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Call for Doctoral Nexus Projects – 2026 Campaign

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ExposUM is an initiative of the University of Montpellier and its partners1 aimed at establishing an open, off-campus institute for research, training, and science-society interaction on the environmental determinants of human health. Winner of the ExcellenceS (PIA4) call for projects and supported by the Occitanie Region, ExposUM is funded to the tune of €46.4 million over the period 2022-2030.

AAP Doctoral Nexus Application Matrix Campaign 2026

Scientific scope

The exposome refers to all environmental and social factors whose specific effects, combined with individuals' intrinsic characteristics, underlie the onset, progression, and severity of infectious and noncommunicable diseases in humans. In this sense, it is the environmental counterpart to the genome, with which it interacts throughout an individual's lifetime.

Objectives

The training program at the ExposUM Institute aims to:

  1. Breaking down barriers in education (interdisciplinarity)
  2. Contribute to improving skills
  3. Further integrate the link with Southern countries

To this end, several initiatives will be organized, including the funding of doctoral contracts as part of a program that structures them into interdisciplinary networks, hereinafter referred to as Doctoral Nexus.

The Doctoral Nexus are networks of 3 to 4 doctoral students from different disciplines (e.g., social sciences, mathematical modeling, biology) and affiliated with at least two different research units. They will be funded on the basis of:

  • a joint research project, established by the principal investigator in collaboration with the thesis supervisors involved, encompassing all disciplines, and aimed at studying one or more aspects of the exposome as defined above,
  • an individual, disciplinary thesis topic for each doctoral student involved.

Each thesis will be funded from the outset for a period of four years. This additional year is justified by the implementation of specific training activities and the time allocated to interdisciplinarity. The prospect of exchanges between laboratories will be particularly valued.

Doctoral programs atthe ExposUM Institute will be strengthened by the implementation of an additional joint educational program focused on methodology and skills acquisition, particularly interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity, run within the framework of the ExposUM Institute, without replacing the training organized within the framework of doctoral schools. In this context, doctoral students in a network will be tasked, during their third year, with organizing ( scientifically and logistically) a one-day event (e.g., seminar, conference), for which the Institute will allocate a grant.

Calendar

  • AAP Doctoral Nexus Wave 4 Publication: November 12, 2025
  • Deadline for receipt of projects: January 23, 2026, 2 p.m. CET
  • Announcement of results: second half of February 2026
  • Candidate interviews: early June 2026
  • Start of theses: September–December 2026

Financing terms and conditions

For the2026 campaign(4th wave of this AAP), the Institute proposes to award a maximum of 15 grants (for example, 5 Nexus projects consisting of 3 theses each), funded by the ANR and the Occitanie Region.

This funding covers doctoral salaries for four years (approximately €167k) as well asenvironmental costs. These include the costs of additional training provided by the Institute, the organization of scientific events, and operating costs. This funding covers doctoral salaries for four years (approximately €167k) as well asenvironmental costs. These include the costs of additional training provided by the Institute, the organization of the scientific event, and operating costs. The operating budget is allocated to each thesis supervisor (approximately €20k/thesis).

Eligibility criteria

Please note that failure to comply with these criteria will result in the automatic ineligibility of the application.

  • The project must have a principal investigator who is affiliated with a UR, UMR, or UMI.2that is part of the ExposUM Institute consortium and employed by one of the consortium partners.3. Thesis supervisors must also be affiliated with a UR, UMR, or UMI of the ExposUM Institute consortium. UARs, UExp, UPS, and US4, in particular, are not eligible to apply for this call for proposals5 and cannot host doctoral students.
  • Doctoral students must be enrolled at the University of Montpellier as their primary institution. Therefore, thesis supervisors must be affiliated with one of the UM doctoral schools listed in this call for applications.6AND candidates must be enrolled in a discipline for which a degree can be awarded by UM.
  • The project must involve collaboration between at least two different research units (UR, UMR, or UMI from the ExposUM Institute consortium).
  • Thesis supervisors must be different for each thesis (in the exceptional case of international joint supervision, identical co-supervision between two theses may be accepted upon justification).
  • The proposed theses must be of a duration of 4 years.
  • Doctoral contracts must begin between September and December 2026; staggered start dates will not be accepted.
  • Each doctoral student's thesis work must be carried out on a full-time basis.
  • The project must aim to generate knowledge about the exposome —i.e., any determinant of human health of environmental origin in the broadest sense.

