Call for PhD applications  – “EU-DOCS for SmUCS

A call for applications has been launched within the framework of the MSCA COFUND (Horizon Europe) project “EU-DOCS for SmUCS” led by La Rochelle University. It follows the call for thesis topics launched in June 2025.

The aim of this call for applications is to identify potential PhD students who are keen to tackle the challenges of sustainable development in coastal areas. Under this second call, PhD students will be recruited by La Rochelle Université for a 36-month period. Each thesis will be co-supervised by a researcher or teacher-researcher from La Rochelle Université and a partner university.

An information session on the program will be held on November 4 from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm to explain the eligibility criteria and recruitment process.

List of thesis topics

• Thesis topic 1: Artificial intelligence-driven design and development of antimicrobial materials upon transductive/ inductive graph neural network approaches for biomedical applications– Partner university: Catholic University of Valencia (UCV), Spain.
• Thesis topic 2: Disentangling the influence of natural and man-made threats on prey-predator interactions in coastal ecosystems – Partner university: Bangor University, UK
• Thesis topic 3: Mechanisms of wild seal movements – a computational approach (SealMove) – Partner university : Rostock University (UROS), Germany.
• Thesis topic 4: Public Water Management in Coastal Areas – Partner university: ROSTOCK Universität (Germany)
• Thesis topic 5 : Fast simulation of particle flows for the next generation of green energy systems – Partner university : University of Seville (Spain)
• Thesis topic 6 : Study of the mechanical behavior and stability of partially saturated heterogeneous soils on the seafront – Partner university : University of Calgary (Canada)
• Thesis topic 7 : Knowledge-Driven Generative AI for Precise Reconstruction of Coastal Historical Buildings via Digital Twin Modelling- Partner university : Technical University of Civil Engineering of Bucharest (UTCB), Romania
• Thesis topic 8 : Interactions between contaminants and parasitic helminths in coastal predators: insights from a declining population of common terns (ParaConT) – Partner university : University of Oldenburg, Germany
• Thesis topic 9 : Multi-disciplinary knowledge management of Coastal Area publications – Partner university : University of Helsinki, Finland
• Thesis topic 10 : Influence of grain boundaries in high-pressure HYdrogen COASTal storage materials for green hydrogen – Partner university : FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany
• Thesis topic 11: Towards Fair and Explainable Lightweight Multimodal Learning Models for Effective Document Understanding – Partner university : South East Technological University, Ireland

Eligibility criteria – applications

The following criteria are used to check the eligibility of applications received:

• Compliance with the Marie Sklodowska-Curie mobility rule: applicants must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in France for more than 12 months between December 2022 and December 2025. Compulsory national service, short stays such as vacations, and time spent as part of a procedure to obtain refugee status under the Geneva Convention (1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and 1967 Protocol) are not taken into account.
• Possession of a Master’s degree (or equivalent).
• Not in possession of a PhD. Researchers who have successfully defended their doctoral thesis, but who have not yet officially obtained their doctoral degree, are not eligible.
• Previous training or work experience in research.

All required documents combined in a single PDF document (CV, covering letter, ID, copy of Master’s degree, application form) must be sent by December 12, 2025 to eudocs_cofund@univ-lr.fr.

If you wish to propose your own thesis topic, please enclose the subject proposal form in addition to the above-mentioned documents.

Details of how to submit an application can be found in the document “EU-DOCS for SmUCS – Guide for Applicants”.

Salary and working conditions

The salary offered as part of this doctoral program is particularly attractive, and exceeds the minimum requirements of current French legislation. In addition, doctoral students will benefit from a mobility allowance and budget lines to cover expenses related to research, training and professional travel.

You would like to participate in the project by proposing your own thesis topic?

This is also possible. In this case, you’ll need to identify:

• Your co-supervisor at La Rochelle Université

You can identify a potential co-supervisor in one of La Rochelle Université’s research units.

• Your co-directors (outside La Rochelle Université)

Feel free to use the RIIS platform to help you identify EU-CONEXUS researchers ready to co-supervise your thesis, or contact the EU-CONEXUS Project Development Support Office.

• The non-academic partner with whom you will be seconded for a period of 3 months

Non-academic partners can be chosen from the list of EU-DOCS for SmUCS project partners (see 12 partners below). This list may be extended depending on the relevance of the secondment to the thesis topic. If you need help identifying a non-academic partner, please contact: eudocs_cofund@univ-lr.fr or campusinnov@univ-lr.fr.

List of non-academic partners (non-exhaustive)

• Port Atlantique La Rochelle – France
• Alstom – France
• TIPEE Platform – France
• District 2, Municipality of Bucharest (PS2) – Romania
• Platforma 22 – Croatia
• ISOTECH – Cyprus
• Southern Regional Assembly – Ireland
• Port of Waterford – Ireland
• ProtoQSAR – Spain
• MATCH Biosystems – Spain
• MOLDRUG – Spain
• PHARMAQUA – Greece

Details on how a candidate can propose a thesis topic are available in the document “EU-DOCS for SmUCS – Guide for Subject Proposal”.

Subject eligibility criteria

The following criteria are used to check the eligibility of subjects proposed by applicants:

• Theses must be co-supervised by a person attached to a La Rochelle Université research unit and a person attached to a university capable of awarding a doctorate degree.
• Alignment of the subject with the program’s objectives: quality of the subject, response to the challenges of the Urban Sustainable Intelligent Coastline (LUDI).
• Quality of supervision provided by co-supervisors (approval from doctoral schools and research laboratories).
• Compliance with EU rules on research ethics and response to LUDI challenges.
• Identification of a non-academic partner or a specific company/professional field for the secondment.

How to apply ?

he application should be completed in English and submitted along with the mandatory supporting documents.

You must provide a file named as follows “ProjectName_NameApplicant” with:

• Your resume (giving a detailed account on your marks, and assessment of your level of English) – max 5 pages.
• A cover letter explaining your motivation – max 2 pages.
• A proof of identity (passport or ID card)
• Copy of Master’s diploma (or equivalent)
• Filled application form (fully dated and signed)
• In case you want to propose your own thesis subject: filled subject proposal form (fully dated and signed)

Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Applications must be sent no later than 12th December 2025 at eudocs_cofund@univ-lr.fr

For any question, please refer to the FAQ or contact the following email address eudocs_cofund@univ-lr.fr