Researcher in Earth Sciences

Offer Description

NOTICE NO. 48/2026
Announcement of an international selection procedure for the hiring of an initial level PhD researcher under Decree-Law no. 57/2016, dated August 29, for the scientific area of Earth Sciences, sub-area of Hydrogeology

Under the terms of paragraph (i), no. 1 of Article 83 of the University of the Azores Statutes, approved by Order No. 8/2022, dated April 22, published in the Diário da República, 2nd series, No. 101, on June 1, as well as the Decree-Law No. 57/2016, dated August 29, amended by Law No. 57/2017, dated July 19, the Regulatory Decree no. 11-A/2017, dated December 29 and paragraph (i), no. 1 of article 57 of the General Law on Labour in Public Functions (LGTFP), approved by Law no. 35/2014, dated June 20, the Rector of the University of the Azores, Professor Susana da Conceição Miranda Silva Mira Leal, hereby announces an international recruitment application process for 1 (one) PhD Researcher at initial level in the form of a fixed-term employment contract for a period of 3 (three) years, for the scientific area of Earth Sciences, sub-area of Hydrogeology.
The opening of this tender was authorized by the Rector of the University of the Azores on February 25, 2026.
1 — Framework and scope:
1.1 — This is an international, document-based recruitment procedure and is open within the scope of the Multiannual Funding of R&D Units 2025-2029 – 2025-Programmatic IVAR (reference UID/00643/2025 – https://doi.org/10.54499/UID/00643/2025), funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology, developed by the Institute for Research in Volcanology and Risk Assessment (IVAR), University of the Azores, based on the Island of São Miguel, Azores, Portugal.
1.2 — The selection procedure aims to strengthen the research capacity of the Institute for Research in Volcanology and Risk Assessment in the scientific area of Earth Science, specialty of Hydrogeology.
1.3 — The successful candidate will be integrated into the research team dedicated to the study of hydrogeology and hydrogeochemistry of volcanic regions, specifically within the Scientific Unit of Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology. The candidate will be expected to carry out a diverse range of activities within the themes indicated in point 1 of this notice, in particular
a) Development of innovative approaches for monitoring surface and groundwater in active volcanic areas, including the quantification of gaseous emissions;

