Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Table of Contents
1. GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF CONEX PROGRAMME ........................................................................ 4
2. ABOUT THE EXPERIENCED AND VERY EXPERIENCED PROFESSOR FELLOWSHIPS ......................... 5
a. Who can apply? Eligible Researchers, Mobility Requirements ............................................. 5
b. What kind of research can be funded? The UC3M Departments and ANEP areas .............. 5
c. Duration and Contract Conditions ........................................................................................ 6
3. HOW TO SUBMIT AN APPLICATION .............................................................................................. 9
1. CEMS Registration ................................................................................................................. 9
2. Create a draft proposal ....................................................................................................... 10
3. Instructions to complete Part A of the application.......................................................... 11
4. Instructions to complete Part B of the application.......................................................... 15
5. How to submit and modify your proposal .......................................................................... 17
4. EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCESS ..................................................................................... 20
a. Eligibility Check.................................................................................................................... 20
b. First and Second Evaluation Steps. Evaluation Criteria....................................................... 20
c. Ethics review ....................................................................................................................... 25
d. Outcome of the results ....................................................................................................... 25
e. Feedback to applicants........................................................................................................ 25
f. Redress ................................................................................................................................ 25
5. THE PROJECT PHASE .................................................................................................................... 26
6. CALL TIMETABLE AND LIFECYCLE OF THE FELLOWSHIPS ............................................................ 27
7. CONTACT INFORMATION ............................................................................................................ 29
DEFINITIONS .................................................................................................................................. 30
ANNEX 1: ANEP Areas ........................................................................................................................ 31
ANNEX 2: Research departments and institutes at the UC3M .......................................................... 37
ANNEX 3: Ethical Issues Table............................................................................................................ 39
It has 17.898 students, being similar in size to some of the major European universities. 8% of
students at UC3M are foreign and this proportion is notably higher at both masters (22%) and
doctoral (44%) levels.
UC3M is included in the QS ranking of the top 50 universities under 50 years old. UC3M is one
of the top 10 Spanish universities to be awarded European research projects in ICT, Aerospace
and Socio-economics Sciences.
This fellowship programme offers experienced and very experienced professors of any
nationality a unique opportunity to progress in their career development through an excellent
training. CONEX will run for five years (2013-2018) and will employ 20 professors with more
than 4 years of experience and 8 professors with more than 10 years of experience to carry out
a break-through research project for three years in any of the UC3Ms scientific fields.
Researchers, who must not have been a resident in Spain in the last three years prior to the
call deadline, are fully free in the choice of their research topic, department and
supervisor/mentor, to allow their career development to benefit from the fellowship as much
as possible.
To support the researchers in their career advancement, all researchers will have a supervisor
or mentor and are required to set up a Personal Career Development Plan. The selection
process, recruitment and project execution will follow the guidelines of The European Charter
for Researchers and Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers
(http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/index.cfm/rights/europeanCharter)
CONEX is also expected to have positive effects on UC3M, in particular through its policy of
Concentrating talent and on the Spanish landscape in general. CONEX supports the objectives
of the activity heading life-long learning and career development and other European policies,
such as the Innovation Union.
1. Applicants must have the degree and research experience appropriate to the CONEX
scheme they apply to (please see below)
2. Applicants may be of any nationality.
3. Applicants must engage in international mobility. Researchers who wish to apply must not
have resided or carried out their main activity in Spain during the three years prior to the
call deadline (except for holidays or similar situations).
In both cases, the years of experience are measured from the date of his/her first Ph.D. The
time limit to fulfil this condition is from the date the contract for the fellowship is signed up to
four months after the publication of the resolution and evaluation results by the Office of the
University Rector. The research career breaks which are eligible are:
Maternity leave and parenthood: a discount of two years (two months for a man) for
each child. This discount must be applied, if it is beneficial for the candidate.
Compulsory military service: a discount that will be equal to the duration of the
mandatory military service, if it is beneficial for the candidate.
Prolonged certified illness (over ninety days)
b. What kind of research can be funded? The UC3M Departments and ANEP areas
Incoming researchers will benefit from a world-class university. The UC3M offers a theoretical,
practical, applied and innovative learning environment, which will ensure that researchers can
achieve their full potential.
