Postdoctoral Junior Leader – Incoming 2027: Expression of Interest for Candidates

The Department of Aerospace Engineering at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) invites expressions of interest from outstanding postdoctoral researchers wishing to apply for the Postdoctoral Junior Leader – Incoming 2027 programme of the Fundación “la Caixa”.

As a María de Maeztu Unit of Excellence, the Department is eligible to host fellows under this prestigious programme, which supports outstanding researchers in developing ambitious research projects in STEM disciplines at leading research institutions in Spain. More info: Junior Leader – Incoming

To identify the strongest potential candidates and facilitate institutional support, the Department will conduct an internal pre-selection process before the official call deadline.

Who can apply?

Prospective candidates should carefully check the official eligibility requirements. In particular:

• Applicants must have obtained their PhD between 23 September 2019 and 23 September 2024 (inclusive), unless one of the eligibility extensions established in the programme rules applies. The PhD defence date is considered the official date of award.
• Candidates must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Spain for more than 12 months during the three years immediately preceding the call deadline, except in the specific cases foreseen in the programme rules.

Internal Expression of Interest

Researchers interested in being hosted by the Department of Aerospace Engineering at UC3M are invited to submit the following information for an initial internal assessment:

• An up-to-date CV.
• The exact date of the PhD thesis defence.
• Information on periods of residence, employment or study in Spain during the last three years.
• A brief description of their research interests and how these align with the Department’s research activities.
• The name of the UC3M researcher or research group with whom they would like to collaborate, if already identified.

Following this internal evaluation, selected candidates will be contacted to discuss the preparation of their application and the required institutional documentation.

Internal Deadline

The deadline for submitting expressions of interest is:

28 August 2026

Early submissions are encouraged to allow sufficient time for the internal evaluation process before the official programme deadline.

We look forward to hearing from talented researchers interested in joining our internationally recognised research community and developing their research career at one of Spain’s leading aerospace engineering departments.