One Research Fellowship (BI) for a Master’s degree holder in the field of Extragalactic Astrophysics and Machine Learning

Ref: IA2026-07-BI

The Centro de Investigação em Astronomia/Astrofísica da Universidade do Porto (CAUP) opens a call for one Research Fellowship in the field of Astronomy/Astrophysics – Extragalactic Astrophysics and Machine Learning at the Instituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço (IA).

The Instituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço (IA) is the most prominent Research Unit in the field of Astronomy/Astrophysics in Portugal, integrating researchers from the universities of Porto, Lisbon and Coimbra, and is responsible for a major fraction of the national productivity in international ISI journals in the field of Space Sciences. Research and science communication at IA include topics and instrumentation at the forefront of research in Astronomy/Astrophysics and Space Sciences.

The position is offered in the context of the project ''PLATES – Powering the search of LAEs with transformers for large-scale extragalactic surveys'', funded by Portuguese funds through FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (reference  2024.05289.RESTART), under the following conditions:

1.- Scientific area: Astronomy and Astrophysics.

2.- Requirements for admission: The applicants must have completed a MSc degree in Astronomy/Astrophysics, Physics, Mathematics, Computer Science or a related discipline. They must also comply with the requirements for enrollment in a degree or non-degree academic course at a university in Portugal at the time the fellowship begins.

Only applications from candidates having an adequate background in Astronomy/Astrophysics, Physics, Mathematics, Computer Science or other relevant domains will be considered.

3.- Additional skills and qualifications: The applicants should have some programming experience, preferably in Python. Experience in machine learning, familiarity with version control systems (e.g., Git), and experience working in Linux-based environments (e.g., WSL) will be considered an asset.

4.- Contracting requirements: Presentation of the following documents at the time of signing the fellowship agreement:

    - Presentation of the academic qualifications and/or diplomas (*).
    - Proof of enrollment in a degree or non-degree academic course.

5.- Work plan: The successful applicant will contribute to the development and optimization of machine learning models within the PLATES project. After familiarization with the existing dataset and current pipelines, the fellow will:

    - Implement and refine transformer-based architectures for multimodal photometric and imaging data translation.
    - Optimize model training workflows using available GPU resources.
    - Evaluate model generalization across heterogeneous survey datasets.
    - Apply the developed models to the identification and characterization of Lyman-α emitters in large-scale surveys.
    - Contribute to the preparation of scientific publications and technical reports.

The fellow is expected to work with a high degree of technical autonomy under the scientific supervision of the project’s PI and to contribute significantly to the project's objectives.

6.- Legislation framework: The fellowship contract will comply with:

    - Law n.º 123/2019, of 28th August 2019 - ''Estatuto do Bolseiro de Investigação'' (Research Grant Holder Statute) in force [https://dre.pt/dre/legislacao-consolidada/lei/2004-58216179].
    - Regulation n.º 950/2019, of 16th December 2019 - ''Regulamento de Bolsas e Investigação da Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia'' (Regulation of Fellowship of Research) in force [https://files.dre.pt/2s/2019/12/241000000/0009100105.pdf].
    - "CAUP's Fellowship Regulation" (available at www.astro.up.pt/documentos/CAUP-RegulamentoBolsas.pdf).

The fellow's functions are carried out under a scheme of exclusive dedication, in accordance with the terms established in the article 5 of Research Grant Holder Statute (Estatuto do Bolseiro de Investigação).

7.- Monthly allowance: According to the FCT table values [https://www.fct.pt/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Tabela_valores_SMM_2025.pdf], the monthly allowance will be € 1.309,64 (tax-free) and will be paid monthly by bank transfer.

The fellow will have personal accident insurance. They can also exercise the right to social security by joining the voluntary social insurance scheme, if not covered by any other social protection scheme, under the terms of the Código dos Regimes Contributivos do Sistema Previdencial de Segurança Social, as stipulated in article 10 of the Research Grant Holder Statute (Estatuto do Bolseiro de Investigação).

Additional funds for travel (conferences and/or work visits) will also be available.

8.- Place of work: The work will be carried out at CAUP (in the Porto node of the Instituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço), Rua das Estrelas, 4150-762, under the scientific supervision of Ana Paulino-Afonso.

9.- Fellowship duration: The fellowship should start on April 1st, 2026, and has a duration of 9 months.

10.- Application: The application, to be submitted through the web form indicated below, should include the following information:

    a) Cover letter with a brief description of the candidate's experience and motivation.
    b) Detailed Curriculum Vitae describing the academic path and research experience (up to 4 pages with at least 10pt font size).
    c) List of completed curricular units with the respective grades.
    d) MSc degree diploma or certificate (*).

(*) The documents that prove the entitlement of the academic qualifications or diplomas can be dismissed during the application period and replaced by a signed declaration of honour. If not provided during the application process, these documents must nevertheless be submitted when signing the contract.

In the event that the degree was awarded by a higher education institution outside of Portugal, that degree must comply with the provisions of Decree-Law n.º 66/2018 of 16th August 2018 (approves the legal regime for the recognition of foreign higher academic degrees) and Ministerial Order n.º 43/2020 of 14th February which changes the Ministerial Order n.º 33/2019 of 25th January, and all formalities established therein must be complied with up to the date of signing the contract.

Applicants are advised to check the website of the Directorate-General for Higher Education (DGES) for further information: https://www.dges.gov.pt/en/pagina/degree-and-diploma-recognition. They can also check information on the website of the University of Porto: https://sigarra.up.pt/up/en/WEB_BASE.GERA_PAGINA?p_pagina=1005819.

11.- Deadline: This call for applications will remain open from the 20th of February until the 5th of March 2026.

12.- Selection criteria and evaluation: The evaluation of the applications will be performed based on:

    a) (25%) Cover letter with a brief description of the candidate's experience and motivation.
    b) (35%) CV, considering the degree and previous academic training, including grades of completed curricular units and the relevance of that training to the topic of the call.
    c) (40%) Relevance of previous research experience.

An ordered list of candidates will be defined by the Selection Committee based on the submitted documents and the criteria mentioned above.

13.- Selection Committee:

    - Ana Paulino-Afonso (Chair)
    - Pedro Cunha
    - João Calhau
   - Mário João Monteiro
    - Andrew J. Humphrey (alternate member)

14.- Awarding of the contract: Following the evaluation process, the fellowship(s) will be offered according to the ordered list proposed by the selection committee. The position(s) will be granted only if suitable candidates are identified. Only candidates with a minimum grade of 70% will be accepted. All the candidates will be notified by e-mail, sent by the call holder, with the final classifications and the selection meeting minutes and/or evaluation grids enclosed.

15.- Time limits for the appeal procedure: Candidates have 10 working days, after the date of announcement of the results, to pronounce on the decision through e-mail to jobs@iastro.pt and to the Chair of the Selection Committee [paulinoafonso@astro.up.pt]. Appeals against the final decision may be submitted to the Executive Board of CAUP (direcao@lists.astro.up.pt) within 15 working days after the notification date.

16.- Non-discrimination and equal access: CAUP promotes a policy of non-discrimination and equal access, thus no applicant may be privileged, benefited, undermined or deprived of any right or exempted from any duty, namely, due to ancestry, age, gender, sexual orientation, civil status, family situation, economic situation, origin or social condition, genetic heritage, reduced work capacity, disability, chronic disease, nationality, ethnicity or race, country or territory of origin, language, religion, political or ideological beliefs, or trade union affiliation.

Publication date: 16 February 2026

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