Applicants are fully free in the choice of the Department or Research Institute they wish to
work at within the UC3M. The application can include more than one department indicating a
The CONEX programme fully complies with the concept of individual driven mobility with
regards to providing the fellows a free choice of their research topic, but applicants must
select the most appropriate scientific sub-area/s on their application form in order to be
evaluated by the proper panel (Step 1 of the evaluation process see point 4 for further
information about the evaluation process-) Please see Annex I: ANEP Areas.
Applicants are also fully free in the choice of their supervisors. All UC3M group leaders who are
willing to host a CONEX fellow can act as a supervisor/mentor of this fellow.
Therefore, the freedom of the applicants to choose their own research topic, department and
supervisor allows for the project to be tailored to the very specific and individual needs of the
researcher. This in turn will support the researcher in deepening and/or diversifying their
scientific areas of expertise and in expanding their professional networks. Through the CONEX
fellowships, the researchers will have the opportunity to advance their scientific careers,
taking one step further to strengthening or attaining an independent research position.
Successful applicants will be offered an employment contract within 30 days after the
evaluation process. They are expected to start their fellowship within 4 months after the
publication of the resolution from the Office of the Rector.
The condition of being contracted in this program is incompatible with other contractual or
statutory links that could take away from the exclusivity of dedication to research.
Economic Conditions
All the payments included herein are subject to the fiscal obligations and Social Security costs
which, if applicable, are established by current Spanish legislation.
The duration and living allowance amount is a minimum and will be negotiated subject
to additional non-sporadic academic/research activities. Payments from academic
teaching activities (courses, conferences or speaking engagements) or research (books
or articles) may be authorized, as long as they are of a sporadic and not habitual
nature.
In addition to the living allowance, all fellows will receive a gross monthly mobility
allowance of:
The reference date for determining the family situation is the relevant deadline for
submission of the application. No changes to the allowance will be made if the family
status of the researcher changes after that date.
Research expenses
Moreover, each grant holder will receive a contribution to the research expenses of:
This contribution will be managed by UC3M for expenses related to the participation
of the researcher in research and training activities (except bonus payments) such as
meetings, conference attendance, training actions, courses, etc.
The holders of the contract are expected to start their fellowship within four months after the
publication of the resolution with the ranking list from the Office of the University Rector.
Beneficiaries may request another start date for personal reasons.
All fellowships have a minimum duration of 36 months. Extensions to these periods may be
made under UC3M regulations. When a fellow takes a maternity/paternity leave during the
fellowship period, the fellowship will automatically be extended for an equivalent period, in
line with statutory maternity entitlements. In all cases, the extension of the fellowships will not
Documentation
In order to execute the labour contract, the beneficiary of the fellowship must present the
following documents at the University Human Resources and Organization Service (Servicio de
Recursos Humanos y Organizacin) before the anticipated date of incorporation:
Concerning intellectual property rights regulations, UC3M ensures that researchers can benefit
from the exploitation (if any) of their R&D results through legal protection and, in particular,
through appropriate protection of intellectual property rights, including copyrights. The
Technology Transfer Office and the Scientific Park at UC3M will work in close collaboration
with researchers to actively identify and manage results with a potential to be transferred into
products for the benefit of society. The Spanish Universities Law recognizes the right of
researchers to benefit from the income obtained through exploitation of the results of which
he/she is the inventor.
Proposals must be submitted electronically using the CEMS. Proposals arriving by any other
means are regarded as not submitted, and will not be evaluated.
The official language for this call is English; applications which are submitted in any other
language will not be eligible.
1. CEMS Registration
All applicants must register in the CEMS in order to write and submit the proposal.
Once registered, check your mailbox as a confirmation e-mail of your registration will be
sent within a few minutes.
In order to fill in your application, you will find three different tabs:
- Call Details: Please check you have selected the right scheme:
Please notice that fields in green in the Researcher Info online form are compulsory.
Mobility Allowance:
Are you eligible for the family-related mobility Yes/No. (See point 2.c. for more
allowance? information)
SI
Proposal Information
Proposal Number Filled in by the system.
Proposal Acronym A short title or acronym will be used to identify the
proposal. It should be of no more than 20 characters (use
standard alphabet and numbers only; no spaces, symbols
or special characters, please).
The same acronym should appear on each page of Part B.