It is possible to apply for this call for proposals at the same time as applying for the Research call for proposals. However, the project must be viable even without obtaining Research funding. In particular, projects submitted to several calls at the same time must clearly explain this and justify the relevance and complementarity of the funding requested, as well as the viability of the project in the event that only one of them is obtained.

Submission guidelines

The project must be written in French or English using the simplified file available for download at the top of the page, following the instructions provided therein.

The application must be sent by the main applicant, copying in the unit director and the directors of each thesis, by email with the subject line [AAP Doctoral Nexus 2026_Surname First name applicant].

Before January 23, 2026, 2 p.m. CET.

Selection procedure

Complete applications will be evaluated based on the quality of the scientific project and the individual topics proposed, as well as their relevance to the Institute's priorities and themes (see Selection Criteria). This evaluation will be conducted by a committee composed of the directors of research centers or doctoral schools and representatives of the ExposUM Institute's CoDir or COSS. Applicants are invited to provide a brief justification of the relevance of the proposed Nexus in light of these selection criteria.

The results will be announced in the second half of February 2026, in order to allow time for the identification of candidates.

The selected Nexus holders undertake to take all necessary steps to identify candidates to fill the thesis topics that will thus be funded.

The selection of doctoral students will be validated by the doctoral schools and will involve the publication of the proposed topics in advance. The thesis topics will be publicized by the thesis supervisors and by the Institute.

  • Thesis supervisors will be responsible for submitting their topic to the relevant doctoral school and ensuring that it is published on ADUM where applicable. We encourage thesis supervisors to circulate their thesis project sheet among their usual networks (master's students, etc.).
  • The Institute's project team will be responsible for publishing the topics on Euraxess and on the UM website, as well as through other internal communication channels (LinkedIn, newsletter, etc.).

The selection of doctoral students will be validated by the doctoral schools and will involve the publication of the proposed topics in advance. The thesis topics will be publicized by the thesis supervisors and by the Institute.

  • Thesis supervisors will be responsible for submitting their topic to the relevant doctoral school and ensuring that it is published on ADUM where applicable. We encourage thesis supervisors to circulate their thesis project sheet among their usual networks (master's students, etc.).
  • The Institute's project team will be responsible for publishing the topics on Euraxess, on the UM website, and through other internal communication channels (LinkedIn, newsletter, etc.).

Candidates wishing to apply for a topic will be invited to send their application to the relevant Nexus project leader, copying in the ExposUM Institute. Contact details for applications will be specified for each topic.

The supervisors will preselect applications in consultation with the Nexus thesis supervisors (minimum 2, maximum 4 per subject), who will then be interviewed by a committee composed exclusively of representatives from the doctoral schools and the ExposUM Institute, which will rank the applications for each subject in mid-May.

Selection criteria

(for information purposes only)

  • clear identification of the field of the exposome explored,
  • Original and relevant interdisciplinarity for the subject: as such, the involvement of different doctoral schools within a network will be valued.
  • methodological skills,
  • potential impacts (both fundamental and applied),
  • feasibility (scientific and financial environment already secured, ensuring the successful completion of the thesis),
  • coordination of individual projects,
  • relevance in light of the strategic priorities of the ExposUM Institute (initiation of new partnerships, One Health approach, Global Health and the South, promotion of the involvement of the Humanities and Social Sciences)

Support system for the integration of humanities and social sciences

If candidates for the creation of a Nexus wish to receive support for the integration of humanities and social sciences within their Nexus, Axis 2 of the ExposUM Institute, and its director Aurélie Binot, offer support/incubation.

You can request this support by sending an email (subject line: [Nexus SHS]).

Contact

For any information regarding this call for projects, please send an email (subject line: [Contact Nexus]).

