ANNEX I CONDITIONS DETERMINING THE 2008-09 CALL FOR APPLICATIONS FOR…

ANNEX I

CONDITIONS DETERMINING THE 2008-09 CALL FOR APPLICATIONS FOR THE FIRST-
TIME AWARD AND RENEWAL OF AWARDS OF FINANCIAL AID FOR TRAINEE
RESEARCH PERSONNEL FROM DOCTORANDS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF
BARCELONA


I. FIRST-TIME AWARDS AND RENEWAL OF AWARDS OF FINANCIAL AID

Condition 1. Objectives

1. The objective of this call is to grant first-time awards and to renew awards of financial aid
for trainee research personnel as this is made available to doctorands in official doctoral
programs at the University of Barcelona in the program APIF (`Associació de Personal
Investigador en formació'). The call aims to promote both the beneficiary's research training
and teacher training, the former through his/her completion of a doctoral program or official
postgraduate master's degree program and its corresponding thesis, and the latter through
the beneficiary's participation in teaching support tasks in UB departments.

2. The departmental distribution of grants in this call complies with criteria approved by the
University of Barcelona Research Committee.

Condition 2. Area of application

1. This program is addressed to doctorands in official doctoral programs at the University of
Barcelona who hold either a bachelor's degree or engineering degree in a subject taught by
one of the departments listed in the annex and whose degree qualification was awarded after
January 2004.

2. Bachelors in medicine, pharmacy, biology, chemistry and psychology who have completed
the training programs required in these degrees (MIR, FIR, BIR, QUIR, and PIR respectively)
need to have completed their degree in or after May 2000. This will also be statutory for
applicants who can certify their status as childminders of children under the age of six
between June 2000 and June 2004.

3. In exceptional circumstances the Research Committee may consider applicants who have
completed their studies before the period described above, and such applicants should
provide evidence of their activity in the period concerned.


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Condition 3. Structure

1. This program is divided in two stages, of two years each.
a) The first stage, awarded in the form of a grant, for the following: in the case of the student
in a doctoral program regulated by RD 778/1998, for those studies undertaken to obtain the
qualification of research sufficiency; in the case of the student in an official postgraduate
program that includes a master's degree and doctorate and that is regulated by RD 56/2005,
for either those studies leading to the successful completion of 60 credits or those studies
leading to a master's degree qualification; for the successful completion of the training period
activities outlined in Article 18 of RD 1393/2007, 29 October, and to begin the doctoral thesis.
b) The second stage, for the completion and reading of the doctoral thesis. At this stage the
beneficiary shall hold an employment contract with the UB with conditions complying with RD
63/2006, 27 January, approved by the university statute regulating trainee research
personnel.

2. In order to be admitted to the second stage, the candidate shall have completed the two-
year grant period and shall have obtained the accrediting certificate of the beginning of the
period of research issued by the university.

3. Upon completion of the two-year grant period, if for reasons beyond the beneficiary's
control he/she is unable to meet the legally established prerequisites leading to an
employment contract, the beneficiary may formally apply for an extension of the grant using
and respecting the established procedure and conditions of this call.

II. FIRST-TIME AWARDS: GENERAL REGULATIONS

Condition 4. Prerequisites for applicants

1. The financial aid awarded in this call may be applied for by those students who meet the
profile outlined above in Condition 2 and whose applications are submitted within the dates
specified and meet the following prerequisites:
a) The applicant is coursing an official doctoral program at the University of Barcelona or
has by sworn declaration accredited his/her intention to do so at such a moment when the
university accepts the application.
b) The applicant holds either a bachelor's degree or engineering degree in a subject taught
by one of the departments listed in the annex and awarded to that student in the calendar
period specified above in Condition 2, or has been admitted to an official postgraduate
program that includes a master's degree as part of the studies leading to a doctoral
qualification, in compliance with RD 56/2005. The award of financial aid to the holder of a
bachelor's degree in pharmacy shall require the official accreditation of the student's
successfully completed tutored practicals, and this accreditation shall be submitted within a
maximum of ten days following the day after notification of the award has been issued.
Applicants holding degree qualifications awarded outside Spain or from non-official Spanish


