FCT extends all directly Studentship contracts for another month

The FCT Governing Board has decided to renew the automatic extension, for another month, of Studentships directly funds and which were in progress on March 13. This resolution is based on the Government's recent decision to maintain the closure of higher education institutions and non-essential economic activities.

On March 13, following the first exceptional lockdown measures imposed by the Government, FCT decided to automatically extend all Studentships funded by the institution for a period of one month (see news item), undertaking to reassess the situation after April 9. The decision was to revalidate this measure for another month, in response to the constraints that the Covid-19 pandemic has placed on the regular work of the scientific community, as in all sectors of society.

This measure represents a total additional investment of €12 million for the two months extended so far and covers around 5,000 Studentships. It is part of a series of initiatives that the FCT has taken to support the scientific community during this exceptional period (see website). In addition to seeking to address the current constraints caused by Covid-19, the FCT has also opened new lines of funding aimed at stimulating and enhancing the development of R&D projects and initiatives that not only respond to the immediate needs of this current pandemic, but can also help prevent and prepare responses to pandemics that may arise in the future.