Multiannual Program for Financing R&D Units 2023 / 2024

The deadline for submitting applications under the Multiannual Program for Financing R&D Units, promoted by FCT, is April 17th.

In the current edition of Call (2023/2024), FCT has introduced some changes to the evaluation process compared to the previous year (2018/2018), which are set out in Regulation 1251-A/2023, published on November 21, 2023. The application process involved three distinct and sequential phases, which included the registration of Units on the Science and Technology Portal, the registration of Research teams and the application of R&D Units.

Once the deadline for submitting applications has passed, the Unit Evaluation process will follow, which will also see a number of differences compared to the previous edition, with the aim of deepening the qualitative, participatory and collegial nature of this evaluation. These changes are reflected in the time it takes for the units to interact with the evaluation panels, the participation of the units in the different phases of the process, an increase in the number of readers per application, the introduction of a collegial evaluation model, a greater number of plenary meetings throughout the process, the introduction of the narrative CV format and a new multidisciplinary evaluation model.

It should be remembered that R&D units are periodically evaluated by panels of international evaluators, who assign a rating and funding for the following multi-year period. The evaluation will focus on the scientific and technological activities carried out by the R&D units between January 1, 2018 and December 31, 2023 and on the objectives, strategy, activity plan and organization for the period 2025-2029.

The 312 R&D Units currently funded by the FCT for the 2020-2024 period are distributed across various areas of knowledge and throughout Portugal. The R&D units funded can be consulted in the Atlas of R&D Units, published by the FCT.