The Fully-Funded PhD Programme offered by The Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ) is aimed at exceptional graduate students from all over the world, to support their enrolment in a training and research programme in the field of chemistry, ultimately leading to the completion of a Doctoral Thesis in partnership with the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV). The programme will also contribute to their professional career development, in the fields of academia and industry. This objective is achieved by:

- The performance of an individual research project under the direction of an internationally renowned Group Leader, in a creative and stimulating scientific environment.
- Opportunities for short stays in distinguished international research institutions.
- Opportunities for complementary training in both technical and soft skills. The educational framework is designed to ensure a successful career: scientific seminars, hands-on training in the use of state-of-the-art scientific instrumentation, IP management, entrepreneurship, research integrity, knowledge and technology transfer, grant applications, project management, communication skills and career development. ICIQ offers a yearly personalized training programme for PhD students, SHARP, which takes place during the course of 2 weeks, with training focused on their given PhD year.

The programme is addressed to highly qualified and talented graduate students with a keen interest in chemical research. Candidates should have an excellent academic record, strong commitment to scientific research and a solid working knowledge of English.

Admission to the programme is on a competitive basis.

Available positions

See Annex 1

Eligibility and evaluation criteria





The programme is open to graduate students, from any nationality that fulfil the following eligibility criteria:

- Candidates must have a Master’s or an equivalent degree in the areas of Chemistry, Pharmacy, Physics, Chemical Engineering or related disciplines that must be completed by the time of enrolment in the PhD programme.

Evaluation criteria

- Curriculum vitae.
- Personal statement.
- Academic marks.
- English level.
- Personal interview for short-listed candidates.

Evaluation and Selection Process

- Submitted applications will be checked for eligibility and those not fulfilling all the criteria will be rejected. It won’t be possible to modify the application or to add missing documentation after the application has been submitted.
- The selection will be based on the evaluation criteria described in Section III.
- At the late stages of the selection process, only short-listed candidates will be contacted for a personal interview.
- All applicants will be notified of the final selection decision by mid November 2026.

Successful candidates will be requested to inform ICIQ whether they accept or decline the offer within five business days after being notified. The offer will be considered declined in the event that the applicant does not respond during this time.





ICIQ follows in its selection process a gender equality opportunity policy and a non-discrimination policy on the basis of 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 versátil working hours.

Grant Conditions

- The awardees of an ICIQ Fully-Funded PhD position will be considered research personnel in training and they will have an employment contract (a pre-doctoral contract) which is regulated in the Spanish Law 14/2011, of June 1st, of Science, Technology and Education.
- 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 gross yearly salary of the contract shall be split into 12 monthly payments and distributed as shown below:
- First and Second year of PhD: 19.007,22€ /year
- Third year of PhD: 20.364,88€ /year
- Fourth year of PhD: 25.456,10€ /year

- The fellowship includes full social security coverage through the Spanish Social Security system, providing access to the Spanish public health care system and pension and unemployment benefits.
- The grant holder is entitled to temporarily interrupt the fellowship in the following situations: temporary disability, risk during pregnancy, maternity, paternity and adoption or foster care. The time elapsed during this interruption will not be accounted for against the total time.
- The contract will take effect on the date when the awarded student joins the centre.
- The Fully-Funded PhD includes the costs of enrolment

📌 PD 2026-20 JS (Tarragona)
🏢 ICIQ
📍 Tarragona