Proposal Title The title should be no longer than 200 characters
Scheme Filled in by the system:
CONEX Very Experienced Professors
CONEX Experienced Professors
Scientific UC3M Area 1. Engineering, Applied Mathematics and Physics
2. Social Sciences & Law
3. Humanities, Library Science & Communication
Priority Area 1 Please choose the Priority Area (ANEP areas) (See Annex 1)
by which you would like your proposal to be evaluated.
Mandatory.
Area 2 You can choose a secondary area that you consider most
relevant to your proposal. Optional.
Area 3 You can choose a third area that you consider most
relevant to your proposal. Optional.
Keywords Please enter free text keywords that you believe best
characterise the scope of your research proposal. There is a
limit of 200 characters.
Abstract The abstract (summary) should, at a glance, provide the
The information to be included and the maximum length of each section is described below.
Page limits must be strictly adhered to; in case a proposal exceeds the maximum number of
Each proposal page must carry a header presenting the PIs last name and the acronym.
Regardless of any page limits specified in this guide, the pdf file must not exceed 5 Mbytes.
Cover Page:
Proposal full title
Proposal acronym
Name of the Principal Investigator (PI)
Proposal summary: copy/paste of abstract from administrative form A
Part B.0 Motivation of the applicant (maximum 1 page)
- Research experience.
- Research results including patents, publications, teaching etc., taking into account the
level of experience.
- Independent thinking and leadership qualities, supervision of Ph.D.
- International commitment, participation and directions of research projects.
If the answer to any of the questions of the Ethical Issues Table (see below) is yes, you
must provide in this section a brief explanation of the ethical issue involved and how it
will be dealt with appropriately. Please specify as well any authorisation or permission
you already have for the proposed work.
- B4.2 Ethical Issues Table:
The applicant must complete the Ethical Issues Table to identify any ethical aspects of
the proposed work. This table has to be completed even if there are no issues (simply
confirm that none of the ethical issues apply to the proposal).
It is recommended that the file name contains the Proposal Short Name, such as:
PartB_[Proposal-Short-Name].pdf
The system will offer you an application summary after an automatic check and will give
warning messages if mandatory fields are not completed.
Before the final submission of the application in the online system, the candidate must
accept the following compulsory declarations:
The system makes an automatic validation so in case you have not filled in all the
compulsory fields, you will have a new Application Summary with the missing fields
marked with
Upon reception of the complete application in the CEMS system, the applicant will receive
an e-mail to confirm that he/she has entered the selection process, along with an
application reference.
You are advised to download a Checklist for Applicants from the CONEX Call for Applications
webpage.
Eligibility criteria:
1. Applicants must have the degree and research experience appropriate to the
CONEX scheme they apply to.
2. Applicants must engage in international mobility. Applicants must have lived
outside of Spain for at least 3 years prior to the deadline of the call.
3. Applicants should propose proposals for a stay of 36 months.
4. Proposals must be complete, as indicated in point 3.
5. Proposals must be submitted through the CEMS before the call deadline.
6. Proposals must be executed at a Department or Research Institute at Universidad
Carlos III de Madrid.
7. Proposals must include only one candidate.
8. The application must include a tentative starting date of the contract according to
point 6 of the Call Text. Applicants must take into account that this date is
compulsory when filling in the application form, but tentative and not binding in
case of a successful application.
Evaluation process
The evaluation process is a two-step evaluation process, with a final score of up to 100 points.
The first step of the evaluation is carried out by the National Evaluation and Foresight Agency
(ANEP). The second step involves evaluation by the UC3M Selection Committee. Evaluation in
step one will focus on the scientific and technological quality of the proposal and the applicant.
Evaluation in step two will focus on the expected impact of the fellowship on the career of the
researcher.
First Step
The first step of the evaluation procedure is a scientific and technical peer-review evaluation,
by evaluators selected by the ANEP (Spanish Evaluation and Foresight Agency, within the State
Department of Research of the Ministry of Science and Innovation).
The selection process will follow the guidelines of The European Charter for Researchers and
Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers
(http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/index.cfm/rights/europeanCharter). The selection committees
Each proposal will be read by two evaluators, and a consolidated evaluation report will be
written. Each proposal will receive a score of up to 80 points. The reviewers will also indicate
whether, in their view, the proposal deals with sensitive ethical issues.
