Entry-Level PhD Researcher

(Fixed-term employment contract of uncertain duration)

By order dated 25/09/2026, of the Dean of FEUP, Professor Rui Artur Bártolo Calçada, it was decided to open an international selection procedure for one position of Entry-Level PhD Researcher, within the scope of Project FP4-Rail4EARTH2 – ““Europe’s Rail Flagship Project 4 - Sustainable and green rail systems (Phase 2) “, with the Grant Agreement number 101324053, funded by the European Commission, under the Horizonte Europe Framework Programme, within the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking (EU-Rail), under an Fixed-term employment contract of uncertain duration, as required by law, pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of the RJEC, ex vi Article 18(2) of Decree-Law No. 57/2016 of 29 August, as currently worded, the Labour Code, approved by Law No. 7/2009 of 12 February, as currently worded, Regulatory Decree No. 11-A/2017 of 29 December, Regulation No. 849/2026 of 07/07 - Regulation on Research, Science and Technology Staff of the University of Porto (hereinafter referred to as the Regulation), and other applicable legislation, and shall remain in force only for the period necessary to carry out the tasks defined in the project and identified below, whose expected duration is 14 months, never exceeding the maximum limit of six years.

The Entry-Level PhD Researcher shall, in general terms, perform the activities provided for in Article 8(2)(a) of Regulation No. 849/2026 of 7 July. Specifically, the Entry-Level PhD Researcher will carry out R&D activities within Project FP4-Rail4EARTH2, falling within the scientific area of Civil Engineering, contributing to the following project activities provided for in the application:

Task 4.1 - Ground-borne vibration modelling and mitigation (Subtask 4.1.2 – Vibration modelling and prediction)

Task 4.5 – Practical assessment of WP4 results in terms of exposed people.

The researcher to be hired may also provide occasional collaboration in teaching and training activities in the research area.

The present notice is published pending the signature of the Grant Agreement of the project, therefore, for this reason and for reasons of interest of the institution, by means of a duly reasoned act, this selection process may be terminated until before the notification of the selection minutes to the applicants, within the scope of the hearing of the interested parties.

1. Workplace

The workplace is located at the Department of Civil and Georesources Engineering of the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP), as well as at any other locations where the duties for which the employee is hired need to be performed, including locations intended for the respective professional training.

2. Remuneration

The gross monthly base remuneration is €2,408.11, corresponding to the 1st remuneration position, level 3, under an exclusive dedication regime, of the remuneration table set out in Annexes I and II to Regulation No. 849/2026 of 7 July, plus holiday and Christmas allowances, as well as meal allowance, under the terms and in the amounts applicable to employees holding a public employment relationship.

3. Admission requirements

3.1 General admission requirement:

National, foreign and stateless citizens holding a PhD degree* in the scientific area of Civil Engineering (or in scientific areas related to that for which the selection procedure is opened), awarded no more than 5 years ago, and holding a scientific and professional curriculum demonstrating a profile suited to the activity to be performed, may apply to this selection procedure.

*If the PhD degree was awarded by a foreign higher education institution, it must be recognised by a Portuguese higher education institution, pursuant to Article 25 of Decree-Law No. 66/2018 of 16 August, which approves the legal framework for the recognition of academic degrees and higher education diplomas awarded by foreign higher education institutions, and Article 4(2)(e) of Decree-Law No. 60/2018 of 3 August, with any formalities established therein having to be completed by the date on which the employment contract is entered into.

3.2. Specific admission requirements

For the purposes of determining the profile suited to the activity to be performed, the following are specific requirements:

1. Demonstrate consolidated and relevant experience in the project area, documented by lead authorship of scientific articles published in English in international journals indexed in Scopus/WoS, reporting work developed in the scope of soil dynamics, with a particular focus on applying artificial intelligence techniques.
2. candidates must have skills and previous experience in advanced numerical modelling of ground-borne vibrations and wave propagation problems due to railway traffic and/or construction activities; structural dynamics analysis; programming skills in Matlab and Python; development and implementation of numerical, analytical and/or machine learning tools.

4. Selection methods

Pursuant to Article 29 of Regulation No. 849/2026 of 7 July and Article 5 of the RJEC, the following selection methods shall apply:

1. Assessment of the candidates’ scientific and curricular background (APCC) (90%)
2. Professional Selection Interview (EPS) - (10%), to be applied to candidates approved in the assessment of the scientific and curricular background.

