Provisional results from Call DOCTORATES 4 COVID-19

FCT has announced the provisional results of the Call de Studentships de de de investigação para doutoramento DOCTORATES 4 COVID-19, opened in collaboration with the Agency for Clinical Research and Biomedical Innovation (AICIB) in the context of the pandemic situation caused by the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 and under which 50 Studentships will be funded, corresponding to an investment of 3.5 million euros.

This Call aimed to fund doctoral research Studentships to obtain new knowledge, focused on COVID-19 and the SARS-CoV-2 virus, but with a multidisciplinary approach, involving all scientific areas from engineering, to biomedical and social sciences, with complementarity and comprehensiveness, and thus contribute to obtaining new knowledge to consolidate more effective ways of dealing with this and other future pandemics.

This research strategy, focusing on COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-19, is aligned with the international strategy, namely the European Union, to promote research focused on this problem, thus contributing to integrate national projects in international efforts and networks.

The Call received 128 applications, of which 110 applications were evaluated. The 50 Studentships to be awarded correspond to a success rate of 45.5% of the evaluated applications. The provisional results of the evaluation show that 70% of the selected applicants are women and 8% are of foreign nationality, with 17% of the work plans being carried out in conjunction with foreign researchers and institutions.

The Studentships to be awarded are distributed among the following intervention areas of this Call:
- 13 Studentships on "Psychological impact and behavioral changes associated with the pandemic";
- 12 Studentships on "Development of new therapies and novel therapeutic approaches, including life support and personal protective equipment to combat the disease";
- 9 Studentships on "Characterization of viral infection mechanisms";
- 5 Studentships on "Innovative approaches, including new methods and new technologies, for disease diagnosis";
- 4 Studentships in "Prevention strategies and preparedness for new epidemics, including vaccines";
- 4 Studentships in "Epidemiology and risk factors for virus infection and severe disease";
- 2 Studentships on "Characterization of the host immune cellular and serological response to virus infection, impact of age and comorbidities";
- 1 Studentships on "Human-animal interaction, mechanisms of resistance and interspecies virus transmission, and the risk of pandemics".

The PhD programs to be attended by the grantees are from different universities: University of Porto (15 Studentships), University of Coimbra (9 Studentships), Universidade Nova de Lisboa (7 Studentships), University of Lisbon (7 Studentships), University of Minho (5 Studentships), University of Beira Interior (2 Studentships), University of Aveiro (2 Studentships), University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain (2 Studentships) and ISPA - University Institute of Psychological, Social and Life Sciences (1 Studentship).

The applications were evaluated by a scientific panel using a peer review system, with three evaluation criteria: merit of the candidate, merit of the work plan, and merit of the hosting conditions. In this evaluation panel participated 17 experts from the scientific community of which 7 are women.

The FCT doctoral research Studentships are grants awarded competitively to support advanced training in all areas of knowledge for obtaining a doctoral degree. These Studentships allow doctoral students to dedicate themselves exclusively to their research, thus contributing to the scientific and technological development of the country. The promotion of research leading to a doctoral degree is one of the pillars of action of FCT which, by funding this type of advanced training, contributes to the training of skills, the increase of knowledge and the strengthening and rejuvenation of the national scientific system.

The Call DOCTORATES 4 COVID-19 is part of a wide range of support, Calls and other initiatives, launched this year by FCT as part of the fight against Covid-19, including: the special support RESEARCH 4 COVID-19, with two editions; the special support Gender Research 4 Covid-19; the Call for R&D projects AI 4 COVID-19: Data Science and Artificial Intelligence in Public Administration; the Summer with Science support, in collaboration with the Directorate General of Higher Education (DGES); the Science 4 COVID-19 portal; the increased capacity of the RCTS - Science, Technology and Society Network, which supports the Internet connections of the education and research community; strengthening the capacity of the services that ensure distance learning and teleworking in the academic and scientific community (Colibri, NAU, Educast, Videocast); and the creation of a COVID-19 page on the FCT website, which gathers all the information that is being issued, directly or indirectly related to this pandemic situation.