The Juan de la Cierva 2025 Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme has officially opened, and Brainlab – University of Barcelona invites motivated researchers to express their interest in joining our group in cognitive neuroscience.

About the Juan de la Cierva 2025 Programme

The Juan de la Cierva call aims to promote the incorporation of young PhD researchers into Spanish R&D institutions to complete their postdoctoral training. In the 2025 edition, up to 500 fellowships will be awarded across all research areas. Each fellowship funds a three-year postdoctoral contract hosted by a Spanish research institution.

Funding conditions

The Juan de la Cierva fellowship provides competitive financial support:

• Annual funding of €35,000 per year, allocated to co-finance the researcher’s salary and the host institution’s social security contributions.

• A guaranteed minimum gross salary of €30,600 per year for the researcher.

• An additional €15,000 research allowance to cover expenses directly related to the research activity, such as scientific travel, research materials, conference participation, and research stays.

These conditions make the programme one of the most attractive postdoctoral opportunities in Spain for early-career researchers.

Eligibility requirements

To be eligible for the 2025 call:

• Applicants must hold a doctoral degree. For the general access track, the PhD must have been defended between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2025.

• In the case of applicants with a certified disability of ≥ 33%, the eligibility window extends from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025, with possible extensions for justified circumstances (parental leave, medical leave, etc.).

• Applicants must not have been previously funded under Juan de la Cierva–Formación, Juan de la Cierva–Incorporación, or equivalent programmes in past calls.

• Applications are submitted through the host institution, which formally includes the candidate in the proposal.

Key dates (Call 2025)

• Researchers: Online application form available 25 November – 10 December 2025 (Spanish peninsular time).

Why join Brainlab at the University of Barcelona?

Brainlab offers a stimulating and interdisciplinary environment for postdoctoral researchers, with active lines of work in:

• Cognitive neuroscience

• Neuroimaging

• Experimental psychology

• Computational modelling

• Learning and decision-making

• Data science applied to human behaviour and cognition

Postdoctoral researchers at Brainlab benefit from:

• A vibrant, international research setting

• Access to advanced research equipment and computational resources

• Opportunities for scientific development, collaboration, and leadership

• Integration into one of Spain’s most dynamic academic ecosystems