5. Assessment of Scientific and Curricular Background (APCC) (90%)

5.1. The assessment of the scientific and curricular background shall focus on the relevance, quality and up-to-dateness of the following criteria:

1. Scientific, technological, cultural or artistic output from the last five years considered most relevant by the candidate;
2. Applied or practice-based research activities carried out over the last five years and considered by the candidate to have the greatest impact;
3. Knowledge transfer and dissemination activities carried out over the last five years, particularly in the context of promoting scientific culture and practices, considered most relevant by the candidate;
4. Management activities in science, technology and innovation programmes, or experience in observing and monitoring the scientific and technological system or higher education, in Portugal or abroad.

5.2. The period referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be calculated by reference to the 5 (five) years immediately preceding the closing date for applications.

5.3. The five-year period referred to in the preceding paragraph may be extended by the Selection Committee, at the candidate’s request, where scientific activity has been suspended for socially protected reasons, namely parental leave, prolonged serious illness, and other legally protected situations of unavailability for work (in which case the candidate must indicate the requested assessment period and attach documentary evidence of the grounds invoked).

5.4. In applying the criteria referred to in point 5.1., the following parameters shall be assessed, with the weighting factors indicated:

5.4.1. Scientific and Professional Background (PCP) (5%)

PCP1. Professional research experience in the scientific area(s) of the selection procedure) (100%).

5.4.2. Scientific, Technological, Cultural or Artistic Output (PCTCA) (90%):

PCTCA1. Participation in international research projects in the area of the project, as well as scientific production, specifically, having international publications in high-ranked peer-reviewed journals related to the project. The list of publications must be included in the curriculum with a clear indication of the statistical analyses used, along with the candidate’s role in implementing them. (70%);

PCTCA2. Development of collaborations with international researchers and periods of study or research abroad) (20%);

PCTCA3. Duly documented teaching in degree-awarding study cycles (bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral) and in continuing education courses) (10%).

5.4.3. Knowledge Transfer and Dissemination Activities (AEDC) (5%):

AEDC1. Authorship and co-authorship of patents, ownership registrations of intellectual property rights over software, methods, and mathematical models (30%).

AEDC2. Review of scientific articles (20%);

AEDC3. Organisation of scientific events (20%);

AEDC4. Participation in national and international scientific events, peer-reviewed and by invitation (20%);

AEDC5. Experience in scientific supervision at different levels (internships, master’s, doctorates) (10%);

5.5. The final APCC score is obtained using the following formula: APCC = (0.05 x PCP) + (0.90 x PCTCA) + (0.05 x AEDC).

6. Professional Selection Interview (EPS) (10%)

6.1. Candidates who obtain a score equal to or higher than 80 points, provided that such score is awarded by all members of the Selection Committee in the assessment of the scientific and curricular background (APCC), shall be admitted to the interview stage.

6.2. The Professional Selection Interview (EPS) shall have a maximum duration of one hour and is intended exclusively to clarify aspects related to the research carried out by the candidates.

6.3. The assessment criteria for the Professional Selection Interview (EPS) shall be as set out below, with the weighting factors indicated:

EPS1. Scientific quality and clarity of the presentation of the research work carried out, including the methodology and the results obtained (60%).

EPS2. Responsiveness and technical mastery demonstrated in clarifying questions raised by the panel regarding the research presented (40%).

6.4. The score for the Professional Selection Interview (EPS) is obtained using the following formula: EPS = EPS1 + EPS2.

7. Final Score

7.1. The Final Score (CF) of the Assessment of Scientific and Curricular Background (APCC) and Professional Selection Interview (EPS) shall be obtained using the following formula: CF = (0.9*APCC) + (0.1*EPS).

Or

The Final Score (CF) is the same as the Assessment of Scientific and Curricular Background (APCC).

7.2. Only candidates who obtain a final score equal to or higher than 80 points, provided that such score is awarded by all members of the Selection Committee, shall be approved.

7.3. Candidates who obtain a score below 50 points in any of the selection methods shall be excluded from the selection procedure and, where applicable, shall not proceed to the following method.

7.4. The casting or tie-breaking vote to be exercised by the Chair of the Selection Committee in the Final Score shall be based on the highest score obtained in the criterion set out in point 5.4.2. Scientific, Technological, Cultural or Artistic Output (PCTCA). If the tie persists, the highest score in the criterion set out in point 5.4.1. Scientific and Professional Background (PCP) shall prevail.

