ASCENT Advanced Fellowship

What is ASCENT?

The ASCENT program (Academic Secured Career ENgagement in Toulouse) is a prestigious fellowship program for avdanced post-doctoral researchers coordinated by the University of Toulouse and a core component of the TIRIS initiative (Toulouse Initiative for Research Impact on Society).

Co-funded by TIRIS and the European Commission under Horizon Europe (MSCA-COFUND-2025, Grant Agreement n°101313640), ASCENT aims to position Toulouse as a European hub for scientific talent by offering long-term stability, freedom, and visibility to advanced post-doctoral researchers. 

It is designed to recruit 6 highly talented researchers, for 5 years, in one single call (2026-27). Fellows will conduct independent, high-impact research at the University of Toulouse, benefiting from an interdisciplinary and intersectoral environment.

Location: Toulouse, France – A world-class research hub!

Research areas

ASCENT aims to support high-level postdoctoral research in 7 strategic areas :

• Climate and environmental sciences: understanding planetary change, ecological tipping points and pathways to resilience 
• Space and Earth observation sciences: monitoring environmental change, hazards and resources through cutting-edge observation technologies 
• Gender studies and social equality research: advancing knowledge on identity, rights, inequalities and inclusion
• Governance, democracy, migration and human rights research: analysing political systems, collective decision-making and the conditions of human dignity
• Public health, epidemiology and infectious diseases: protecting populations, vaccine studies, modelling risks and improving global health
• Biosciences and data-driven health research : exploring life processes, ageing, bio-interfaces, molecular mechanisms and health data sciences
• Sustainable aeronautics: advanced air mobility, sustainable fuels, hydrogen, green technologies

Why choose ASCENT?

Join a fully funded 5-years program in Toulouse, France, open to participant of any nationality respecting the eligibility criteria, and designed to empower advanced researchers with the resources, mentorship, and opportunities to drive impactful, interdisciplinary research!

💰 Full Funding & Competitive Benefits

• 5-year fully funded position: 36 months for research (phase 1) + 24 months for research and consolidation (phase 2)
• Attractive salary: €3800/month (gross salary, mobility allowance included – phase 1) and €3400/month (gross salary – phase 2), including benefits 
• Dedicated budget: Full funding to supervise a 3-year PhD student

🔬 World-Class Research Environment

• Interdisciplinary & international research in Toulouse’s 143 word-class labs
• Access to Toulouse’s Cutting-Edge Research Infrastructure

🚀 Career Development & Mobility

• Strong career development & mentoring program with top researchers & industry leaders
• Pathway to long-term integration and permanent position
• Targeted training and workshops (research ethics, AI, grant writing, entrepreneurship, Open Science/data management, etc.)
• Opportunities for secondments in academia or industry abroad
• Participation in conferences and events to expand professional connections

🌍 Commitment to Scientific Transparency & Societal Impact

• Publish open-access research to ensure knowledge is accessible to all
• Engage in public outreach events
• Promote collaboration with policy makers and industry to bridge the gap between research and real-world applications

Who can apply?

ASCENT is designed for post-doctoral researchers who have reached scientific maturity and demonstrate the potential to become future research leaders within five years. This typically corresponds to researchers with already about five years of postdoctoral experience, although no formal restriction on seniority applies.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible, applicants must:

• Submit a full-time project not already funded by the EU
• Hold a PhD by the call deadline
• Comply with the MSCA mobility rule:
• Not have resided or worked in France for more than 12 months in the 36 months preceding the application deadline (short stays (e.g., holidays) and time spent as a refugee are not counted toward this period).
• Not be permanently employed by the future host institution

Non-discrimination and diversity – The ASCENT programme is open to PhD holders, regardless of nationality, background or gender. The programme welcomes applicants with disabilities, refugees and researchers with atypical career paths.

Project scientific scope

Postdoctoral projects must align with one of the following interdisciplinary themes of TIRIS:

• Understanding and promoting good health and well-being
• Understanding global changes and their impact on societies
• Accelerating sustainable transitions

And be rooted within one of the disciplinary clusters of the University of Toulouse:

• BABS (Biology, Agronomy, Biotechnology, Health)
• DSPEG (Law, Political Science, Economics, Finance)
• H-SHS (Humanities and Social Sciences)
• MST2I (Mathematics, science and information technology and engineering)
• SDM (Chemistry, Matter Sciences)
• UPEE (Universe, planet, space, environment)

Applicants must identify at least one host research unit affiliated with ASCENT, using the guide of research exploring our 143 Research Labs.

🔍 Check Full Eligibility & Selection Criteria on the Guide for Applicants

Application process