Offer Description
1. Purpose of the Recruitment Procedure
ARDITI – Regional Agency for the Development of Research, Technology and Innovation – Association, through its Chairman of the Board of Directors, hereby announces the opening of an international recruitment procedure for one PhD researcher position to support the management, coordination, and implementation of the research and development activities foreseen under the “HydroPulse” project, under a fixed-term employment contract of uncertain duration, in accordance with the Portuguese Labour Code.
This call is launched within the framework of the project “HydroPulse” (Hydropower for Participatory Upscaling of Local Solutions and Ecosystem-based Strategies), Grant Agreement (GAP) No. 101268715, funded by the Horizon Europe Program.
2. Applicable Legislation
a) Decree-Law No. 57/2016 of 29 August, which establishes a framework for the recruitment of PhD holders aimed at promoting scientific and technological employment across all fields of knowledge (RJEC), as amended by Law No. 57/2017 of 19 July;
b) Regulatory Decree No. 11-A/2017 of 29 December, which establishes the salary levels applicable under the PhD recruitment framework;
c) Decree-Law No. 63/2019 of 17 May, which establishes the legal framework governing institutions engaged in research and development activities, as amended by Decree-Law No. 126-B/2021 of 31 December;
d) Decree-Law No. 66/2018 of 1 January, which establishes the legal framework for the recognition of academic degrees and higher education diplomas awarded by foreign higher education institutions, as amended by Decree-Law No. 86/2023 of 10 October;
e) The Portuguese Labor Code, approved by Law No. 7/2009 of 12 February, in its current version.
3. Composition of the Selection Committee
The Selection Committee is composed of the following members:
- Chair: João Canning-Clode (ARDITI)
- Full Member: João Gama Monteiro (University of Madeira)
- Full Member: Joana Robalo (ISPA)
- Alternate Member: Marko Radeta (MARE-Madeira, University of Madeira)
- Alternate Member: Ana Dinis (MARE-Madeira)
4. Duties and Responsibilities
This recruitment procedure is open for the coordination and management of the research activities foreseen within the HydroPulse project, on an exclusive dedication basis, with a particular focus on the planning, coordination, and implementation of biodiversity and environmental condition monitoring activities in freshwater ecosystems; the assessment of environmental conditions associated with hydropower plants and water management infrastructures; and stakeholder consultation and engagement in the Madeira Archipelago.
The work to be carried out will ensure knowledge transfer and the uptake of technological and methodological solutions related to the effects of infrastructure and climate events on the movement and distribution of the European eel, as well as on the habitat conditions required to promote sustainable water management and energy production in island regions and other territories facing similar challenges. This will involve sampling techniques, telemetry, traditional and emerging data-collection methods, citizen science approaches, and stakeholder engagement activities.
The recruitment of a PhD Researcher is necessary to ensure the successful implementation of the above-mentioned project. The selected candidate will be responsible for coordinating data collection and processing activities; supporting the management and coordination of project tasks; organizing and conducting workshops, meetings, and project-related travel; carrying out data processing and analysis; overseeing financial management activities; and contributing to the preparation of project reports and scientific publications.
5. Place of Work
The activities to be carried out will take place at ARDITI’s premises, located at Madeira Tecnopolo Building, 2nd Floor, Caminho da Penteada, 9020-105 Funchal, Portugal, without prejudice to the possibility that work may also be performed at other facilities assigned to ARDITI’s activities or otherwise designated by ARDITI.
6. Remuneration
This recruitment procedure is open for the PhD Researcher remuneration position, level 33 of the Single Remuneration Table (TRU), in accordance with ARDITI’s 2026 Salary Scale for PhD Researchers. The position is offered with a gross monthly salary of EUR 2,408.11.
7. Duration of the Contract
7.1 The employment contract to be entered into shall be a fixed-term contract of uncertain duration and shall remain in force for as long as the grounds justifying its conclusion and the aforementioned funding continue to exist. In any event, the maximum duration of the contract shall be six (6) years, pursuant to paragraph 3 and paragraph 1(b) of Article 6 of the RJEC.
7.2 The justification for the fixed-term contract of uncertain duration lies in the performance of specific, clearly defined, and non-permanent activities referred to in Section 4, which are necessary for the development of the HydroPulse project, in accordance with paragraph 1, paragraph 2(g), and paragraph 3 of Article 140 of the Portuguese Labor Code.