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centres shall accompany their applications either with papers officially validating or
recognising these qualifications, or with papers certifying that validation or recognition has
been duly applied for in the relevant quarters. The application shall be considered valid when
the applicant can certify that he or she has been granted authorisation by the Rector's Office
to enrol in one of the University of Barcelona's official doctoral programs.
c) The research director who endorses the application shall either form part of a
consolidated research group or shall have at his/her disposal a funded research project and
shall specify, in the latter case, the identity of the project's financing body and the period in
which the project is to receive finance. In certain cases, especially in the area of social
science, law and the humanities, the Research Committee may rule that such a condition is
unnecessary.
d) The applicant's lowest grade for first- and second-cycle (undergraduate) studies as these
are recorded in his/her academic transcript shall not fall below the grade of 1.50.
e) The applicant shall not already hold a doctoral qualification.
f) The applicant shall not have already been fully paid a research grant awarded by the
Catalan government the Generalitat, the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science, or any
equivalent program. When and where this is the case, the period of time for which the
applicant has been the beneficiary of such a grant shall be subtracted from the maximum
period in which the applicant might receive the present grant.
g) In the moment of accepting the grant, the applicant shall accredit his/her spoken and
written language skill to Level B2 of the Council of Europe's Common European Framework
of Reference for Languages. Those applicants not holding this level may enrol in the
University of Barcelona's School of Modern Languages in order to study a language and
meet this language prerequisite before the application deadline.

2. Applicants may only apply to one department at a time, and only to the department of
which their research project director is a member.

Condition 5. Duration

1. Financial aid is awarded for a period of twelve months. The grant awarded at the first
stage may be extended for a period of one year.

2. In order to enter into an employment contract with the university and so be admitted to
the second stage, which shall have a maximum length of two years, the beneficiary shall
meet Condition 3 outlined above.

Condition 6. Application and documents required

1. The application must be signed by the applicant with the approval of the researcher
responsible for the project and the head of department in the department to which the
beneficiary will be affiliated.




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2. The applicant shall submit a completed copy of the standard form issued by the UB Office
for Services and Programs for Students (Serveis i Programes per a l'Estudiant, Travessera
de les Corts, 131-159 ­ Pavelló Rosa), which can either be obtained by visiting this office or
downloaded at the web page www.ub.edu/acad/beques.

3. The following papers must be submitted with the application form:
a) One photocopy of the applicant's national identity card or passport ID page(s).
b) For applicants holding national qualifications, either an officially certified photocopy of the
applicant's bachelor's degree or engineering degree certificate, or an officially issued paper
attesting to the applicant's request for a copy of this certificate from the relevant authority or
authorities; for applicants holding a degree qualification awarded outside Spain, either a
certificate testifying to the validation or officially recognised equivalence of this qualification to
a national qualification or, pending such validation, certification issued by the authority in
question or by the Rector allowing the applicant to enrol in a doctoral program at the
University of Barcelona without his/her degree certificate having been granted official
equivalence to a national qualification.
c) The applicant's personal academic certificate of his/her university studies, specifying the
dates on which the examination results of course units studied were awarded and recording
those results with the grading scale `Fail' (suspens or S), `Pass' (aprovat, or A), `Merit'
(notable, or N), `Excellent' (excel·lent, or E), and `Excellent with honours' (matricula d'honor,
or MH).
Students in possession of academic qualifications from institutions outside Spain must
provide due certification of their studies, which should clearly state the criteria used in the
award of grades, the minimum pass grade and maximum grade in each case, and any
additional information that may help to establish the equivalence of the student's academic
record with the corresponding studies at the University of Barcelona.
d) Curriculum vitae, attaching original or certified copies of relevant achievements, which
should be listed in the corresponding section of the application form.
e) Documents giving proof of enrolment in the doctoral program or a sworn declaration
indicating that the applicant will enrol during the period for which the grant is awarded, as
determined by the University.
f) A brief description of the research project (in the corresponding section of the application
form).
g) Supporting documentation accrediting the participation of the director of research in a
subsidised research project or one that is affiliated to a consolidated research group, as
applicable.
h) Those exercising their right to exemption, as stated in point 2.2 of the section on care for
children under the age of six, must provide a certified photocopy of their Family Record
Book.
i) Those exercising their right to exemption, as stated in point 2.3 referring to the deadline for
the completion of studies, must submit a report from the director of research, in addition to
any other documents they deem necessary.

Condition 7. Deadline for applications

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1. The period for the submission of applications shall open the day after the publication of
this resolution in the places indicated in condition 6.2 and close on 9 June.

