Post-Doctoral Research Grants: Ramón y Cajal

The Spanish State Research Agency (Agencia Estatal de Investigación – AEI) has announced the 2026 call for the Ramón y Cajal post-doctoral research grants, under the Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica, Técnica y de Innovación 2024-2027.

 The Ramón y Cajal grant is a highly competitive funding scheme that seeks to promote the recruitment and retention of outstanding researchers, both Spanish and international, in Spain by funding their recruitment, an independent R&D&i project, and the creation of permanent positions in host institutions. Additionally, to encourage Ramón y Cajal researchers to apply for European Research Council (ERC) Starting, Consolidator, and Advanced Grants, the call establishes salary supplements for applicants. Furthermore, receiving the Ramón y Cajal award automatically grants R3 certification as an Established Researcher, provided the candidate has at least three years of postdoctoral experience.

The Ramón y Cajal actions will fund a series of activities. First, it will fund the recruitment of the selected candidate with a contract of up to 5 years and a minimum gross annual salary of €40,000. Second, it will fund the execution of the candidate’s own R&D&i project for up to 5 years, with a maximum budget of €200,000 in direct costs. Lastly, it will incentivise the creation of a permanent position within the RYC researcher’s field of knowledge, with an allocation of €50,000.

Eligibility requirements

General access and RyC-INIA-CCAA track: Candidates must have earned their PhD between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2024.

Application period

Applications must be submitted between November 10, 2026, and December 10, 2026, at 14:00.

Candidates wishing to apply to this scheme with the support of the Aerospace Engineering Department at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid are invited to send their expressions of interest to aero@uc3m.es no later than October 20, 2026.

Full information and application details are available at the Spanish State Research Agency website (https://www.aei.gob.es/convocatorias/buscador-convocatorias/ayudas-contratos-ramon-cajal-ryc-2026). In case of discrepancy, the official AEI information shall prevail.