The contract may subsequently be supported by funding from other financed projects. Therefore, funding availability constitutes a necessary and determining condition for the employment relationship. Consequently, the termination of such funding shall constitute a supervening, absolute, and definitive impossibility for ARDITI to continue receiving the employee’s work performance.
7.3 The termination of funding, the conclusion of the project, or the completion of the activities that constitute the subject matter of this recruitment procedure shall result in the expiry of the contract, which shall take effect through the notification referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 345 of the Portuguese Labor Code. Accordingly, when the end of the contract is foreseeable, the employer shall notify the employee of its termination with a minimum notice period of seven (7), thirty (30), or sixty (60) days, depending on whether the contract has lasted up to six months, between six months and two years, or more than two years, respectively.
8. Eligibility Requirements
8.1 The recruitment procedure is open to national, foreign, and stateless applicants who meet the following requirements:
a) Hold a PhD degree in a field of knowledge or specialization encompassing one or more scientific areas, including, but not limited to, Life Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Biology, or related disciplines.
b) Hold certification authorizing the performance of procedures involving aquatic animals (Functions a) and c), in accordance with Article 31 of Decree-Law No. 113/2013.
8.2 Academic degrees awarded by foreign institutions must be recognized in Portugal by a Portuguese higher education institution authorized to confer the corresponding degree or diploma in the relevant field of study, specialization, or branch of knowledge, in accordance with Decree-Law No. 66/2018 of 16 August, which establishes the legal framework for the recognition of academic degrees and higher education diplomas awarded by foreign higher education institutions, as regulated by Ordinance No. 33/2019 of 25 January, amended by Ordinance No. 43/2020 of 14 February, and further amended by Decree-Law No. 86/2023 of 10 October.
In such cases, proof of recognition will be required only to enter into the employment contract and must therefore be provided by the deadline established for the contract’s conclusion.
9. Submission of Applications
9.1 Applications must be submitted by email to rh@arditi.pt and addressed to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of ARDITI. The subject line of the email must include the reference “ARDITI-HYDROPULSE-2026-001”. The body of the email must contain the applicant’s personal details, namely: full name, Citizen Card number and date of issue (or civil identification number), tax identification number, date and place of birth, residential address, and contact details, including email address and telephone number.
9.2 Applications must be accompanied by documentary evidence demonstrating compliance with the eligibility requirements set out in Section 8, namely:
a) A copy of the degree certificate or diploma. (Degrees awarded by foreign institutions must be recognized in Portugal by a Portuguese higher education institution authorized to confer the corresponding degree or diploma in the relevant field of study, specialization, or branch of knowledge, in accordance with Decree-Law No. 66/2018 of 16 August, as amended by Decree-Law No. 86/2023 of 10 October, which establishes the legal framework for the recognition of academic degrees and higher education diplomas awarded by foreign higher education institutions, regulated by Ordinance No. 33/2019 of 25 January, as amended by Ordinance No. 43/2020 of 14 February);
b) The doctoral thesis or equivalent document(s) on the basis of which the PhD degree was awarded;
c) A detailed curriculum vitae, structured according to the items listed in Sections 10.5 to 10.7, identifying and enclosing copies of the works and achievements that the applicant considers most relevant to each of those evaluation criteria;
d) A motivation letter;
e) Any other documents that the applicant considers relevant for the assessment of their application.
9.3 Applicants must submit the application and all supporting documents referred to above in PDF format no later than the final day of the application period, which is established as 15 working days following the publication of this Notice.
Where an applicant demonstrates that submitting one or more of the required documents by email is impossible or excessively burdensome, such documents may be submitted in hard copy, provided they are received by the aforementioned deadline, either by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt addressed to: “Madeira Tecnopolo Building, 2nd Floor.
Caminho da Penteada, 9020-105 Funchal, Portugal, or delivered in person to ARDITI’s Administrative and Financial Department. Should the applicant’s justification for submitting documents exclusively in hard copy not be accepted, the Chair of the Selection Committee shall grant the applicant a reasonable period within which to provide the documents in digital format as well.
9.4 Applications and supporting documents may be submitted in either Portuguese or English. However, if the Selection Committee includes a member who is not proficient in Portuguese, the Chair of the Committee may require the applicant to provide an English translation of any document originally submitted in Portuguese, within a reasonable period.
