TECNIOspring PLUS is ACCIÓ's fellowship programme. It provides financial support to individual mobility proposals presented by experienced researchers in liaison with a host organisation. Fellows are offered 2-year employment contracts in order to develop applied research projects.

With a budget of 10,04 MMEUR and co-financed by the H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions of the European Union, TECNIOspring PLUS foresees to award 72 fellowships for the 2016-2021 period.

Participants: organisations and researchers

TECNIOspring PLUS proposals are submitted by a Catalan host organisation, together with an experienced researcher.

• Catalan host organisations may be companies located in Catalonia with 5 or more employees, or TECNIO centres accredited by the Government of Catalonia through ACCIÓ.
• Experienced researchers are researchers of any nationality that have a PhD or four to eight years of full-time equivalent research experience. Researchers must not have resided or carried out their main activity in the country of their host organisation for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to the deadline for the submission of applications. Exceptions will be made for candidates with justified career breaks.

Fellowships

The programme offers to experienced researchers two types of fellowships: 

• Incoming: 2-year contract in a Catalan company or a TECNIO centre
• Outgoing + return: 1-year contract in a research/technology centre or R&D department of a private company located outside Spain, and 1-year contract in a Catalan company or a TECNIO entity.

Programme benefits

Experienced researchers will benefit from 2-year employment contracts including:

• Salary costs (with full social security coverage): Incoming: 58.500 € per year. Outgoing + return: 46.200 € per year x correction factor during the stay abroad. 
• Research costs: Up to 8.640 € per year. 
• Mobility costs: Up to 960 € per year. 

With the aim of fostering the researchers’ career development, the programme will include further activities such as top-notch tech transfer training, secondments and short visits, participation in public engagement activities and networking activities, among others.

First call for proposals 2016

With a budget of 2,23MM€ the first call of the programme foresees to offer 18 fellowships (9 per mobility).

Schedule:

• Call opening: 1st of December 2016
• Call deadline: 1st of February 2017
• Evaluation process: February 2017 to May 2017 
• Start of fellowships: June 2017