Applications are open for the UP Higher Education 2025 Program, a funding line of up to 30 thousand euros per project for higher education institutions that present projects to be developed in partnership with institutions in the United States, with a view to promoting the development and internationalization of Portuguese Higher Education.

Last year, FLAD selected five projects from institutions in the North to the South of the country, allocating a total of 105 thousand euros to develop projects in partnership with reference institutions in the USA.

In 2025, continuing the path of supporting the promotion of the internationalization of Portuguese higher education institutions that it has been developing with a wide range of activities, FLAD will once again open the UP Higher Education Program, with a maximum funding line of 100 thousand euros, so that Portuguese Higher Education institutions can develop their projects with a view to the internationalization of their own institutions. learning best practices and curriculum cooperation, among others.

The selected projects may receive up to a maximum of 30.000€ in funding for projects that include, in a combined or isolated way, for example:

  • Cooperation and/or curricular articulation (ex: development of double or joint degrees; financial support for the development of new consortia between Portugal and the USA; etc);
  • Adoption and use of technology (e.g., International Collaborative Online Learning – COIL, virtual mobility, etc.);
  • Training and development of teachers and staff (e.g. short stays for immersion training);
  • Joint research (e.g. joint projects, multilateral networks);
  • Talent acquisition (e.g. joint hires/joint appointments);

Proposals may be directed at any level of higher education, including bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral, executive education, etc., alone or in combination, and in any area of knowledge.

Universities, Polytechnics, Faculties, Research Centers or Higher Schools may submit applications involving two or more universities (consortia) on both sides of the Atlantic.

*Proposals from HEIs located in the interior of the country, or islands, will receive a positive mark-up in their evaluation.

Calendar

  • Applications between May 15 and September 15, 2024;
  • Applicants will be notified by October 21, 2024.

The winning proposals will receive the support at a time to be determined.

Support will be made available during 2024 for initiatives starting during the 2024/25 academic year.

Eligibility Criteria

  • Applications must be submitted by Portuguese HEIs;
  • Applications can be submitted in English or Portuguese;
  • Each application submitted, individually or in consortium format, must have a Principal Investigator/Project Director representing the involved HEI(s) in Portugal, and the indication of a reference contact point in the involved HEI(s) in the USA;
  • The application must clearly demonstrate in the budget what the financial involvement of the parties is. It is a requirement that the contribution of the US partner HEI is equivalent to that of the Portuguese HEI.

Applications are submitted via the online form, available here: https://flad.my.salesforce-sites.com/CandidaturaMain?language=en

Selection

  • The evaluation of the proposals is the responsibility of a jury selected by FLAD;
  • Preference will be given to applications that demonstrate a path to overall sustainability of the institutional partnership in the medium/long term;
  • Applications that demonstrate match funding structures, either from the HEIs involved and/or other existing support/funding programs;
  • In case of a tie, proposals from HEIs located outside the large national coastal centers will be given a positive mark-up.

Funding

  • Up to 30,000 euros per selected project to be attributed to the Portuguese HEI (regardless of the total global value involved in the initiative);
  • The selected proposals may be supported in their entirety, or in a lower value than requested;
  • FLAD does not bear institutional overheads, so the budgeted investment figures should reflect these costs as institutional co-funding for the HEIs involved.

To find out all the application conditions for this call, please consult the public notice (PUBLIC NOTICE UP 2025 PROGRAM).

Additional questions or clarifications, please contact: ricardo.pereira@flad.pt