9.5 By decision of the Chairman of the Board of Directors of ARDITI, applicants who fail to comply with the above-mentioned application requirements shall not be admitted to the recruitment procedure. Applicants shall be automatically excluded if they fail to submit an application, fail to provide any of the documents listed in points (a) to (e) of Section 9.2, or submit documents that are illegible, incorrectly completed, or invalid. The Chairman of the Board of Directors also reserves the right, in cases of doubt and for the purpose of determining eligibility, to request any applicant to provide additional documentary evidence supporting the statements made in their application.
10. Evaluation of Applications
10.1 The Selection Committee shall decide on the approval or rejection of applicants based on absolute merit through a justified nominal vote. Abstentions shall not be permitted.
10.2 An applicant shall be considered approved based on absolute merit if they obtain a favorable vote from more than half of the voting members of the Selection Committee.
10.3 Pursuant to Article 5 of the RJEC, applicants shall be selected through an evaluation of their scientific and academic/professional track record.
10.4 The evaluation of the scientific and academic/professional track record shall focus on the relevance, quality, and timeliness of:
a) Activities related to the monitoring of aquatic biodiversity and environmental conditions relevant to the project;
b) Research activities carried out during the last five years and considered by the applicant to be of greatest impact;
c) Scientific, technological, and academic output produced during the last five years and considered by the applicant to be most relevant;
d) Knowledge transfer, outreach, and dissemination activities undertaken during the last five years, particularly in the field of nature conservation, considered by the applicant to be of greatest relevance;
e) Fluency in English and Portuguese.
10.5 The five years referred to in the previous section may be extended by the Selection Committee, at the applicant’s request, where justified by interruptions to scientific activity for socially protected reasons, including parental leave, prolonged serious illness, or other legally protected situations resulting in unavailability for work.
10.6 The selection of the candidate to be recruited shall be based on the evaluation of their scientific and academic/professional track record, taking into account their relevance, quality, timeliness, and suitability for the duties to be performed, considering the previous five years of activity, in accordance with the following evaluation criteria and weightings:
a) PhD degree in Biology, Life Sciences, Environmental Sciences, or related fields (5%).
b) Previous work and/or professional and experimental experience with an emphasis on biodiversity and environmental conditions of freshwater ecosystems in the Autonomous Region of Madeira, including the organization and implementation of monitoring programs (30%).
c) Development and implementation of citizen engagement initiatives and activities involving other stakeholders, including stakeholder consultation and scientific outreach activities (20%).
d) Experience and certification in the handling of aquatic animals for scientific purposes (15%).
e) Experience in the management of and participation in projects involving national and international consortia, including activity management, preparation of activity reports, participation in and organization of meetings, events, and workshops (10%).
f) Quality of the scientific output considered by the applicant to be relevant to the project to be developed (10%).
g) Oral and written proficiency in Portuguese and English (10%).
10.7 The Selection Committee may decide to invite up to three applicants to deliver a presentation of the results of their research. Following the presentation, members of the Committee may engage in an open discussion regarding its content and innovative aspects.
This presentation session shall not constitute a selection method and shall not be scored. Its sole purpose is to clarify or further explain elements contained in the applicants’ curricula vitae.
10.8 Whenever deemed necessary, the Selection Committee may request applicants to submit additional documentary evidence supporting statements made in their applications that are relevant to the assessment and ranking of their candidacies.
10.9 Any false statements made by applicants shall be subject to the penalties provided for by law.
11. Classification of Applicants
11.1 Each member of the Selection Committee shall assign a score to each applicant for each evaluation criterion, on a scale from 0 to 100 points. Applicants shall be ranked according to their final score, calculated as the sum of the partial scores awarded for each evaluation criterion, with the weighting assigned to each parameter taken into account.
11.2 Applicants shall be ranked through the application of the successive voting method.
11.3 The Selection Committee shall decide by an absolute majority, and abstentions shall not be permitted.
11.4 The final classification of each applicant shall correspond to their ranking resulting from the application of the method referred to in paragraph 11.2.
11.5 Minutes shall be drawn up for the meetings of the Selection Committee, containing a summary of the proceedings, as well as the votes cast by each member and their respective justification. These minutes shall be made available to applicants upon request.