Second Step
Step 2 involves a strategic evaluation and a remote interview by a selection panel. Step 2 is
carried out by a UC3M Selection Committee. This Selection Committee is composed of three
professors which have no direct or indirect interest in the proposal submitted. One member of
this committee will be female. The selection procedure will be monitored by two
representative authorities of the UC3M.
The UC3M Selection Committee will receive the evaluation reports and the ordered list of
candidates with the scores received from the ANEP for the scientific and technical evaluation
(up to 80 points). The Selection Committee will evaluate only those proposals which have
reached a minimum threshold of 45 points.
The Selection Committee will look at the strategic aspects of the application in relation to the
objectives of the CONEX programme.
The UC3M Selection Committee can assign up to 20 points to each proposal (15 points related
to the strategic aspects of the application and 5 points for the interview). Recommendations
for improvements to be discussed as part of a possible negotiation phase are given, if needed,
by the Selection Committee. Moreover, evaluators will decide whether an ethical review will
be necessary. The Selection Committee will provide a score for each proposal.
Interview
Candidates who have passed the threshold will be invited to an interview with the UC3M
Selection Committee. The interview may be conducted by tele- or videoconference or Skype.
The language of the interview will be English, but the candidate and the committee can agree
to use Spanish. Both languages are used for teaching at UC3M.
1. Evaluation process
Selection criteria
The selection criteria for the fellows and proposals are the following:
1. Academic excellence of the candidate
2. Excellence of the project
3. Impact of the fellowship
4. Selection, through an interview with the delegate representative
For each criterion and sub-criterion, the research experience of the applicant will be taken into
account. For example, researchers applying to scheme 1 are expected to present more high-
impact publications and patents than researchers applying to scheme 2.
Evaluation by UC3M
Evaluation by ANEP
Selection Committee
Scientific /
technological
Potential impact
quality, including
Research and benefit of
any Strategic view of the
experience. this fellowship on
interdisciplinary applicant (scheme 1)
his/her research
and
career
transdisciplinary
aspects of the
proposal.
Research results Innovative nature
including patents, and originality of Clarity of the
publications, the project. training plan
teaching, etc., Ambitious (scheme 2) or Scientific view of the
taking into account objectives. Novel or research plan applicant
the level of unconventional (scheme 1)
experience. concepts and/or
approaches.
Potential of the
scheme to further
Independent improve the
thinking and Methodology and
prospects of
leadership approach. Suitability
reaching and/or Motivation of the
qualities, of the methodology.
reinforcing a applicant
supervision of Ph.D. Ambitious
position of
objectives.
professional
maturity, diversity
and independence
International
commitment, Benefit of the
Feasibility of the
participation and mobility to UC3M
project. Achievable
directions of (or specific groups
objectives.
research projects. at UC3M)
(*) The candidates academic excellence will be based on the evaluation of the merits of each
candidate (research experience, high-impact publications, patents, leadership, supervision of
Ph.D. students, international collaborations, international commitment, participation and
direction of research projects funded in open calls FP7, NSF,-, collaborations with
companies/organizations). Moreover, the ANEP will take into account the following
bibliometric indicators:
Very Experienced
Evaluation Criteria Experienced Professors
Professors
Excellence of
50 40
applicant
First Evaluation
Excellence of the
30 40
project
Impact of the
Second 15 15
fellowship
Evaluation
Interview 5 5
e. Feedback to applicants
For each scheme, a resolution from the Office of the University Rector with a ranking list of the
successful candidates who have passed the threshold will be published. The results will not be
published prior to 30 September (August is not an official working period for the University).
In the 30 days after the publication of the evaluation results, the University will contact
successful applicants following the priority order until completing the number of scholarships
provided in the call for each scheme. Unsuccessful applicants will receive an Evaluation report.
f. Redress
Unsuccessful applicants will also receive information about the possibility of starting a redress
procedure, in line with the provisions of the Spanish law Ley 30/1992, de 26 de noviembre, de
Rgimen Jurdico de las Administraciones Pblicas y del Procedimiento Administrativo Comn.
The applicants will have 15 days to submit a request for redress after receiving feedback about
the evaluation of their proposal. A template for the redress will be available on the website.