Commitments

The carriers undertake to:

  • Organize regular meetings (at least three times a year) with thesis supervisors and doctoral students from Nexus, and provide an annual report on the activities carried out at the Institute.
  • Respect, in the design and implementation of the project submitted under this call for proposals, the values and principles of scientific integrity intended to guarantee the honest and scientifically rigorous nature of all research work, as referred to in Article L.211-2 of the Research Code and set out in the National Charter of Ethics for Research Professions and the Charter on Scientific Integrity of the University of Montpellier.
  • Comply with the Nagoya Protocol, where applicable.
  • Include the logos of the University of Montpellier, France 2030, the ExposUM Institute, the Occitanie Region, and/or the ERDF in all documents relating to the implementation of the project. Specific instructions regarding communication obligations will be provided to project leaders.
  • Send the Institute, by email, an annual report and a final report no later than two months after the end of the project (financial statement and summary report), which may be used in the University's communications materials in accordance with a template provided. A project guide detailing management procedures and reporting requirements will be sent to successful applicants.
  • Apply the UM publication signature charter in force to all scientific output; comply with provisions relating to open science and the Law for a Digital Republic (open access publication). Heads of UM-supervised laboratories shall deposit the full text of publications inthe open archive.
  • Take the necessary steps to obtain the required research authorizations/approvals in regulated sectors (in particular genetically modified organisms, use of animals for scientific purposes, health data, use of genetic resources and sharing of the resulting benefits, bioethics).

Research structures that are part of the ExposUM Institute consortium7

ABSys, AGAP Institute, AIDA, AMAP, Analyses, ART-Dev, ASTRE, BC2M, BCM, BIOLuM, BioWooEB, CBGP, CBS, CDE, CEFE, CEE-M, CEMIPAI, CEPEL, CERCOP, ChimEco, CREAM, CRBM, CSUM, DEFE, DGIMI, DIADE, DIASCOPE, DMEM, ECO&SOLS, ECOTRON, EDPFM, EDSM, ESPACE-DEV, EuroMov DHM, F&S, FHU Evocan 2, FHU Neurexpo, FHU Regenhab 2, FHU TIE, G-EAU, GECO, Génopolys, GM, HortSys, HSM, IATE, IBMM, ICGM, ICS, ICSM, IDEDH, IDESP, IEM, IES, IGF, IGH, IGMM, IHD, IHPE, IMAG, IMAGINE, INM, INNOVATION, INTERTRYP, IPSiM, IRCM, IRIM, IRMB, ISDM, ISEM, ITAP, L2C, LBE, LBN, LDP, LEPSE, LICeM, LIRDEF, LIRMM, LISAH, LMGC, LPHI, LUPM, Maraîchage, MARBEC, MEEB, MISTEA, MIVEGEC, MMDN, MOISA, MRE, MRM, MSH Sud, OREME, PAC Chimie Balard, PCCEI, Pech Rouge, PHIM, PhyMedExp, QualiSud, R&R, SantESiH, SELMET, SENS, SPO, Sys2diag, TETIS, TransVIHMI, VASSAL, VBIC

  1. UM, Occitanie Region, CNRS, IRD, INRAE, CIRAD, INSERM, Montpellier University Hospital, ICM, Institut Agro Montpellier, ENSCM, Ifremer, INRIA. ↩︎
  2. Research Unit, Joint Research Unit, International Joint Unit. ↩︎
  3. The applicant must already be an official member of the organization in question—or must become one by October 2026 at the latest—and, in the case of contract staff, their contract with that organization must run until the planned end of the project. The project may have one or more partner organizations. However, only organizations included in the list of eligible organizations for this call for proposals will be eligible to receive funding for the project. ↩︎
  4. Research Support Unit, Experimental Unit, Internal Service Unit, Service Unit. ↩︎
  5. The research structures [UR, UMR, UMI, UAR, UExp, UPS, and US] of the ExposUM Institute consortium are listed at the bottom of the page. ↩︎
  6. ED 58 Languages, Literatures, Cultures, Civilizations [LLC]
    ED 60 Territories, Time, Societies, and Development [TTSD]
    ED 166 Information Structures Systems [I2S],
    ED 168 Chemical and Biological Sciences for Health [CBS2],
    ED 231 Economics Management [EDEG],
    ED 459 Chemical Sciences Balard [SCB],
    ED 461 Law and Political Science [DSP],
    ED 463 Human Movement Sciences [SMH],
    ED 584 GAIA (Biodiversity, Agriculture, Food, Environment, Earth, Water). ↩︎
  7. As a reminder, only UR, UMR, and UMI may apply for this call for proposals. UAR, UExp, US, and UPS are not eligible. ↩︎

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