Applications are open for the UP Higher Education Program 2025-2026, 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 four projects from institutions from the North to the South of the country, allocating a total of 111 thousand euros to develop projects in partnerships with reference institutions in the USA.

Continuing the path of support for the promotion of the internationalization of Portuguese higher education institutions that it has been developing with a wide range of activities, FLAD reopens the UP Higher Education Program, with a line of funding so that Portuguese higher education institutions can develop their projects with a view to the internationalization of their own institutions, learning of best practices and curricular 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 (e.g., development of double or joint degrees; financial support for the development of new consortia between Portugal and the USA; development of joint programs with a component of practical learning, service learning, etc.);
  • Adoption and use of technology (e.g. International Collaborative Online Learning – COIL, virtual mobility, etc.);
  • Training and development of teachers and technical teams (e.g. short-term stays for immersion training, relevant to the pursuit of medium-term objectives of cooperation between institutions);
  • Joint research (e.g. joint projects, multilateral networks) that go beyond one-off research mobilities for teachers/doctoral students.
    It should be noted that FLAD, FCT, and other organizations have programs to support international mobilities with a focus on research. Distinctively, it is reinforced that the objective of this program is to foster and enhance the institutionalization of ties between Portuguese and US HEIs that can demonstrate potential for continued sustainability in the medium to long term. an ability to be self-funded in the future;
  • Talent acquisition (e.g. joint appointments or promotion of co-tutelage model for doctoral students).
    It should be noted that applications that have as their main object the financing of costs related to transport and accommodation, of one or more researchers, without demonstrating reciprocal investment by the partner institution, do not meet the objective of this Program;
  • Other relevant proposals.

Proposals can be submitted for all levels of higher education – bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate, executive training, among others, in any scientific area. The budget presented must clearly indicate the planned investment for each of the institutions involved.

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 increase in their evaluation.

Calendar

  • Applications between May 15 and September 15, 2025;
  • Applicants will be notified by October 24, 2025.

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

Financial support will be made available during 2025 for initiatives starting during the academic year 2025/26.

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 through the online form, available here: https://flad.my.salesforce-sites.com/CandidaturaMain?language=pt_PT

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 full or in part;
  • FLAD does not bear general institutional costs (overheads), so the budgeted investment amounts should reflect these costs as institutional co-financing of the HEIs involved;
  • FLAD reserves the right not to select any application.

To find out all the application conditions for this call, please consult the notice (NOTICE UP PROGRAM 2025-2026).

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