The Selection Committee will reply within one month of the date of the redress.
Redress requests cannot be made with regards to scientific judgments of the reviewers and
Selection Committee, but only with regards to procedural issues or perceived incorrect
application of eligibility criteria.
a. Scientific Reporting
Researchers contracted under the CONEX programme must submit an interim scientific report
within 30 days after the first and second annual deadline of the project. These reports must
describe the project, give relevant information on its development as well as the preliminary
results obtained, and describe any changes compared to the original proposal.
Within 30 days after the end of the project, the fellows must submit their final scientific
report. All interim and final scientific reports must be sent to the CONEX management team.
Researchers will be provided with the Guide for Reporting, which will include the relevant
information and templates for reporting.
b. Suspension of Fellowships
As is indicated in the Call text, the contract modifications which are allowed are:
Interruptions
Contract termination
UC3M, as the employer of funded fellows, has the right to cancel a fellowship that has
already been awarded in the following situations:
a. The fellowship has been accepted but has not commenced within the timeline, unless
for justified reasons (e.g., difficulties in obtaining the necessary documents).
b. The fellowship is interrupted without justified reasons.
c. A justified suspension of a maximum of 30 days is not considered a cause for
cancellation.
d. The evaluation of interim and final scientific reports has not successfully been passed.
Contract Resignation
Should the fellow not be able to conclude his/her fellowship period for personal reasons,
he/she must promptly notify the CONEX management team.
Evaluation
results Sept
2014
Se
th
29 May, 2014
Interview
Up to 20 points
th
30 September, 2014*
Evaluation results
Employment contract Stage 5: Selection &
Guide for practical issues Concession Resolution Incorporation
Visa for researchers & Negotiations
st
1 October, 2014
Accept?
Incorporation
* August
CONEX International Incoming
is not an official Fellowships
working period for the University
Guide for Applicants - First Call for Applications: CONEX-2014-1 Page 28 of 40
7. CONTACT INFORMATION
If you have questions about any aspect of the CONEX Programme in general and the First Call
for Applications in particular, send an e-mail to conex@uc3m.es
Please make sure to submit any enquiries at least 2 days before the deadline so the Help Desk
can have sufficient time to provide an answer in time.
In any case, we recommend you visit our Frequently Asked Questions webpage first.
CONEX Helpdesk
Universidad Carlos III de Madrid
Edificio Juan Benet
Avda. de la Universidad, 30.
28911 Legans (Madrid) SPAIN
Email: conex@uc3m.es
Web Page: uc3m.es/conex
Mobility: At the time of the relevant deadline for submission of applications, researchers shall
not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Spain in the three
years prior to the deadline date.
BMED Biomedicine
CS Social Sciences
DER Law
MTM Mathematics
PS Psychology
QMC Chemistry
MTM Mathematics
Institutes
- Institute "Flores de Lemus"
- Institute for Justice and Litigation "Alonso Martnez"
- Institute of Business Development (INDEM)
- Institute of Chemistry and Materials Technology "lvaro Alonso Barba"
- Institute of Classical Studies on Society and Politics "Lucio Anneo Sneca"
- Institute of Comparative Public Law "Manuel Garca Pelayo"
- Institute of Culture and Technology "Miguel de Unamuno"
- Institute of Documentation and Information Management "Agustn Millares"
- Institute of Entrepreneurial and Family Business "Conde de Campomanes"
- Institute of History and Social Sciences "Figuerola"
- Institute of Human Rights "Bartolom de las Casas"
- Institute of International and European Studies "Francisco de Vitoria"
- Institute of Land, Urbanism and Environment "Pascual Madoz"
The Ethical Issues Table is in line with the FP7 form and includes the following information:
Please indicate here the page number of Part B of your application on which the ethical issue
in question arises.
Guidance notes on informed consent, dual use, animal welfare, data protection and
cooperation with non-EU countries are available at:
http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/ethics_en.html
In accordance with Article 12(1) of the Rules for Participation in FP7, International
Cooperation Partner Country (ICPC) means a third country which the Commission
classifies as a low-income (L), lower-middle-income (LM) or upper-middle-income
(UM) country. Link: http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/fp7/206006/wp-
2013-annex-1-icpc-list_en.pdf