INESC: Researchers from all over the world welcome to apply for internships at Portuguese research institutes

The Institute for Systems and Computer Engineering, Technology and Science (INESC TEC) is launching a new Call destined for researchers interested in spending one up to three months in Portugal, exploring topics like Computer Science, Industrial and Systems Engineering, Networked Intelligent Systems, and Power and Energy. 

This new Call builds on the success of last year’s first edition. Only this time, INESC TEC will welcome not only 10, but 15 researchers (including Master’s and Ph.D. students) affiliated with organisations abroad to conduct research activities at the Institute for a short period – one up to three months.

“The first edition exceeded our best expectations. Both the visiting researchers and the hosts made very positive remarks about their experience with the programme; most visits, if not all, have paved the way for future collaborations”, said Andreia Passos, Manager of the International Relations Service of INESC TEC.

The selected candidates will be granted a monthly allowance to explore one of the 63 research topics proposed by INESC TEC’s research community. HumanAI, Software Testing Education, Urban Art analytics with Computer-Based Methods, Transfer learning for smart building load forecasting, or I/O optimizations for Large Language Models are some of the themes available.  

INESC TEC will be accepting applications on a rolling basis until November 30, 2023, unless all 15 vacancies for these short-term research internships have been taken before that deadline or all funds assigned to the Call are exhausted. 

“Applicants admitted to the scheme will benefit from an immersive experience thanks to INESC TEC’s ecosystem, allowing them to explore and develop collaborations in the institution’s fields of knowledge, engage in interdisciplinary and collaborative research with scientific peers, and acquire and transfer new knowledge. During their stay, they are also expected to engage in events organized by INESC TEC and prepare a presentation of their research to the community”, added Andreia Passos. 

These research internships may start any time from August 1, 2023, and must not extend beyond July 31, 2024.

The application process is simple: candidates must first identify at least one topic and no more than three topics from the list of available research topics proposed by INESC TEC that align with their interests and those of their home institution. 

If the application is successful, the admitted applicants will sign a mobility contract that specifies their rights and duties and the components of the financial support they are entitled to after being accepted into the Programme. INESC TEC Board of Directors has decided to increase the overall funding to support more internships in this edition as well as the funds to be provided to the new batch of visitors: selected researchers will get a monthly allowance net of 1600 Euros to cover living expenses for each month of the mobility period and work accident insurance.

The 2022 edition brought to INESC TEC 10 visiting researchers from universities and research institutions in Argentina, Brazil, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. Supported work plans tapped into research topics related to Energy, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Computing, and Marine and Agro-robotics. 

"Doing a research internship in a different country, in this case at INESC TEC in Porto, Portugal, was very enriching for my PhD as I exchanged knowledge with a different research culture and environment”, explained Itzel Castro, of the University of Nottingham, UK. “Furthermore, we opened the path for future collaborations", he added.

Andrea D’Urbano, of the University of Salento, Italy, highlighted the guidance received and recalls the “beautiful and intense” three months spent in Portugal working with INESC TEC: “With my mentor, I was able to explore new research topics in a warm, welcoming and multicultural environment”. 

Researchers like Andrea and Itzel, who have already been visiting researchers in the first edition, are not excluded from submitting a new application for the current Call. However, priority will be given to new applicants.