b) Hydrogeological characterization of aquifers and active hydrothermal systems for a better understanding of the water cycle in volcanic areas;
c) Development of analytical and numerical hydrogeochemical and hydrogeological modeling work.
2 — Admission requirements:
2.1 — National, foreign and stateless applicants must have held a doctoral degree in Geology or related areas, in the specialty of Hydrogeology.
2.2 — Applicants holding foreign qualifications must prove their recognition, equivalence or registration in Portugal, under the terms of the applicable legislation, a formality to be complied with by the date of signature of the contract.
2.3 — Applicants must demonstrate good written and spoken proficiency of Portuguese and/or English.
3 — Place of work:
University of the Azores,
Institute for Research in Volcanology and Risk Assessment — IVAR
Rua da Mãe de Deus,
9500 -321 Ponta Delgada, Portugal.
4 — Amount of remuneration:
The monthly remuneration to be awarded is that provided for in paragraph a) of no. 1 of Article 15 of Decree-Law no. 57/2016, dated August 29, which corresponds to level 33 of the Single Remuneration Table, approved by Decree-Law no. 29-A/2026, dated January 30.
5 — Form and deadline of the application:
5.1 — The submission of applications is made in Portuguese electronically using a form available for this purpose on the University of the Azores services portal. Applications sent by email are not accepted.
5.2 — The works and/or works referred to in the curriculum vitae that, due to the size of the files or any other duly substantiated reason, can not be sent through the form, can be sent by email to reitoria.secretariado@uac.pt, with proof of delivery, or delivered in person or by registered mail, in digital format or in paper, to the Rector’s Office of the University of the Azores, Rua Mãe de Deus, 9500-321 Ponta Delgada, Portugal.
5.3 — Applications must be submitted within 15 working days of the day following the publication of this notice in Diário da República.
5.4 — The provisions of the previous paragraph do not apply to the articles and/or works listed in the form and sent by registered mail, referred to in paragraph 5.2 of this notice, which although may be received after the deadline for submitting applications, must be post marked by the date and time set in the previous paragraph.
6 — Application form
6.1 — The application for admission to the selection procedure shall be included in the form referred to in the previous paragraph and must include, among other items, the following information:
a) The candidate’s full name;
b) Civil identification number and expiration date of the document;
c) Date and place of birth;
d) Nationality;
e) Profession, if applicable;
f) Residence and postal address;
g) E-mail address and telephone number;
h) Identification of the tender, with reference to the number of the notice;
i) Express mention of the candidate’s consent to communications and notifications within the scope of the tender procedure to take place by email.
6.2 — The application is accompanied by the following documents:
a) Copy of qualification certificates, or other suitable documents legally recognized for this purpose, which prove the ownership of the degrees required in point 2.1 of this notice;
b) A copy or hyperlink of the scientific publications that the candidate considers to be the most representative of their production in the area and sub-area of the recruitment procedure;
c) Curriculum vitae;
d) Declaration by the candidate in which he ensures, under oath, the precise situation in which he finds himself in relation to the content of each of the following paragraphs:
i) Nationality;
ii) Not be inhibited from exercising public functions or prohibited from exercising functions
to which he is applying;
iii) Have the physical robustness and psychic profile indispensable to the exercise of the function and have complied with mandatory vaccination laws.
e) Declaration in which the candidate guarantees, under oath, that the elements or facts contained in the application are true;
f) Other optional elements that the candidate considers relevant for the assessment of merit.
6.3 — The curriculum vitae shall be completed directly in the form referred to in point 5.1, including, among other information, an indication of the functions and activities currently performed, as well as those previously performed, indicating the respective relevant periods of duration, as well as an indication, in particular, of the scientific and technological activities, applied research and cultural extension developed in the last five years, as well as the management of science, technology and innovation programs, or experience in observing and monitoring the scientific and technological system or higher education, in Portugal or abroad, to be considered for the purposes of applying the selection criteria and indicators identified in point 8 of this notice.
6.4 — If and when it deems necessary, the jury may request supporting documents relating to If necessary, the selection board may request supporting documents relating to curriculum items listed on the form, which must be delivered to the address or email referred to in 5.2, with the following reference: “Call for PhD Researcher NI – Hydrogeology “, within 10 working days (non-extendable deadline) of the notification.
6.5 — Failure to meet the admission requirements and documents, incorrect formalization of the application, submission after the deadline, or delivery of false documents or false statements will result in exclusion from this recruitment procedure.
7 — Selection Board:
7.1 — The jury has the following constitution:
President:
José Virgílio de Matos Figueira Cruz, Full Professor at the Faculty of Science and Technology of the University of the Azores;
Effective members:
Isabel Margarida Horta Ribeiro Antunes, Associate Professor with Habilitation at the from the Department of Earth Sciences at the School of Sciences of the University of Minho;
Susana Luísa Rodrigues Nascimento Prada, Associate Professor with Habilitation at the Faculty of Exact Sciences and Engineering of University of Madeira.
Alternate members:
Nicolau Maria Berquó de Aguiar Wallenstein, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Science and Technology of the University of the Azores;
César Cristóvão Costa Andrade, Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Science and Technology of the University of the Azores.
7.2 — Minutes of the jury meetings are drawn up, which contain a summary of what has occurred in them, as well as the votes cast by each of the members and the respective justification, being made available to the candidates whenever requested.
8 — Assessment criteria:
8.1 — The selection board is responsible for the approval of the candidates’ merit for the job, based on the selection criteria and the weight of each assessment item, as provided for in Article 5 of Decree-Law no. 57/2016, of 29 August, in accordance with Law no. 57/2017, dated July 19, and in the following table:
Evaluation criteria    Considerations
A    Scientific, technological, cultural or artistic production of the last five years considered most relevant     45%
B    Applied research activities developed in the last 5 years and considered to have the greatest impact    30%
C    Activities of extension and dissemination of knowledge developed in the last five years, namely in the context of the promotion of culture and scientific practices, considered of greater relevance    15%
D    Management activities of science, technology and innovation programmes, or experience in the observation and monitoring of the scientific and technological system or higher education, in Portugal or abroad    10%

8.2 — In addition to curriculum evaluation, the selection process may include an interview or a public hearing under the terms of paragraph 5 of article 5 of Decree-Law no. 57/2016, dated August 29, amended by Law no. 57/2017, dated July 19. In this situation the sum of the evaluations obtained in the evaluation criteria A, B, C and D will correspond to 90% of the final classification and the interview/ public hearing to 10%.
8.3 — Candidates who obtain a final classification of less than 10 (ten) values are excluded from the procedure.
8.4 — The following are sub-criteria and evaluation indicators, taking into account the relevance, quality and timeliness of the indicators in the scientific area in the competition and, in particular, in the themes indicated in point 1 of this notice:
A    Scientific, technological, cultural or artistic production (0-100 points)    POINTS
A.1    Scientific and technological production, of international projection and subject to arbitration     0-50
A.2    Presentation of papers at congresses and other scientific meetings, in particular within the scope of international events     0-20
A.3    Editor of books and journals of a scientific and technological nature, including experience in reviewing papers within the scope of indexed scientific publications     0-15
A.4    Awards, distinctions and mentions     0-5
A.5    Other scientific production activities     0-10