8. Selection Methodology

8.1. First meeting:

8.1.1. The Selection Committee shall first decide on the admission and exclusion of applications, verifying compliance with the formal application requirements set out in this Notice, as well as fulfilment of the general and specific admission requirements.

8.1.2. Once the admission and exclusion stage has been completed, the Selection Committee shall begin the phased application of the selection methods, first assessing the scientific and curricular background of all admitted candidates.

8.1.3. In the assessment of the scientific and curricular background, only merit shall be considered and, consequently, the candidate’s experience in the scientific area or areas for which the selection procedure is opened shall be evaluated, in accordance with the selection criteria and assessment parameters defined in this Notice.

8.1.4. Before voting begins for the ranking of candidates in the assessment of the scientific and curricular background, each member of the Selection Committee shall submit a written document, to be attached to the minutes, containing the ordered list of candidates in descending order of merit, on a scale from 0 to 100 points, scored to two decimal places, duly reasoned, in accordance with the selection criteria and assessment parameters established in this Notice.

8.1.5. Each member of the Selection Committee must respect, in all votes, the ranking set out in the document referred to in the preceding paragraph.

8.1.6. The Selection Committee shall deliberate by reasoned roll-call vote, in accordance with the selection criteria previously approved and published; abstentions are not permitted.

8.1.7. The ranking methodology to be adopted is that provided for in Article 32 of the Regulation.

8.2. Second meeting:

8.2.1. The Selection Committee shall apply the second selection method to the candidates admitted to this method.

8.2.2. The Professional Selection Interview (EPS) for each candidate shall have a maximum duration of one hour and is intended exclusively to clarify aspects related to the research carried out by the candidates. This method shall be conducted in Portuguese and English.

8.2.3. Failure to attend at the previously scheduled time and place shall result in exclusion from the selection procedure. Candidates whose Professional Selection Interview (EPS), is to be held by videoconference and who, for any reason, are not available at the scheduled time shall likewise be considered excluded for failure to attend.

8.2.4. After the Professional Selection Interview (EPS), has been held and scored, the Selection Committee shall establish the final score and rank the candidates approved in both methods, applying the formula provided for in point 7 of this Notice.

8.3. Third meeting:

8.3.1. If any candidate exercises the right to be heard in the hearing of interested parties, the Selection Committee shall hold a third meeting to consider the arguments submitted, and the Committee’s decisions shall be notified to the candidates.

8.3.2. If the Selection Committee considers the arguments to be well-founded, it shall act in accordance with the decisions taken and notify the candidates accordingly.

8.3.3. If the Selection Committee considers the arguments to be unfounded, after notifying the candidates, it shall submit the procedure for approval by the Rector.

8.3.4. All candidates shall be notified of the approval decision.

8.4. Casting or tie-breaking vote

The casting or tie-breaking vote to be exercised by the Chair of the Selection Committee in the Final Score shall be based on the highest score obtained in the criterion set out in point 5.4.2. Scientific, Technological, Cultural or Artistic Output (PCTCA). If the tie persists, the highest score in the criterion set out in point 9. Notification of Results shall prevail.

9. Notification of Results

9.1. Notifications shall be made by publication on the Apply UP electronic platform, pursuant to Article 112(1)(c) of the Administrative Procedure Code (CPA), and shall take effect under the terms of Article 113 of the CPA.

9.2. A hearing of interested parties shall take place, pursuant to Articles 121 and 122 of the Administrative Procedure Code, for candidates who have not been admitted and for candidates ranked in a position on the ranking list that cannot be appointed to the position under competition. All candidates shall be notified of the approval of the Selection Committee’s final decision.

9.3. Pursuant to Article 121 and following of the CPA, once notified, candidates have 10 working days to submit their comments through the relevant platform.

10. Composition of the Selection Committee

In accordance with Article 25(4) to (7) of Regulation No. 849/2026 of 7 July and Article 13 of the RJEC, the Selection Committee shall have the following composition:

Chair of the Selection Committee: Aires Manuel Silva Colaço, Doutorado Equiparado a Investigador Auxiliar, Faculdade de Engenharia da Universidade do Porto,

Full members:

1st full member: Pedro Miguel Barbosa Alves Costa, Professor Associado com Agregação, Faculdade de Engenharia da Universidade do Porto.

2nd full member: Pedro Aires Moreira Montenegro e Almeida, Professor Auxiliar, Faculdade de Engenharia da Universidade do Porto.

