The EU Research Career framework establishes four different stages: R1, R2, R3 and R4, within the research career, whether the research activity is performed in academia or in any other sector. This classification is established based on the characteristics, funcitons and merits that researchers may develope and  acquire throughout their careers. These features apply to all researchers independently of where they work in the public or private sector. Notwithstanding this classification, some early-stage researchers may acquire partial features or milestones of advanced profiles.

For a detailed description of the EU research career framework, please go here.

It is relevant to use this pan-European classification to understand your current stage and the main milestones to advance into further stages. When combining this career framework with the provided scheme of intensive research and research and teaching positions at the public academic Spanish system, it can assist you in planning your research career.

*Translated position titles are meant only to facilitate comprehension to international researchers, but they are not an exact equivalence. We recommend you use the EU research career framework (R1-R4) for an accurate understanding of each position.

Positions at public institutions are mainly regulated by the Science and Technology Act and the Organization of the University System Act. All of them are working contracts or civil servant positions; hence, they are regulated by labor or public service laws and collective agreements of specific institutions. Important aspects to understand are:

Fixed-term contract and open-ended contract

There are several contracts whose duration is restricted in time:

• Contrato Predoctoral (PhD researcher), whose minimum duration is 1 year and cannot be held for longer than 4 years independently of the hosting institution, or 6 years in case of disability.
• Contrato de Acceso del Personal Investigador (Postdoctoral Researcher and Assistant Professor), whose minimum duration is 3 years and cannot be held for longer than 6 years independently of the hosting institution or 8 years in case of justified disabilities. All of this time will be extended in case of paternal or maternal leaves and caring duties of dependants.
• Ayudante doctor (Assistant Professor), a position only offered by universities, lasts for 6 years independently of the hosting university.
• Profesor Visitante (Visiting Teacher), a 2-year contract to teach at a university.

There are also open-ended labor contracts:

• Contrato de Actividades científico-técnicas (Research/Scientist Fellow) is a contract to hire staff dedicated to research activities, whether researchers or supporting staff, as well as research managers.
• Contrato de Investigador Distinguido (Associate Researcher) is a contract to hire a highly internationally recognized researcher, which duration is mutually agreed among employer and employee.
• Profesor Distinguido, (Associate Professor) is a contract to hire a highly internationally recognized lecturer or professor at a university, which duration is mutually agreed among employer and employee.
• Profesor Permanente Laboral (Lecturer and Professor) is a permanent contract to hire a researcher with teaching responsibilities in universities. The recruitment processes is based on the competition of merits.
• The other open-ended positions are civil servant permanent positions whose sources of funding come from intramural structural funds, recruiment processes are also based on competition of merits.

To plan your academic research career effectively, it's crucial to understand the various paths to securing a position. Generally, there are four ways to obtain a position within public R&D systems:

• Securing individual funding to support your own position, typically available at all career stages but subject to variations depending on the country. Check in the "7th edition of Career path in Spain at a glance", the available calls to apply for this type of funding.
• Obtaining a position directly from a funded project, usually applicable for researchers at the R1 and R2 career stages. More information here: Understanding project funded positions
• Joining a program, often more common for PhD candidate positions (R1), and sometimes also for R2. These programmes can be also funded by structural or competitive funds. Check here programmes funded my MSCA-COFUND programme.
• Acquiring a position funded through structural intramural funding, typically for permanent positions.

Acquiring a position funded through structural intramural funding

Spanish Research Performing Organizations (RPOs) and Universities can offer civil servant positions or labor contracts funded by annual provisions and public budgets (intramural structural funding). As a result, these positions require approval from the relevant tax and budget authorities at the regional or national level, and the process of assignment to different RPOs and universities can be lengthy. Typically, these positions are of permanent status.

Since the researcher becomes a permanent staff member, the recruitment process follows a defined competitive procedure based on the merits and suitability of the candidate for the offered profile. This process is regulated by the Science and Technology Act, the Organization of the University System Act, and other regulations of the public administration. Once the RPOs or University got approval and budget to fund these positions, they initiate a call for the specific positions they intend to fill. Common intramural funding positions include Científico Titular, Investigador Científico, and Catedrático at RPOs, and Profesor Permanente Laboral (Lecturer and Professor), Profesor Titular (Lecturer), and Catedrático (Full Professor) at universities.

This is a new track recently included in the Spanish research career aiming at bringing predictability to researchers’ careers.

R3 certification

It is currently at the beginning of it is implementation, but these are some of it is features:

Is it mandatory or required?

R3 certification is optional and not required to continue your research career in Spain. However, it brings you the following benefits:

• It makes your CV appropriate to compete in recruitment processes, saving you from going through the merit evaluation section to be considered.
• It also makes your merits appropriate enough for accreditation procedures
• It allows you to participate in recruitment processes in which only  R3-certified researchers can apply for the positions. (see below)

Who can apply for an R3 certification?

• R2 researchers that have been contracted for longer than 2 years with a Contrato de Acceso del Personal Investigador and obtained a competitive fellowship programme or
• R2 researchers that have more than 3 years of experience and have obtained a competitive fellowship from the Spanish System of Science and Technology or,
• R2 researchers that have more than 5 years of experience
• It is required for all R2 cases explained above to have accumulated at least a total of 2 years of experience abroad. This abroad stay could have been experienced in intermittent or continuous periods of times. (This is not required if the PhD has been obtained abroad or if the person has a certain degree of disability)

How can you apply?

• For those researchers who have obtained a national or regional competitive fellowship, the funding bodies of the programmes will evaluate their research performance. After receiving a positive evaluation, researchers can obtain an R3 certification as long as the evaluation criteria fulfilled a standard. The National Funding Agency is responsible for setting up the standard criteria.
• In all other cases, researchers need to apply for an annual opening call of evaluation led by the National Funding Agency. More information about the procedures and criterias of CV evaluation can be found here.

More about R3 certification

Reserved permanent positions

A pool of permanent positions at Research Public Organizations (RPOs) and universities can only be applied for by R3 certified researchers. More specifically:

• At RPOs, 25% of annual Científico Titular positions will be reserved to be only applied for by  R3 certification.
• At Universities, 15% of annual Profesor Permanente Laboral or Profesor Titular will be reserved to be applied for by those with an R3 certification. It is important to consider that to obtain one of these two teaching/researcher positions is important to have previously obtained an accreditation (see below).

Obtaining an official accreditation of merits is a prerequisite to applying for permanent positions at the university. ANECA or regional pertaining bodies issue this accreditation.

There are two different types of procedures:

• For accreditation of Profesor Permanente Laboral (Lecturer). More information here.
• For accreditation of Profesor Titular (Senior Lecturer) and Catedrático (Professor). More information is here.

When applying for any of these types of accreditations, it is important to consider the following:

• Resolution time can last 6 months.
• If the accreditation is denied, the next application cannot be sent until 6 months after receiving the notification.
• It is not necessary to have a recognized PhD title in the Spanish system to obtain the accreditation if you have done your PhD abroad. Still, the issued accreditation will not be valid until the recognition of the title has been issued.