B    Applied or practice-based research activities (0-100 points)    POINTS
B.1    Experience as a principal investigator (PI) or member of the team of scientific and technological research projects, in particular within the scope of competitive calls, as well as research and technological development services subject to funding     0-35
B.2    Participation in knowledge transfer activities to public or private entities, involvement in technology-based companies and patent registration (a)    0-30
B.3    Supervision of post-doctoral, doctoral and master’s students, and/or graduates.    0-20
B.4    Awards, distinctions and mentions     0-5
B.5    Other applied research activities     0-10

C    Extension and dissemination of knowledge activities (0-100 points)    POINTS
C.1    Publication of scientific and technological dissemination works, in particular with ISBN/DOI    0-35
C.2    Organization and participation in scientific and technological dissemination events, including, in particular, public actions such as lectures, fairs, exhibitions    0-30
C.3    Organization and/or teaching in study cycles, seminars, short courses and training actions    0-20
C.4    Awards, distinctions and mentions    0-5
C.5    Other activities of extension and dissemination of knowledge    0-10

D    Science, technology and innovation programme management activities (0-100 points)    POINTS
D.1    Exercise of positions or functions of a political, administrative and/or financial nature in the area of management of science, technology and innovation programs and projects in public or private institutions and entities, national or foreign    0-35
D.2    Performance of consulting activities and participation in commissions or working groups within the scope of the definition, implementation, monitoring or evaluation of public policies for science, technology and innovation    0-30
D.3    Participation as a member of the jury in accreditation and/or evaluation processes of R&D units, grants, projects and research and technological development services    0-20
D.4    Awards, distinctions and mentions    0-5
D.5    Other science, technology and innovation programme management activities    0-10

9 — Draw situations:
9.1 — If no candidate obtains an absolute majority of the votes for the 1st place, a new ballot begins, only among the candidates who obtained votes for the 1st place, after the candidate with the least votes for that place in the previous ballot has been removed.
9.2 — In the event of a tie between two or more candidates in the position of the least voted, a tie-breaking vote shall be held only between them, counting the number of first relative positions of each one, and the least voted shall be removed.
9.3 — If there is a tie between two or more candidates in the position of the least voted, but the number of candidates tied in the position of the least voted has been reduced, in relation to the previous round of voting, a new tie-breaking vote shall be held only between the candidates tied in the position of the least voted, counting the number of first relative positions of each one, being removed the least voted.
9.4 — If the tie exists between two or more candidates in the position of the least voted, without the number of candidates tied in the position of the least voted in relation to the previous round of voting, the tiebreaker is made by the president of the jury through the casting vote or by the exercise of the tie-breaking vote, the candidate voted for by the president being chosen to be part of the subsequent vote for the same place.
9.5 — If there is a tie when there are only two candidates left for the 1st place, the tiebreaker is made by the president of the jury through the casting vote or by the exercise of the tie-breaking vote.
9.6 — Once the candidate for the 1st place has been chosen, he or she will leave the voting and the selection procedure for the candidate to be placed in 2nd place will begin, repeating the process referred to in the previous paragraphs for subsequent places until a single ordered list of all candidates is obtained
10 — Notification, hearing of interested parties and approval of results:
10.1 — The list of admitted and excluded candidates and the final ranking list are published on the website of the University of the Azores and/or sent by e-mail, with receipt of delivery, to all candidates.
10.2 — For the purposes of a prior hearing, candidates will be notified under the terms of Article 121 of the Code of Administrative Procedure, and after notification they will have 10 working days to comment.
10.3 — The final ranking list, accompanied by the remaining deliberations of the jury and all the elements of the selection procedure, is sent to the Rector of the University of the Azores for approval purposes.
10.4 — The final ranking list, after approval, is notified to the candidates in accordance with the provisions of point 10.1.
11 – Termination of the selection procedure:
11.1 — The selection procedure ends with the occupation of the jobs listed in the advertisement or when they cannot be occupied, due to the absence or insufficiency of candidates.
11.2 — Exceptionally, the selection procedure may be terminated by duly reasoned order of the Rector of the University of the Azores, provided that the prior hearing on the draft final ranking of the candidates has not yet taken place.
12 — Publication of the tender notice:
The selection procedure is advertised:
a) In the 2nd Series of the Diário da Républica;
b) In the Public Employment Exchange (BEP);
c) On the website of the University of the Azores (UAc) https://www.uac.pt/pt-pt/recrutamento an extract available for consultation from the date of publication in BEP;
(d) On the EURAXESS Portal https://www.euraxess.pt.
13 — Equal opportunities policy:
In compliance with Article 9(h) of the Constitution, the Public Administration, as an employer, actively promotes a policy of equal opportunities between men and women in access to employment and professional progression, scrupulously ensuring that any form of discrimination is avoided.
14 — The University of the Azores clarifies that it does not assume any commitment to consider as of its strategic interest the opening of tender procedures for careers in scientific research or higher education teaching, under the terms of paragraph 5 of Article 6 of Decree-Law No. 57/2016, of 29 August, in its current wording.