The Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) has published the Call for Applications and the Evaluation Guide for the 2026 PhD Scholarships in All Scientific Domains, namely under the General Application Track and the Specific Application Track in a Non-Academic Environment. Applications will be open from 12:00 pm on March 2 to 5:00 pm on March 31, 2026. To apply, candidates must indicate a host institution and should contact their (potential) supervisor beforehand to ensure that the application is duly considered by our research centre. For the application to be valid, the institution must formally confirm and validate the candidate as its designated host entity.

CEI-Iscte will accept expressions of interest until 9 March (1st phase), after which interested parties must submit a more complete draft version of their application (with a detailed work plan) by 16 March (2nd and final phase).

By 9 March, candidates must submit their expression of interest via the form, including the following information:

  • Application track (General or Specific in a Non-Academic Environment)
  • Main evaluation panel / scientific area of application (e.g. Political Science, Sociology, etc.)
  • Doctoral programme in which you are enrolled (or will enrol);
  • Brief motivation statement explaining the choice of CEI as host institution;
  • Supervisor or supervisory team – one of the supervisors must be a member of the CEI-Iscte team;
  • Project title (even if provisional);
  • Project summary (even if provisional);
  • 4 Keywords;

After acceptance by CEI-Iscte, you must submit, by 16 March, a more detailed work plan, similar to the structure of the MyFCT form, which must be sent to doutoramentos.cei@iscte-iul.pt in Word or PDF format. Submission of the detailed plan for analysis by the CEI Scientific Committee is mandatory.

These PhD Research Scholarships are intended for candidates enrolled, or eligible to be enrolled, in a doctoral programme leading to the award of a PhD degree, who wish to carry out research activities towards that degree. Applicants must not have previously benefited from a PhD research scholarship directly funded by FCT, regardless of its duration, and must not already hold a doctoral degree. Eligibility conditions are fully described in the Call for Applications.
For any suggestions, questions, or requests for support, please do not hesitate to contact us via email: doutoramentos.cei@iscte-iul.pt.

Additional information may also be found on the FCT official website.