ETHICAL ASPECTS
RECRUITMENT
WORKING CONDITIONS TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
RECRUITMENT
One of the basis of the HR policies at the UC is the provision of sufficient and well-developed human resources in R&D which is the cornerstone for advancing scientific knowledge, technological progress, improving the quality of life, ensuring the well-being of European citizens and contributing to Europe's competitiveness.
UC has a comprehensive recruitment and selection policy for human resources in research. The selection procedure contains instructions and forms for all academic staff positions based on internal and national regulations (see list of national, regional and internal regulations
here).
The Strategic Plan of the UC establishes under Line of Action 31 that "it is vital to comply with the EU HRS4R in relation to the recruitment of research staff". The University of Cantabria has a structured regulatory framework of recruitment procedures for the provision of jobs for hired teachers through a regular process, approved by agreement of the Governing Board, easily accessible on its website (
Research and Training Staff Section) and also on the intranet. Vacancies can be accessed via the various
institutional websites and the
Transparency Portal.
OTM-R Policy:
The University of Cantabria is firmly committed to the principles of open and transparent recruitment based on OTM-R merits, recommended by the European Commission.
It should be noted that at the University of Cantabria there are different ways of access to teaching and research work.
Although most of the aspects included in these regulations have been implemented in the University of Cantabria for years, some of them have been newly incorporated in order to align with the guidelines recommended by the European Commission regarding OTM-R processes.
NEW! As part of the HRS4R actions, the UC Employment Agency website has been adapted so that job offers for research staff are published and accessible in English. This facilitates access to the greatest possible number of candidates, even from foreign countries. The aim is to reinforce the e-recruitment strategy in the university in line with the OTM-R (Open, Transparent and Merit-based) Report, issued in July 2015, in the European Research Area.
In addition, the change will allow these offers to be uploaded directly to the Euraxess Portal, a European initiative that offers a wide range of information services and support to researchers who want to pursue their research career in Europe or who want to continue to be involved in research activities in Europe.
During the first phase of implementation of the HRS4R, the specific Working Group for the design of the UC OTMR policy (OTM-R WG) has been focused on carrying out the actions of the Action Plan aimed at improving access to and information on job calls for research staff published through the UC Employment Agency, ensuring, among other things, their publication in English through international media in the research fields, such as
EURAXESS.
Employment of Research Staff at UC
The units responsible for the management of the hired processes are:
• The
PDI, Remuneration and Social Security Service is responsible for the management of the administrative aspects of the PDI, the remuneration and Social Security actions of all UC staff, the management of the teaching activities, as well as the implementation of the University Teaching Staff Training Plan. Through its website, the service publishes calls for research jobs, permanent research staff and calls for individual research grants.
Regulation and legislation
• The
PAS, Training and Social Action Service is in charge of managing and processing the employment contracts of staff hired through external Human Resources in R&D&I programmes and staff hired under article 83 of the LOU. It is also responsible for the management of PAS Training and the management of Social Action financial aid.
Regulation and legislation
• The
Research Management Service provides support on the application processes of grants to obtain R&D&I funds from the State Plan and the University of Cantabria's own programme for the training, incorporation and mobility of research personnel.
• The
Employment Guidance and Information Centre (COIE) is responsible for managing internship programmes for students and job offers for university graduates. It also organises training and promotion actions related to employability and entrepreneurship for students and graduates. COIE is accredited as a national recruitment agency ("UC’s Employment Agency"). This unit publishes all documents and forms related to administrative and electronic research recruitment procedures through selection calls
here.
Transparency in selection processes of the UC
Mobility of researchers
The Vice-Rectorate for Research and Science Policy publishes annual grants to promote the geographical and inter-institutional mobility of staff involved in R&D&I activities, such as short-term stays and travel grants for PhDs and postdocs (see link
here). The Vice-Rectorate for Research also offers different aid programmes for trainee foreign researchers for stays or internships at the University of Cantabria.
In addition, the
European and International Research Projects Office promotes participation in calls under the Excellent Science Pillar of the Horizon Europe Programme aimed at recruiting excellent research staff:
• The
European Research Council programme provides attractive long-term funding to support excellent researchers and their teams to pursue high-risk, high-benefit innovations in any field of research, with scientific excellence as the sole criterion for evaluation.
• The Vice Chancellor for Research and Science Policy own programme has recently published a call for proposals to encourage participation in European Research Council (ERC) calls, which aims to fund support and advisory costs such as writing consultancy, submission of proposals, linguistic review and attendance at preparatory interviews. The rules of the call can be consulted here. This programme is managed by the European Projects Office.
• The
Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) aim to support the training and professional development of research staff worldwide through the funding of excellent doctoral programmes, individual postdoctoral projects and collaborative projects.
Calls are published on the
European Commission's Call for Tenders and Funding Portal and in the Official Journal of the European Union.
For its part, the
Vice-rectorate for Internationalisation and Global Engagement, through internal calls and EU funds (Erasmus +), promotes and manages programmes to support the international mobility of research and training staff of the University of Cantabria.