2. If the application received is incomplete or does not meet the requirements for this call for
submissions, the applicant shall be given a maximum period of ten days in which to amend
any error or provide outstanding documents. Failure to comply with these conditions will be
interpreted as the withdrawal of the application.

Condition 8. Applicant assessment and selection

1. Applicant assessment shall be carried out by the Research Committee, in accordance with
the conditions of this call for applications and the criteria of the Committee, which are
outlined in the document on the criteria for assessing and prioritising grant applications for
training research staff, published on the notice board of the UB Office for Services and
Programs for Students and on the web page: www.ub.edu/acad/beques.

2. At the end of the submission period, the Research Committee shall meet to evaluate the
applications required. The committee may ask students to clarify details of their applications
during the evaluation period.

3. The Research Committee shall evaluate the applications according to the criteria set out in
this resolution and additional departmental requirements. A preliminary list of successful
applicants and a reserve list shall then be submitted for approval by the Vice-Rector of
Research, who will also consider the individual applications and the record of the committee
meeting.

4. The Vice-Rector of Research shall give final approval to the list of successful applicants,
which will be posted on the notice board of the UB Office for Services and Programs for
Students and on the web page: www.ub.edu/acad/beques.

Condition 9. Acceptance of the financial aid

1. Once the grants have been awarded, the Vice-Rector of Research shall issue the
corresponding accreditation and each beneficiary must visit the UB Office for Services and
Programs for Students to sign and receive personal copies of the relevant documentation. If
beneficiaries do not attend, it will be assumed that they have declined the offer of the grant,
which will be passed to an applicant from the reserve list.

2. Acceptance of the grant entails acceptance of the general conditions expressed in this
resolution and the measures established by this call for applications. Beneficiaries agree to
observe the specific regulations of the University of Barcelona and all relevant measures for
the prevention of occupational risks.



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3. The beneficiary shall be affiliated to the research group and department of the researcher
who is responsible for the project and who has endorsed the grant to prepare the
beneficiary's doctoral thesis.

Condition 10. Rights of beneficiaries

1. Beneficiaries will enjoy all of the rights set out in this call for applications and those
established in the Statute for trainee research personnel. In addition, second-stage
beneficiaries in contracted employment will have all rights established in current labour law.

2. Beneficiaries entering the second, third or fourth year of the period covered by the grant
and, in exceptional cases, those in the first year who have completed the period of training
providing access to the doctoral studies at the time of applying for the grant, may carry out
temporary periods of research in Spain or abroad for a minimum of two weeks to a maximum
of twelve. These research periods are designed to complete students' research training for
the project they will carry out under the funding agreement, with prior authorisation from the
department concerned and the Vice-Rector of Research. Beneficiaries may choose to apply
for a travel grant to support them during this period. The application will be handled by the
Student Services and Programs unit.

Condition 11. Responsibilities of beneficiaries

1. In addition to the general responsibilities outlined in this call for applications and those
established in the Statute for training research staff and current legislation, second-stage
beneficiaries in contracted employment must also:
a) join the department and research group within the period and in accordance with the
conditions established by the university;
b) pursue their doctoral studies and meet the project objectives set out in the application,
taking into account that the project cannot be altered without the consent of the researcher
responsible for the project and that notification of any alteration must be forwarded to the UB
Office for Services and Programs for Students;
c) participate in the teaching collaboration program according to the specific instructions
applying to this call for applications.

Condition 12. Teaching collaboration

1. The beneficiary may participate in the teaching collaboration program assigned to him/her
by the department provided that the teaching tasks undertaken by the beneficiary form part
of the teaching activity of the research group to which he/she is affiliated. This program will
have educational objectives and the recipient will complete a maximum of 60 hours of
collaborative teaching activity per academic year, except during the first year of the grant
when the recipient shall not complete more than 30 hours of such activity.




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2. The collaborative teaching tasks shall be assigned to the beneficiary by the departmental
council as advised by the researcher responsible for the project, and shall be recorded in the
Employment Agreements of the department of the director endorsing the grant.

3. This teaching collaboration shall be recorded and certified by the departments involved for
the purposes of its inclusion in the beneficiary's curriculum.

4. In no circumstances shall the beneficiary be held responsible for the contents of the
teaching program in which he or she is collaborating.

