PhD 2026-20 JS - ICIQ Fully-Funded PhD Programme 2026 – THIRD CALL

Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia ICIQ; España; On-site; EUR 19,000 - 25,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Full social security

Flexible working hours

SHARP PhD training program

Job summary

The Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ) in Tarragona, Spain invites exceptional graduates to join its Fully-Funded PhD Programme, to pursue a doctoral degree in chemistry in partnership with URV. The programme also offers SHARP training and opportunities for international collaboration.

Selected candidates will work full-time under a pre-doctoral contract for up to four years, with a yearly salary progression and full social security coverage.

Qualifications

• MSc in Chemistry or related field completed by enrolment.
• Excellent English, written and spoken.
• Solid foundation in synthetic organic chemistry; catalysis exposure is a plus.
• Interest in automation, robotics or flow chemistry; hands-on experience is a plus.
• Willingness to learn programming and data-driven approaches.
• Enthusiasm for sustainable chemistry and bridging academia with industry.

Responsibilities

• Design and execute experiments using automated platforms and microfluidic reactors.
• Set up, operate, maintain and troubleshoot continuous-flow reactors.
• Plan, collect and curate high-quality datasets for ML model training and validation.
• Analyse results and translate findings into actionable insights.
• Prepare project reports and contribute to scientific publications.
• Present findings at group meetings and national/international conferences.

Skills

Excellent communication

Programming curiosity

Automation interest

Data-driven mindset

Sustainable chemistry

Education

MSc in Chemistry or related field

Tools

Automation platforms

Robotics

Flow chemistry

Job description

Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia ICIQ

Organisation/Company Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia ICIQ Research Field Chemistry Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Application Deadline 8 Nov 2026 - 11:18 (Europe/Madrid) Country Spain Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 37.5 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

The Fully-Funded PhD Programme offered by The Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ) is aimed at exceptional graduate students from all over the world, to support their enrolment in a training and research programme in the field of chemistry, ultimately leading to the completion of a Doctoral Thesis in partnership with the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV). The programme will also contribute to their professional career development, in the fields of academia and industry.

This objective is achieved by:

• The performance of an individual research project under the direction of an internationally renowned Group Leader, in a creative and stimulating scientific environment.
• Opportunities for short stays in distinguished international research institutions.
• Opportunities for complementary training in both technical and soft skills. The educational framework is designed to ensure a successful career: scientific seminars , hands-on training in the use of state-of-the-art scientific instrumentation, IP management, entrepreneurship, research integrity, knowledge and technology transfer, grant applications, project management, communication skills and career development. ICIQ offers a yearly personalized training programme for PhD students, SHARP, which takes place during the course of 2 weeks, with training focused on their given PhD year.

The programme is addressed to highly qualified and talented graduate students with a keen interest in chemical research. Candidates should have an excellent academic record, strong commitment to scientific research and a solid working knowledge of English.

Admission to the programme is on a competitive basis.

I. Available positions:

See Annex 1

III. Eligibility and evaluation criteria

The programme is open to graduate students, from any nationality that fulfil the following eligibility criteria:

a. Candidates must have a Master’s or an equivalent degree in the areas of Chemistry, Pharmacy, Physics, Chemical Engineering or related disciplines that must be completed by the time of enrolment in the PhD programme.

When in doubt regarding the eligibility criteria, applicants should contact ICIQ’s Human Resources unit at [e-mail] prior to submission of the application.

Candidates who fulfil the eligibility criteria will be evaluated according to the following evaluation criteria:

• Personal statement.
• Academic marks.
• Personal interview for short-listed candidates.

IV. Evaluation and Selection Process

The evaluation and selection of the candidates will be performed by the project supervisor supported by the Human Resources unit team, and following the below procedure:

1. Submitted applications will be checked for eligibility and those not fulfilling all the criteria will be rejected. It won’t be possible to modify the application or to add missing documentation after the application has been submitted.

2. The selection will be based on the evaluation criteria described in Section III.

3. At the late stages of the selection process, only short-listed candidates will be contacted for a personal interview.

4. All applicants will be notified of the final selection decision by mid November 2026.

Successful candidates will be requested to inform ICIQ whether they accept or decline the offer within five business days after being notified. The offer will be considered declined in the event that the applicant does not respond during this time.

ICIQ follows in its selection process a gender equality opportunity policy and a non-discrimination policy on the basis of age, ethnic or social origin, religion or belief, sexual orientation, language and disability.

ICIQis committed to promoting a work-life balance for its employees and, as such, offers flexible working hours.

• The awardees of an ICIQ Fully-Funded PhD position will be considered research personnel in training and they will have an employment contract (a pre-doctoral contract) which is regulated in the Spanish Law 14/2011, of June 1st, of Science, Technology and Education.
• Pre-doctoral contracts are renewed annually for up to 4 years. Renewal is subject to satisfactory performance in the PhD studies and related research activities.
• The gross yearly salary of the contract shall be split into 12 monthly payments and distributed as shown below:
• First and Second year of PhD: 19.007,22€ /year
• Third year of PhD: 20.364,88€ /year
• Fourth year of PhD: 25.456,10€ /year
• The fellowship includes full social security coverage through the Spanish Social Security system, providing access to the Spanish public health care system and pension and unemployment benefits.
• The grant holder is entitled to temporarily interrupt the fellowship in the following situations: temporary disability, risk during pregnancy, maternity, paternity and adoption or foster care. The time elapsed during this interruption will not be accounted for against the total time.
• The contract will take effect on the date when the awarded student joins the centre.
• The Fully-Funded PhD includes the costs of enrolment in the PhD programme. These costs will be paid by each beneficiary to the university, and later they will be refunded by ICIQ. The PhD thesis has to be completed within 4 years.
• The PhD awardees will work full-time at ICIQ and may not receive any other fellowship or regular income.
• The Fully-Funded PhD position is incompatible with any other fellowship with the same purpose.

Calendar

Call opening: October 5th 2026

Notification to candidates: As from November 9th 2026

Project Title: AI-Accelerated Photochemical Upgrading of Pollutants in Flow

Number of positions: 1

Reference: PhD 2026-20 JS

Description of the project:

The newly established research group of Dr. Sanjosé-Orduna is seeking a highly motivated candidate to pursue a doctoral degree in collaboration with the Pérez-Temprano group at the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ) in Tarragona (Spain). The project focuses on the development of automated, data-driven workflows for the discovery and optimization of catalytic chemical transformations in continuous flow. The research will integrate robotic experimentation, microfluidic platforms and machine learning to systematically explore reaction space, generate high-quality datasets, and accelerate the optimization of synthetic methods for the recycling of harmful pollutants.

Tasks to be performed by the PhD student:

• Design and execute experiments using automated platforms and microfluidic reactors.
• Set up, operate, maintain and troubleshoot continuous-flow reactors.
• Plan, collect, and curate high-quality, standardized experimental datasets for the training and validation of machine learning models.
• Analyse experimental results and translate findings into actionable insights.
• Prepare project reports and contribute in the draft of scientific publications.
• Present research findings at group meetings and at national/international conferences.

Preferred skills or background:

• MSc degree (or equivalent) in Chemistry or a closely related discipline.
• Excellent communication skills in English, written and spoken.
• Solid foundation in synthetic organic chemistry; prior exposure to catalysis, organometallic chemistry, or reaction development is an asset.
• Interest in automation, robotics, or flow chemistry; hands‑on experience is a plus but not required.
• Willingness to learn programming skills and curiosity about data‑driven approaches.
• Enthusiasm for sustainable chemistry and a genuine interest in bridging academic research with industrial application.