11.6 The list of admitted and excluded applicants, as well as the final ranking list, shall be published on ARDITI’s website. Applicants shall be individually notified by email, with delivery receipt confirmation.
12. Prior Hearing and Final Decision
12.1 After being notified, applicants shall have a period of 10 working days to exercise their right to a prior hearing, should they so wish.
12.2 The applicant’s response within the framework of the prior hearing shall be addressed to the Chair of the Selection Committee and submitted in writing to rh@arditi.pt.
In such cases, the Chair of the Selection Committee shall convene a meeting of the Committee to analyze the applicant’s submission and issue the final decision within 30 working days.
12.3 The final decision of the Selection Committee shall be issued within 90 days from the deadline for submission of applications.
12.4 Within five working days following the final decision of the Selection Committee, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of ARDITI shall approve (homologate) it, and applicants shall be notified accordingly.
12.5 The hiring decision shall be made by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of ARDITI, based on the final decision of the Selection Committee.
13. Final Provisions
13.1 This recruitment procedure is intended exclusively to fill the indicated vacancy. It may be terminated before the approval (homologation) of the Selection Committee’s final decision and shall expire upon the occupation of the advertised position.
13.2 ARDITI actively promotes a policy of non-discrimination and equal access. Accordingly, no applicant may be privileged, benefited, disadvantaged, or deprived of any right, or exempted from any duty, based on, in particular, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, family situation, economic status, education, social origin or condition, genetic heritage, reduced working capacity, disability, chronic illness, nationality, ethnic or racial origin, place of origin, language, religion, political or ideological beliefs, or trade union membership.
13.3 Pursuant to Decree-Law No. 29/2001 of 3 February, as adapted to the Autonomous Region of Madeira by Regional Legislative Decree No. 25/2001/M of 24 August, applicants with disabilities shall be granted preference in the event of equal classification, which shall prevail over any other legal preference.Applicants must declare in the application form, under oath, their degree of disability, the type of disability, and the means of communication/expression to be used during the selection process, in accordance with the aforementioned legislation.
14. Personal Data Processing
14.1 ARDITI – Regional Agency for the Development of Research, Technology and Innovation – Association shall act as the data controller (as defined under the GDPR). The collection and processing of applicants’ personal data are essential for the recruitment and selection process and for any subsequent potential employment contract.
14.2 To facilitate the processing activities related to pre-contractual procedures, applicants are expressly informed that ARDITI – Regional Agency for the Development of Research, Technology and Innovation – Association, acting as data controller, may process the following categories of personal data:
a) Identification and contact data;
b) Curriculum and academic data;
c) Data relating to professional experience.
14.3 Applicants are informed that ARDITI – Regional Agency for the Development of Research, Technology and Innovation – Association, in compliance with its legal obligations, may communicate and/or transfer personal data to the following entities:
a) Tax Authority;
b) IGFSS – Social Security Financial Management Institute;
c) Regional Directorate for Labor and Labor Inspection;
d) National Institute of Statistics;
e) Compensation Fund and Wage Guarantee Fund;
f) Insurance companies and banking institutions;
g) Accounting firms.
14.4 Applicants have the right to access, rectify, delete, erase, and object to the processing of their personal data at any time, as well as the right to data portability.
14.5 Records of recruitment processes shall be retained for a period of five (5) years, in accordance with the legal obligation set out in Article 32(1) of the Portuguese Labor Code. All other personal data resulting from the recruitment and selection process shall be retained only for the period strictly necessary to conclude the recruitment procedure.
14.6 ARDITI – Regional Agency for the Development of Research, Technology and Innovation – Association ensures the adoption of appropriate technical and organizational measures, in accordance with applicable legislation, to guarantee the confidentiality and security of applicants’ personal data.
14.7 Applicants are also informed that, if they consider their personal data to be processed in violation of data protection legislation, they have the right to lodge a complaint with the Portuguese Data Protection Authority (CNPD) at www.cnpd.pt.
Date: 13th July 2026, The Chairman of the Board of Directors of ARDITI – Regional Agency for the Development of Research, Technology and Innovation – Association, Dr. Rui Miguel Andrade Caldeira.
Official public notice of the announcement (in Portuguese) here: https://files.diariodarepublica.pt/2s/2026/07/138000000/0069600702.pdf
Where to apply
E-mail: rh@arditi.pt