Condition 13. Financial conditions

1. The beneficiary will receive a gross annual payment of xxx euros at the first stage and of
xxx euros at the second. These payments shall be made in twelve monthly instalments.

2. The beneficiary shall be entitled to enrol free of charge in course units carrying together up
to 32 credits when and where these are offered within doctoral programs as regulated by RD
RD 778/1998, or in course units carrying together up to 60 credits corresponding to the
training period of the doctoral program when and where such studies meet the requirements
of RD 56/2005 and RD 1393/2007 respectively. The beneficiary is also excused from the
payment of enrolment fees for academic or doctoral tutelage during the research period.

3. The sums received by beneficiaries under this financial aid agreement will be subject to
IRPF (tax on personal earnings) and any other taxes applicable under current legislation.

4. In accordance with the First Additional Provision to RD 63/2006, first-stage beneficiaries
will be included in the General Regime of the Social Security system as independent
contractors.

Condition 14. Incompatibility

1. This financial aid agreement shall not be compatible with the beneficiary's receipt of either
other similar grants or of salaries or stipends associated with employment contracts, and
shall only cover such expenses as those derived from:

   a) Teaching and research tasks directly associated with the research undertaken by the
      beneficiary and not conducted on a periodical basis.

   b) The attendance of conferences and workshops.

   c) Temporary stays granted by public and private organisms for minimum and maximum
      periods that correspond to those specified in the call regulations. These payments
      shall be incompatible, in the same year, with the right to receive additional travel
      grants foreseen in this call for applications, and shall require the authorisation of the

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       Vice-Rector of Research and the corresponding member of the department to which
       the beneficiary is affiliated.

   The Vice-Rector of Research shall have the authority to determine the compatibility of the
   financial aid awarded in this call with any expenses incurred by the beneficiary.

2. If the beneficiary has signed an employment contract with the University of Barcelona at
the second stage, the university will apply the regulations concerning incompatibility that
legally correspond to the beneficiary.

Condition 15. Interruption

1. In duly justified cases, in answer to a reasoned request to be submitted in writing by the
beneficiary and with the approval of both the project director and the member of department
responsible, the Vice-Rector for Research may authorise the temporary interruption of
payments. Once the interruption ends, only in exceptional circumstances beyond the
beneficiary's control will he/she be entitled to recover such payments as would have been
made during the period of interruption. Furthermore, the granting of such payments to the
beneficiary shall be subject to the availability of funds.

2. Interruptions caused by incompatibility of payments shall not extend beyond six months in
the course of the grant period and the period in which it can be extended.

3. Periods of maternity or paternity leave, and leave for the purposes of adoption or pre-
adoption and permanent or simple fosterage of a child under six years of age shall extend for
the period of time legally stipulated in such cases. Once this period has ended, the
beneficiary shall be entitled to the total sum of the payments he/she would have received
during leave, which may be made in one payment.

4. Second-stage beneficiaries holding employment contracts with the university shall be
subject to the current legislation regarding such cases.

Condition 16. Revocation

1. When and where an official record has been made of irregularities in the beneficiary's
legal position, the financial aid may be revoked in the following cases:
a) at the time of the application or subsequent to that time, the beneficiary knowingly omitted
or falsified information in the account of his/her personal details;
b) the university detects in the beneficiary's circumstances the existence of incompatibilities
or the loss of one of the prerequisites for the financial aid;
c) the beneficiary fails to meet the conditions regulating the provision of financial aid as these
are outlined in the present document;
d) due to irregular circumstances, the beneficiary is unable to satisfactorily complete the
tasks he/she has been assigned.

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2. In all the cases described above in 16.1, with the exception of incompatibility in
circumstances proven to be beyond the beneficiary's control, the revocation of the financial
aid will require the beneficiary to return the full sum of all payments that have been made.

3. The director of the department to which the beneficiary is affiliated will issue a report
addressed to the Rector outlining the reasons for the revocation. The Rector may forward
this report to the beneficiary, who shall be granted a period of ten days in which to formally
reply to the department's decision.

4. During the period in which the beneficiary's record is being processed, the Rector may
suspend the award of financial aid or take any other measure relative to the agreement that
is deemed necessary.

5. The Rector shall confirm or revoke the financial aid within a period of thirty days.

6. In the case of beneficiaries in second stage of the agreement and, therefore, in contracted
employment, all matters pertaining to the award of financial aid shall be dealt with according
to the terms set out in current labour law.

