ITQB NOVA BRIDGE fellowships
What if you had time to experiment and plan your PhD along with your supervisor with an eight month training period in a research laboratory?
In partnership with the Municipality of Oeiras, ITQB NOVA launches the BRIDGE Fellowships Programme.
We are looking for promising future researchers and offering them a head start for their PhD at ITQB NOVA.
If you have a Master's (or equivalent) in a scientific area and are interested in research, you are invited to apply to one of the 15 BRIDGE fellowships, by 5 January 2026.
The ITQB NOVA bridge fellowships aim to help students prepare their future PhD application.
Successful candidates will be supported with an eight-month fellowship to develop their research practice at an ITQB NOVA laboratory. From February to September, fellows will be integrated in a vibrant research environment and will be encouraged to explore new ideas to be later developed during their PhD. Fellows are expected to prepare an application to be submitted to the 2026 FCT call for Doctoral Research Studentships.
How does it work?
(please see the programme regulations for details)
- ITQB NOVA Labs propose projects (each lab may propose one project)
- Applicants apply by email, selecting up to three projects – see List of Projects
- A jury pre-selects the best applicants and communicates the results
- Pre-selected applicants ensure their match with the corresponding labs. A match requires acceptance by the applicant and the laboratory head.
- After the match, selected applicants register in the Research Practice Postgraduate Programme with the corresponding project.
- The fellowship contract is signed, and the research work starts in the lab.
- Bridge fellows apply to the FCT call with the support of the lab head.
- Bridge felllows continue their research work as a preliminary step to their PhD Thesis.
- If a PhD fellowship is secured, Bridge fellows are automatically admitted to a PhD Programme at ITQB NOVA.
Applications should be sent by email to itqb.fellowships@itqb.unl.pt. Please see the official announcement for further details on the application procedure.
Receiving an ITQB NOVA bridge fellowship does not guarantee future acceptance or preference in any of the ITQB NOVA PhD Programmes nor does it ensure attribution of a PhD fellowship by external funding agencies.
| The "Step into your future" programme for university students is an excellent opportunity to visit ITQB NOVA and talk to the researchers. More details… |





