PRISM PhD Positions 14 MSCA-Funded PhD positions at PSL University

PRISM programme

The PRISM (PhD Research Programme for International Training in Sustainable Soft Matter) programme has launched its first call for applications, offering up to 14 fully funded PhD fellowships starting from 1 March 2027 at Paris Sciences & Lettres (PSL) University. The programme trains researchers to address ecological transition challenges through sustainable soft matter science, with projects focused on eco-friendly chemical processes, circular economy, renewable energies, and carbon capture, storage, and valorisation. Co-funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe MSCA COFUND (Grant Agreement 101261637) and partner institutions, PRISM provides interdisciplinary, international, and intersectoral training, including mobility opportunities, secondments, and courses in sustainability, innovation, entrepreneurship, career development, and transferable skills.

Applications must be submitted via the PRISM website by 31 October 2026 (23:59 Paris time).

Candidates are encouraged to contact the project supervisors to discuss the proposed research topics before applying. All projects are open PhD projects, meaning that the research plan will be further developed collaboratively by the selected doctoral candidate and the supervisors.

Topics

PRISM is structured around 4 major scientific themes:

T1 – Development of eco-friendly chemical processes,
T2 – Building a circular economy,
T3 – Innovative concepts for renewable energy,
T4 – Carbon capture, storage and valorisation.

The PhD projects proposed in the PRISM programme cross the frontiers between soft matter, microfluidics, chemistry, physics, biology and materials science.

Salary

The PRISM programme offers a competitive salary above the national average for PhD candidates in France to attract and support excellent researchers.

Doctoral candidates will receive an approximate net monthly salary of €2,200, with additional family and mobility allowances available for eligible fellows.

The salary is subject to French income tax, with the exception of the family and mobility allowances. Depending on the candidate's individual tax situation, income tax may represent approximately 2–5% of the net salary and is levied by the French tax authorities independently of the employer.

To ensure consistent management and equal employment conditions across the programme, all PRISM doctoral candidates will be employed by ESPCI Paris, regardless of the host laboratory where their research is carried out.

Employer’s benefits

Remote working opportunities, access to sports and leisure activities, free access to public Paris city council’s swimming pools, access to CROUS canteen, scientific campus in central Paris, professional development programs, well-being workshops, social benefits through CNAS, partial health insurance support, and 75% support for sustainable mobility.

Eligibility criteria

1. At the time of application, candidates must be in possession of their Master’s degree or equivalent/postgraduate degree which formally entitles them to start a doctorate. All applicants with a doctoral degree are ineligible.
2. A minimum English proficiency level of C1 (Advanced) is required for applicants from non-English-speaking countries. No French language skills are required.
3. Applicants must fulfil the transnational mobility rule: open to all nationalities but all incoming applicants must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in France for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to the call for applications deadline.
4. Applicants must be available to start the program on schedule: 1st March 2027.
5. Completeness of the application, submitted in English on the PRISM dedicated website, before the deadline of 31 October 2026.

Selection process

The applications will go through the following assessment steps:

1. Eligibility checks to ensure the administrative compliance of the applications (mandatory documents provided and eligibility conditions met; see section “application eligibility”).
2. Remote evaluation of each application by different reviewers depending on the open PhD projects selected by the applicants. The selected applicants will be informed of their results, their ranking and invited to participate in the next step of interviews. Unsuccessful applicants will receive a detailed report by email.
3. Interview and selection of the shortlisted applicants via videoconference, comprising:
   1. A presentation (maximum 10 minutes) by the applicant of their motivation for applying to the program, including their experience and training in the field. Applicants will be explicitly asked to explain the fundamentals of the selected PhD research project and its scientific literature. The applicant will have the opportunity to make suggestions to shape their future PhD project.
   2. A series of questions (10 minutes) put by the committee to the applicant. These will include technical questions on the fundamentals of the topic. In addition, in the interests of fairness, a list of common questions will be asked to each applicant.
   3. Recruitment: once a candidate has been selected and has accepted the offer, the management team will initiate their recruitment process. For some nationalities, in compliance with French national requirements, the mandatory security clearance procedure will be launched at the final stage of recruitment. In the event of an unfavourable decision, the position will be offered to the next candidate on the reserve list.

For more information and to apply, please visit https://prism.psl.eu/en/