Alternate members:

1st alternate member: Cecília Maria Nogueira Alvarenga Santos do Vale, Professor Auxiliar, Faculdade de Engenharia da Universidade do Porto;

2nd alternate member: Andreia Gomes Meixedo, Doutorado de Nível Inicial, Faculdade de Engenharia da Universidade do Porto.

10.1. In the event of absence or impediment, the Chair of the Selection Committee shall be replaced by the member listed first, who, in the event of the same impediment, shall be replaced by the next listed member, and so on successively.

11. Submission of applications

11.1. Applications must be submitted within 10 working days from the first working day immediately following publication of this Notice in the Diário da República, ending at 23:59 (local time) on 10/11/2026 (Lisbon local time).

11.2. Candidates must access and register on the electronic platform www.apply.up.pt to submit their application, selecting the procedure for which they wish to apply (procedure code: INVTERM_FEUP_26.6, by the deadline. The application shall be completed by filling in the sections available on the Apply UP platform under “My application”.

11.3. The application must be accompanied by documentary evidence of the conditions set out in points 3, 5 and 6 of this Notice, namely:

1. Curriculum Vitae covering the last five years (or the extended period determined by the Selection Committee, if requested by the candidate on the grounds of suspension of scientific activity for socially protected reasons, namely parental leave, prolonged serious illness, and other legally protected situations of unavailability for work, in which case the candidate must indicate the requested assessment period and attach documentary evidence of the grounds invoked). The candidate must also organise the Curriculum Vitae so as to address separately each of the criteria set out in point 5 and its subpoints, and must identify and justify, from among the works produced, those considered most significant from the perspective of each assessment criterion.
2. Copy of qualification certificates. Candidates selected for the position(s) to be filled who hold a PhD degree obtained abroad must provide recognition or registration (as applicable) of their degree at the time the employment contract is signed, pursuant to Decree-Law No. 66/2018 of 16 August, failing which they shall be excluded.
3. Separate copy (one PDF file per work) of those works which the candidate considers most significant from the perspective of each assessment criterion.
4. Copy of all other works mentioned in the Curriculum Vitae (or indication in the CV of the unique digital identifier of the publications, which must be of the handle type (e.g. DOI) or URN (e.g. ISBN)).
5. Any other documents that the candidate considers relevant to the assessment of their merit (if applicable).

11.4. For the purposes of assessing applications, documents made available via links or drives shall not be considered, except for links to publications with a DOI.

11.5. The documents referred to in point 3 must be submitted in a non-editable format.

11.6. All application documents indicated in point 11.3. must be submitted in Portuguese or English, except those indicated in subparagraphs c), d) and e), which may be submitted in another language if no Portuguese or English version exists.

11.7. If the candidate is not a native speaker of Portuguese or English, they must have language proficiency at level C1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) in at least one of the two languages.

11.8. Failure to comply with the application deadline, failure to submit, or late submission of the documents referred to in subparagraphs a) and d) of point 11.3. shall result in the application not being admitted.

11.9. Whenever deemed necessary, the Selection Committee may request candidates to provide additional documents supporting facts referred to in the submitted curriculum, setting a deadline for this purpose, under the following terms:

1. the documentation referred to is not intended to introduce information not referenced in the curriculum vitae, nor to supply missing documents required under this Notice;
2. all candidates shall be informed that additional documentation has been requested.

12. Filling of the position(s) under competition

12.1. This selection procedure shall terminate when the positions have been filled or, where they cannot be fully filled, due to the absence or insufficient number of candidates to continue the procedure.

12.2. If none of the candidates demonstrates the profile indicated for the performance of the duties described above within the scope of this procedure, the Selection Committee reserves the right not to fill the position under competition.

12.3. In the event of withdrawal and/or failure by the selected candidate(s) to provide the required documentation within the prescribed deadline, the candidate(s) immediately following in the final ranking list may be called, successively, until the position(s) under competition are filled, whenever this is deemed appropriate on grounds of opportunity and convenience.

13. False Statements

False statements made by candidates shall be punished in accordance with the law.

14. Personal Data Protection

The personal data provided by candidates shall be processed by the University of Porto exclusively for the purpose of managing this selection procedure, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other applicable legislation.

