Job Information
- Organisation/Company: Université de Toulouse
- Research Field: Environmental science » Global change; Sociology; Medical sciences » Epidemiology; Astronomy; Engineering » Aerospace engineering; Political sciences » Governance; All
Offer Description
About ASCENT
The ASCENT program (Academic Secured Career Engagement in Toulouse) is a prestigious fellowship program for advanced post-doctoral researchers coordinated by the University of Toulouse and a core component of the TIRIS initiative (Toulouse Initiative for Research Impact on Society).
Co-funded by TIRIS and the European Commission under Horizon Europe (MSCA-COFUND-2025, Grant Agreement n°101313640), ASCENT aims to position Toulouse as a European hub for scientific talent by offering long-term stability, freedom, and visibility to advanced post-doctoral researchers.
It is designed to recruit 6 highly talented researchers, for 5 years, in one annual call (2026-27). Fellows will conduct independent, high-impact research at the University of Toulouse, benefiting from an interdisciplinary and intersectoral environment.
Research Areas
ASCENT aims to support high-level postdoctoral research in 7 strategic areas:
- Climate and environmental sciences: understanding planetary change, ecological tipping points and pathways to resilience
- Gender studies and social equality research: advancing knowledge on identity, rights, inequalities and inclusion
- Public health, epidemiology and infectious diseases: protecting populations, vaccine studies, modelling risks and improving global health
- Space and Earth observation sciences: monitoring environmental change, hazards and resources through cutting-edge observation technologies
- Sustainable aeronautics: advanced air mobility, sustainable fuels, hydrogen, green technologies
- Governance, democracy, migration and human rights research: analysing political systems, collective decision-making and the conditions of human dignity
- Biosciences and data-driven health research: exploring life processes, ageing, bio-interfaces, molecular mechanisms and health data sciences
Where you will work
The University of Toulouse (UT) steers a world-class ecosystem comprising 19 higher education and research institutions, seven national research organisations and a university hospital, with around 17,300 staff and 110,000 students. Its excellence is evidenced by major distinctions, including a Nobel Prize (Tirole), a Vetlesen Prize, more than one hundred CNRS medals since 1957, 31 academy members, 114 ERC grants since 2007 and 138 Institut Universitaire de France members. UT’s overarching objectives are to drive frontier science, to translate research into innovation and societal benefit, and to develop talent pipelines aligned with European and regional priorities.
Integration within the ASCENT Programme
ASCENT offers a structured, interdisciplinary training programme including: a mentoring scheme with senior scientists, an annual general meeting gathering the full cohort, interdisciplinary scientific events across the seven ASCENT domains; specialised training in open science, research integrity, data stewardship, AI, communication, leadership, teaching and entrepreneurship, and access to UT’s extensive continuing-education catalogue. Fellows will write an individual Data Management Plan (DMP) compliant with FAIR principles. All DMPs will be consolidated at programme level and stored in an ASCENT community on Zenodo, fostering open and responsible science.
Training Program
The objective is to equip ASCENT fellows with the scientific, technical and professional skills needed to develop into independent, internationally competitive researchers. The training programme fosters research excellence through interdisciplinary exchanges, exposure to diverse methods and perspectives, and engagement with ASCENT’s seven scientific priority areas. It supports career development through structured mentoring, personalised training paths, and dedicated activities that strengthen leadership, supervision, open science practices and intersectoral readiness.
Potential secondments
Internationally, ASCENT draws on UT’s global partnerships: major universities, research institutes, agencies and infrastructures across Europe and beyond have expressed their willingness to host secondments, share expertise or provide access to equipment.
Where to apply
Website: https://portail-tiris.univ-toulouse.fr/callforproject/508/proposal/new
Requirements
- Research Field: All
- Education Level: PhD or equivalent
Additional Information
Benefits
Competitive MSCA-aligned salary including mobility allowance (and family allowance* if eligible) - remuneration guaranteed for 60 months details as follows:
- Phase 1 (Months 1 to 36): 3.800,00€ per month
- Phase 2 (Months 37 to 60): 3.300,00€ per month
The exact (net) salary will be confirmed upon appointment and is dependent on local tax regulations.
* Family is defined as persons linked to the researcher by (a) marriage, or (b) a relationship with equivalent status to a marriage recognized by the national legislation of the country of the beneficiary or of nationality of the researcher, or (c) dependent children who are actually being maintained by the researcher.
Eligibility criteria
Applicants must hold a PhD or have successfully defended their PhD by the end of the Call for Application (January 22, 2027).
According to the international mobility rules of the MSCA program, the candidates must not have spent more than 12 months in the hosting country (France), during the 36 months preceding the starting of the PhD. Apart from this rule, worldwide applications are expected and encouraged.
Other eligibility criteria involve not already receiving funding from the EU on the same project, and not be permanently employed by the future host institution.
Selection process
The recruitment process will adhere to the principles of equal opportunities, transparency and non-discrimination, in line with the European Charter for Researchers, and will actively promote diversity and gender balance.
To apply, fill in the form on our online platform, between September 21, 2026, and January 22, 2027. Applications that pass the eligibility check and receive outstanding positive ratings from a diverse panel of expert evaluators will be convened to attend an individual online interview.
Meanwhile, additional information can be obtained by contacting the programme’s coordinating team. For this sake, please contact us by e-mail ascent@univ-toulouse.fr, mentioning “ASCENT application” in the subject of the e-mail.
Additional comments
Submit your full application* via the ASCENT Online Portal. No applications submitted by email will be considered or reviewed.
*CV, Motivation Letter, Research Proposal, PhD Certificate, and Ethics Self-Assessment
The ideal starting date will be September, 1 2027.
Website for additional job details: https://tiris.univ-toulouse.fr/en/programs/ascent/
Work Location(s)
- Number of offers available: 6
- Company/Institute: University of Toulouse
- Country: France
- City: Toulouse
- Postal Code: 31062
- Street: 118 Route de Narbonne
Contact
- City: Toulouse
- Website: https://www.utoulouse.fr
- Street: 118 route de Narbonne
- Postal Code: 31062
- E-Mail: ascent@univ-toulouse.fr