Condition 17. Substitutions

1. In the event that successful applicants forego their right to the award of financial aid or are
forced to withdraw from the doctoral program for other reasons, the corresponding sums may
be transferred to other doctorands for the duration of the period covered by this call for
applications, subject to approval by the Vice-Rector of Research.

2. Substitute beneficiaries will be selected according to the following criteria:
a) if the doctorand foregoing the right to financial aid is affiliated to the same consolidated
research group as a candidate on the reserve list, this candidate will receive the funding for
the period covered by the original agreement, provided that the original beneficiary has not
been awarded another predoctoral grant for work with the same group;
b) if there are no other reserve candidates affiliated to the same consolidated research
group, the original beneficiary will be substituted by the reserve candidate with the highest
grade attested by the academic transcript provided for the application process. The same
procedure will apply when the original beneficiary foregoes the right to the award of financial
aid to accept another predoctoral grant.

III. RENEWALS

Condition 18. Renewal reports

1. Subject to budgetary approval, financial aid agreements will be renewed for periods of
twelve months. The total duration of the agreements shall in no case exceed 48 months.


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In the second stage of the agreement, beneficiaries will sign an employment contract, which
shall cover a period of no more than two years. The total duration of the periods covered by
the award of the grant and the provision of the employment contract shall in no case exceed
48 months.

2. Renewals shall be granted subject to the fulfilment of all conditions set out in this
resolution, in particular the responsibilities of the beneficiaries with regard to the work carried
out.

3. The reports accompanying applications for the renewal of the financial aid agreement
must be submitted in the standard form available from the UB Office for Services and
Programs for Students and on the web page www.ub.edu/acad/beques. Applications must be
accompanied by the following documents:

a) a report of the work carried out, detailing the results obtained during the previous year of
the financial aid agreement;
b) a description of the teaching activity carried out;
c) a report by the researcher responsible for the project;
d) a detailed plan of the work scheduled for the forthcoming year;
e) an updated curriculum vitae;
f) accreditation of the credits obtained during the previous academic year.

Beneficiaries
g) Beneficiaries entering the third year of the financial aid agreement must submit the
certification of research competence. In addition, beneficiaries following doctoral programs
regulated by RD 778/1998 must provide documentation attesting that they have paid the
corresponding tuition fees, and beneficiaries following studies regulated by RD 56/2005 must
provide certification of having begun the research period and a proof of enrolment in the
doctoral program.

4. The UB Office for Services and Programs for Students will notify beneficiaries of the
deadline for the submission of applications to extend financial aid agreements with a
minimum of 10 days' notice.

Condition 19. Evaluation and selection

1. A committee will be formed to evaluate the reports presented. The committee reserves the
right to call beneficiaries for a personal interview, and will also take into account the
completion of the teaching collaboration activities.

2. Financial aid agreements will not be extended for those beneficiaries who have already
presented their doctoral thesis.



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3. In the case of successful applications, once the renewal has been approved, beneficiaries
will receive updated accreditation or sign the corresponding employment contract.

IV. FINAL PROVISIONS

Condition 20. Diffusion

The UB Office for Services and Programs for Students shall endeavour to make this call for
applications known to the entire university community.

Condition 21. Interpretation of the resolution

Any ambiguities or doubts arising from the interpretation of this resolution, and all conflicts
arising from its application, shall be resolved by the Vice-Rector of Research.

Condition 22. Appeals

Applicants who disagree with the resolutions taken by the Vice-Rector of Research,
independently of their immediate execution, and in accordance with Article 8 of Spanish Law
29, of 13 July 1998, governing administrative appeals processes, may take their appeal
before the Barcelona Court of Administrative Appeals. Appeals must be lodged within two
months of the day following notification of the decision, according to the provisions set out in
Article 46 of the abovementioned law. Applicants have the right to make any other appeal
they deem necessary.

Alternatively, the interested party may choose to appeal directly to the decision-taking body.
In this case, the appeal must be lodged within one month of the day following notification of
the decision. Applicants may not then take the appeal before the Court of Administrative
Appeals, provided that no expressed or presumed rulings affect the motion of reversal, in
accordance with the provisions set out in Articles 116 and thereafter in Spanish Law 30, of
26 November 1992, on public administration and common administrative procedure, modified
by Spanish Law 4, of 13 January 1999.




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