15. Other provisions

Joint Order No. 373/2000 of 31 March, issued by the Minister for State Reform and Public Administration and the Minister for Equality, requires the following statement to be included in recruitment and promotion procedures: “In compliance with Article 9(h) of the Constitution, the Public Administration, as an employer, actively promotes a policy of equal opportunities for men and women in access to employment and career progression, taking scrupulous care to prevent any form of discrimination.” Accordingly, the terms “candidate(s)”, “researcher(s)” and other similar terms are not used in this Notice to refer to the gender of persons.

Likewise, no candidate may be privileged, favoured, disadvantaged or deprived of any right, or exempted from any duty, on grounds including ancestry, age, sexual orientation, marital status, family situation, economic situation, education, origin or social condition, genetic heritage, reduced work capacity, disability, chronic illness, nationality, ethnic origin or race, territory of origin, language, religion, political or ideological beliefs, or trade union membership.

Where to apply

Website: https://www.apply.up.pt

Requirements

• Research Field: Engineering » Civil engineering
• Education Level: PhD or equivalent
• Research Field: Engineering » Other
• Education Level: PhD or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

full announcement also available to FEUP - FEUP| Doutorado de Nível inicial - Projeto FP4-Rail4EARTH2 - INVTERM_FEUP_26.6

Applications must be submitted within 10 working days from the first working day immediately following publication of this Notice in the Diário da República, ending at 23:59 (local time) on 10/11/2026 (Lisbon local time).

Candidates must access and register on the electronic platform www.apply.up.pt to submit their application, selecting the procedure for which they wish to apply (procedure code: INVTERM_FEUP_26.6, by the deadline. The application shall be completed by filling in the sections available on the Apply UP platform under “My application”.

Specific Requirements

full announcement also available to FEUP - FEUP| Doutorado de Nível inicial - Projeto FP4-Rail4EARTH2 - INVTERM_FEUP_26.6

Applications must be submitted within 10 working days from the first working day immediately following publication of this Notice in the Diário da República, ending at 23:59 (local time) on 10/11/2026 (Lisbon local time).

Candidates must access and register on the electronic platform www.apply.up.pt to submit their application, selecting the procedure for which they wish to apply (procedure code: INVTERM_FEUP_26.6, by the deadline. The application shall be completed by filling in the sections available on the Apply UP platform under “My application”.

Additional Information

Benefits: €2,408.11

Eligibility criteria: full announcement also available to FEUP - FEUP| Doutorado de Nível inicial - Projeto FP4-Rail4EARTH2 - INVTERM_FEUP_26.6

Applications must be submitted within 10 working days from the first working day immediately following publication of this Notice in the Diário da República, ending at 23:59 (local time) on 10/11/2026 (Lisbon local time).

Candidates must access and register on the electronic platform www.apply.up.pt to submit their application, selecting the procedure for which they wish to apply (procedure code: INVTERM_FEUP_26.6, by the deadline. The application shall be completed by filling in the sections available on the Apply UP platform under “My application”.

Selection process: full announcement also available to FEUP - FEUP| Doutorado de Nível inicial - Projeto FP4-Rail4EARTH2 - INVTERM_FEUP_26.6

Applications must be submitted within 10 working days from the first working day immediately following publication of this Notice in the Diário da República, ending at 23:59 (local time) on 10/11/2026 (Lisbon local time).

Candidates must access and register on the electronic platform www.apply.up.pt to submit their application, selecting the procedure for which they wish to apply (procedure code: INVTERM_FEUP_26.6, by the deadline. The application shall be completed by filling in the sections available on the Apply UP platform under “My application”.

Additional comments: full announcement also available to FEUP - FEUP| Doutorado de Nível inicial - Projeto FP4-Rail4EARTH2 - INVTERM_FEUP_26.6

Applications must be submitted within 10 working days from the first working day immediately following publication of this Notice in the Diário da República, ending at 23:59 (local time) on 10/11/2026 (Lisbon local time).

Candidates must access and register on the electronic platform www.apply.up.pt to submit their application, selecting the procedure for which they wish to apply (procedure code: INVTERM_FEUP_26.6, by the deadline. The application shall be completed by filling in the sections available on the Apply UP platform under “My application”.

Work Location(s)

• Number of offers available: 1
• Company/Institute: FEUP
• Country: Portugal

Contact

• City: Porto
• Website: https://sigarra.up.pt/feup/pt
• Street: Rua Dr. Roberto Frias
• Postal Code: 4200-465
• E-Mail: recursoshumanos@fe.up.pt