A research position in higher education, often called a research job, is a professional role centered on advancing knowledge through systematic investigation. The meaning of a research position involves designing experiments or studies, collecting and analyzing data, and disseminating results via publications or conferences. These roles differ from teaching-focused jobs by prioritizing discovery over instruction, though some may include mentoring students.
Research jobs exist across disciplines like sciences, humanities, and social sciences. For instance, in natural sciences, researchers might develop new materials, while in social sciences, they analyze policy impacts. This definition captures the core essence: original contributions to fields using the scientific method or equivalent scholarly approaches.
Research positions evolved in the 19th century as universities shifted from teaching-only institutions to research hubs, influenced by models like Germany's Humboldtian university. By the 20th century, funding from governments and foundations formalized roles. Today, research jobs are project-driven, with temporary contracts common to align with grants.
In Portugal, research positions gained prominence post-1974 democracy, bolstered by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) established in 1997. Institutions like Universidade do Porto lead in areas such as marine sciences and engineering, reflecting Portugal's strategic focus on innovation.
Research jobs vary by career stage:
Required Academic Qualifications: A bachelor's or master's for junior roles; PhD mandatory for postdocs and above in relevant fields like biology or economics.
Research Focus or Expertise Needed: Alignment with project themes, such as climate modeling in Portugal's oceanography hubs.
Preferred Experience: 5+ peer-reviewed publications, grant applications (e.g., FCT or ERC), and conference presentations. International collaborations enhance profiles.
Skills and Competencies: Proficiency in statistical software, ethical research practices, teamwork, and writing proposals. Soft skills like adaptability suit dynamic funding landscapes.
Portugal's higher education emphasizes research, with over 30 universities and polytechnics. FCT allocates €600 million annually for projects, creating thousands of jobs. Strengths include renewable energy and neuroscience at Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência. International researchers benefit from EU mobility schemes, making it accessible.
Craft a standout application with advice from how to write a winning academic CV.
To land research jobs, build a portfolio early: publish, seek internships, and network via platforms like ResearchGate. In competitive fields, highlight impact metrics like citations. For transitions, consider postdoc opportunities.
Ready to explore? Browse higher-ed-jobs for openings, get career tips at higher-ed-career-advice, search university-jobs, or post your listing via post-a-job.
If you are searching for research jobs in Portugal, you need more than a keyword dump of “scientist” ads. You need openings that match how universities actually hire: postdoctoral fellowships, research assistant and associate roles, research fellows, lab technicians, research coordinators, and faculty researcher lines. Academic Jobs (AJ) is built for that search. Every listing on this page is already filtered to university and institute research roles, so you spend time on fit — lab, method, contract length, and location — instead of wading through unrelated industry postings.
Job seekers come here with a clear intent: find a funded research post they can apply to this week. Use the filters above to narrow by city, institution, employment type, or a keyword such as CRISPR, ethnography, or clinical trials. On a country page the region is pre-set, so the count in the heading is the live number of research openings in Portugal, not a global total. That is the number you should trust when you are deciding whether to relocate, stay local, or keep a worldwide search open.
AJ aggregates research jobs from universities, medical schools, national labs, and research institutes in one board. That matters because most research hiring is still posted on a single employer career site and easy to miss if you only check two or three campuses. A postdoc in public health, a research technician in a core facility, and a research professor line will not sit on the same faculty page — they will sit on AJ if the employer posted or syndicated the role. You can also save a job alert with the same research filters so new fellowships hit your inbox instead of disappearing after a short closing window.
Compared with general job boards, AJ’s research collection is scoped to higher education. You will still see staff research and faculty research together, which is useful when your next step could be either a fellowship or a research-track faculty post. Pair this page with Science Jobs if you want scientist titles, or Professor Jobs if you are targeting a teaching-and-research chair. For most candidates asking “where do I find research jobs in Portugal that I can actually apply for?”, the short answer is this listing: live count, research-only filters, and a board that employers in higher education already use.
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