* English proficiency level: Applicants must provide evidence of their proficiency in written and oral communication in the English language, preferably by the submission of a B2 certificate, First Certificate, IELTS 6 or equivalent. This certificate is not mandatory but desirable; alternatively, late-stage candidates will be interviewed to assess their English level. Applicants from the Anglosphere (UK, Ireland, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand) are exempt from this requirement.
* Applicants should select only one PhD supervisor.
Candidates must ensure that all information is included before the deadline. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Eligibility Criteria
The programme is open to graduate students from any nationality who fulfil the following eligibility criteria: candidates must have a master's or an equivalent degree in Physics, Computer Science, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry or related disciplines, completed by November of ****, that allows them to be admitted in a Spanish PhD Programme by the time the fellowship starts (scheduled for the first quarter of ****, incorporating to ICIQ no later than June 1st ****). When in doubt regarding the eligibility criteria, applicants should contact ICIQ's HR Unit at ****** before submission of the application. Candidates who fulfil the eligibility criteria will be evaluated according to the Evaluation Criteria described in point IV.
Evaluation Criteria
Criteria 1: Academic and/or scientific‑technical career path of the candidate (up to 50 points).
* Sub‑criteria – Scientific‑technical contributions (up to 45 points).
* Mobility and internationalisation (up to 5 points). Short stays in national and international institutions, universities and industry will be assessed based on the prestige of the hosting entity and the activities conducted during the stay.
Criteria 2: Adequacy of the candidate to the research activities to be carried out (up to 50 points). The adequacy of the candidates for the programme, project or research activities will be assessed based on previous training and experience. Consideration is given to the added value that carrying out the project will represent for their research career and the value contributed to the institution and the host research group.
Evaluation and Selection Process
The evaluation and selection of the candidates will be performed by the project supervisor, supported by the Human Resources team. Submitted applications will be checked for eligibility, and those not fulfilling all the criteria will be rejected. It will not be possible to modify the application or add missing documentation after the call deadline.
* The selection will be based on the evaluation criteria described in Section IV.
* At the late stages of the selection process, short‑listed candidates will be contacted for a personal interview.
* All applicants will be notified of the final selection decision once a candidate has been selected.
The name of the awardee will be published on ICIQ's website. Candidates may submit allegations they deem appropriate within 10 days of the date of publication. Successful candidates will be requested to inform ICIQ whether they accept or decline the offer within five business days of being notified; if the applicant does not respond, the offer will be considered declined. ICIQ follows a gender equality opportunity policy and a non‑discrimination policy based on age, ethnic or social origin, religion or belief, sexual orientation, language and disability. ICIQ is committed to promoting a work‑life balance for its employees and, as such, offers flexible working hours.
Fellowship Conditions
The awardees of an FPI‑ICIQ PhD fellowship will be considered research personnel in training, and they will have an employment contract (a pre‑doctoral contract) regulated in the Spanish Law *******, of June 1 of Science, Technology and Education. The Fellowship Conditions are regulated in the **** call of "Proyectos de Generación del Conocimiento" and fellowships for pre‑doctoral researchers associated with these projects, in the framework of the "Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica, Técnica y de Innovación *********", Articles 3, 12 and 13. The fellowship includes salary, enrolment fees to a PhD program (up to 4 years) and the opportunity to carry out fully funded short stays abroad. Pre‑doctoral contracts are renewed annually for up to 4 years. Renewal is subject to satisfactory performance in the PhD studies and related research activities. The time spent with previous pre‑doctoral contracts will be deducted from the 48 months granted. The gross annual salary will be divided into twelve monthly payments. At the time of publishing this call, the gross monthly salary is set at €******,77. This amount may be adjusted in the event of an increase in the remuneration established by the Statute of Pre‑doctoral Research Staff in Training (EPIF). In any case, the remuneration may not be lower than 75 % of the salary established for equivalent categories under the applicable collective agreements during any of the funded years, nor lower than the minimum interprofessional wage established annually under Article 27 of the revised Workers' Statute Law.
Recipients may enter a post‑doctoral orientation phase if they successfully defend their PhD thesis before the end of the fellowship period. In this case, the PhD student and the supervisor may agree to continue the existing contract for up to 12 months within a post‑doctoral orientation phase. The combined duration of both the doctoral and post‑doctoral periods must not exceed 48 months. The fellowship holder is entitled to temporarily interrupt the fellowship in the situations regulated in Article 21. The time elapsed during this interruption will not be accounted for against the total time. The contract takes effect when the awarded student joins the centre. The PhD fellowship awardees will work full‑time at ICIQ and may not receive any other fellowship with the same purpose or regular income.
Scientific Reporting
Pre‑doctoral researchers in training are required to report their activities and achieved objectives to the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades. They must use the templates available on the website of the Agencia Estatal de Investigación. Two reports are required: an intermediate report due at month 20 and a final report covering the entire duration of the fellowship, including the PO phase if applicable.
Annex 1 – Available Positions
Supervisor: Prof. Núria López Alonso
Project (PID): Artificial Intelligence for the Simulation of Materials in Energy (ANIMATE)
PID Project Reference: PID***********OB‑I00
Number of positions: 1
Reference: FPI‑ICIQ ******* NL#J-*****-Ljbffr
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