"la Caixa" Foundation INPhINIT Doctoral Fellowships

INPhINIT runs two parallel calls each cycle: the 'Incoming' call, aimed at researchers who have spent limited or no time in Spain/Portugal recently and want to relocate there for their PhD, and the 'Retaining' call, aimed at strong candidates already based at a Spanish/Portuguese host institution whom the fellowship helps keep in the system. Both calls fund three-year doctoral contracts at host institutions holding Spain's 'Severo Ochoa' or 'María de Maeztu' excellence accreditation, or equivalent recognised centres.

Eligibility hinges less on nationality — the programme is explicitly open to researchers of any nationality — and more on career stage and prior mobility: candidates must not have completed more than four years of research activity before the call deadline, must not have already started a PhD, and (for the Incoming call specifically) must not have resided or worked in Spain or Portugal for more than twelve months in the three years before the deadline.

The fellowship package is highly competitive by European doctoral-funding standards: it includes a three-year employment contract with full social security coverage, a research/training budget, mobility allowances, and English-language proficiency is required rather than Spanish or Portuguese, since research and supervision at the host institutions is typically conducted in English.

Because INPhINIT is run as a rigorous, internationally benchmarked competition (rather than a country-quota system), candidates are assessed primarily on research potential, academic record, and the strength of the doctoral project proposed jointly with a host supervisor, making early identification of a supervisor and host centre an essential first step.