Research grant for Doctors (1 vacancy) REFERĂŠNCIA: BI/CITAB/UTAD/AMB/2015
One research grant for doctors is available within the Research Unit CITAB – Centre for The Research and Technology of Agro-Environmental and Biological Sciences (AGR-Norte-VilaReal-4033) at the Universidade de Trås-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Portugal, funded by national funds through FCT, under the following conditions: Scientific area: Environmental Sciences Admission prerequisites: 1. Ph. D. in Agro-forestry Sciences, Environment, Biology or similar scientific fields. 2. Advanced skills in applied ecology, environmental systems and ecosystem services. 3. High academic and scientific merit in the relevant areas of the grant. 4. Proficiency in English. 5. Experience in preparing and participating in national and international research projects. Work plan: Focused on conservation strategies and ecological modelling to promote and ensure ecosystem recovery and sustainability and the provision of adequate ecosystem services, including ecological assessment and systems characterization and evolution by modelling the effect of anthropogenic impacts. The research fellow is expected to contribute to the development of the task as a whole through broad academic and scientific skills. The researcher will develop practical and operational solutions (tools, methods, knowledge) that will facilitate ecosystem restoration and enhance its (cost-) effectiveness in contributing to the multiple goals of different policies, including: the WFD, the FD, biodiversity strategy, habitats and birds directive, climate change adaptation, but also the delivery of amenities and enhanced living conditions to citizens. Innovative, cost-effective, and robust solutions will be developed to increase the awareness and positive attitudes of public authorities and create incentives and practical tools for assessing the multiple benefits of restoration, resulting in increased socio-ecological resilience. These solutions will be built-in in experimental areas where UTAD is developing integrative work (e.g. Sabor river) concerning the modelling of changes on the communities related to land use, multidisciplinary impact mitigation, and restoration of habitats and biodiversity. This case will be further linked with a network of restoration cases across Europe involving international research centres and public and private organizations. The selected applicant will be active in promoting scientific collaboration among task members and CITAB members in general, including the definition of new research areas, and will seek funding opportunities allowing an integrated approach to the task. As such, teamwork skills, scientific autonomy, English fluency and previous experience in designing project applications are of foremost importance. The researcher will also contribute to increase the scientific productivity of the task.
Legislation and regulations: Law N º. 40/2004, of August 18 (Status of Scientific Research Fellow); the current Research Grants Regulation
from
the
Foundation
for
Science
and
Technology
(http://www.fct.pt/apoios/bolsas/regulamento.phtml) and Research Grant Regulation from the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro - Order RT.36/2011, July 6, Mr. Rector, published in the Official Gazette by Order No. 9157/2011 (Series II) of 19 July. Workplace: Work will be conducted at the Centre for The Research and Technology of Agro-Environmental and Biological Sciences located at Vila Real, Portugal, under the supervision of Professors Mário Gabriel Santiago dos Santos, João Alexandre Ferreira Abel dos Santos Cabral and Ronaldo Eugenio Calçada Dias Gabriel. Grant duration: The grant has a 12-month extent, starting in July 2015, and may be renewed up to a maximum of months in accordance with current legislation and financial availability (subject to FCT funding). Monthly maintenance grant: The grant corresponds to a monthly-paid stipend of 1,495 euros according to the FCT payment table in Portugal (http://alfa.fct.mctes.pt/apoios/bolsas/valores). Payment is done by bank deposit, cheque, or other equivalent way. Selection criteria: The selection methods to use will be the following: The candidates will be ranked based on their personal merit as assessed by Curriculum Vitae (60%), research experience under the work plan scope (weight: 20%), and interview (weight: 20%). In the interview will be valued aspects related to interest in research careers, particularly with the topics studied in this project, and professional skills. The candidates will be classified with a scale of 1 to 20 for each criterion. Candidates classified with a score below 15 in the Curriculum Vitae will not be admitted to the interview.
Referee panel composition: Professor Rui Manuel Victor Cortes (president), Professor João Alexandre Ferreira Abel dos Santos (effective member), Professor Ronaldo Eugénio Calcada Dias Gabriel (effective member).
Results publication/ applicants notification:
The final results will be publicly available as a list sorted by applicant grades. The list will be placed in a visible and public place at the CITAB office (building P2 - UTAD). The selected applicant will be notified by email. Whenever the decision is unfavourable to the grant of the scholarship, the applicant has a period of 10 days following such disclosure, to pronounce himself in a preliminary hearing, under the terms of the Administrative Procedure Code. Application deadline and method: Applications will be received from 28 May until 11 June 2015. The application documents are the Form Mod4_BIUTAD, the curriculum vitae (CV), a certificate containing the grades of the disciplines completed during the BSc and MSc (transcripts), and any other relevant documents attesting the academic or scientific merit of the applicant. The form Mod4_BIUTAD-Application Form for Fellowship is available at the UTAD website, using the following instructions: •
Access UTAD’s homepage: www.utad.pt. Select the menu "Investigar", option "Bolsas de Investigação".
•
In the "Bolsas de Investigação" page, select the option "Download" next to the title "Modelos de Documentos[...]"
•
Download Mod4_BIUTAD-Application Form the research grant, in the Portuguese or English version.
The applications should be sent by email only, to Professor Rui Cortes, citab@utad.pt