33 MSCA COFUND PhD positions across water, energy, environment/biodiversity and food/agriculture at universities in Occitanie, Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. Salary ~EUR 2,400-2,550/month gross, 36-48 months; MSCA mobility rule applies. Deadline 31 Dec 2026.
By Muhammad Abdullah, Parwaz — last updated 26 October 2026.
TERRA-MED is for master's graduates who want a funded PhD on Mediterranean climate resilience, working across France and Spain rather than inside one university. The programme funds 33 PhD positions across three regions — Occitanie, Catalonia and the Balearic Islands — under a single scientific framework, the WEFE nexus: water, energy, food and ecosystems treated as one connected system. Every thesis is jointly supervised across two regions, with a non-academic secondment built in. Do not apply if you want a conventional single-supervisor PhD, if your topic sits outside water, energy, environment, food, chemistry/materials or digital transitions, or if you cannot meet the MSCA mobility rule — check that rule before anything else.
The headline "33 positions" hides the real choice: you are not applying to a programme, you are applying to one of 33 named thesis topics, each with its own host institution, supervisors and regional pairing — from optical tools for resilient wheat at Montpellier to CO2 capture projects at Toulouse and Barcelona institutes. Picking the right topic matters more than a strong generic profile. The second point is money: the salary is quoted at roughly €2,400-€2,550 per month gross and explicitly varies by host institution, over 36-48 months, starting September/October 2027 — so do not budget on a single figure; the host institution's terms decide. Third, the joint supervision is not decorative: a France-Spain co-supervision structure plus a non-academic secondment means real mobility between countries and sectors, and an application that shows no appetite for that will read as a poor fit.
No official acceptance rate is published for this call, and none is quoted here. What is verifiable is the scale: 33 positions spread across five topic families (water, energy, environment, food, chemistry/digital), each topic filled individually. That structure cuts both ways — a niche topic with few qualified applicants is far more winnable than a headline topic everyone chases, so the smart move is to assess competition topic by topic rather than programme-wide.
First, shortlist two or three topics and read their full descriptions, including the host institutions and both supervisors, before writing a word — then apply to the one where your background is the strongest match, not the one with the catchiest title. Second, make the WEFE nexus work for you: show how your topic connects water, energy, food or ecosystems to the wider system, since that is the programme's stated framework. Third, address mobility directly: your master's background, any international experience, and why a France-Spain joint supervision suits your research. Finally, verify the MSCA mobility rule for your own history early — it is the most common silent disqualifier in MSCA calls.
The closest sibling is the BEST MSCA COFUND Doctoral Programme — 19 PhD positions in Toulouse with the same co-supervision structure. Other MSCA positions on Parwaz include the PRISM programme: 14 MSCA COFUND PhD fellowships and the MSCA PhD vacancy TURBO-IMPACT DC9.
Facts checked 26 October 2026 against the programme's own announcements and the underlying project guidance note: 33 positions, deadline 31 December 2026, three regions (Occitanie, Catalonia, Balearic Islands), WEFE nexus framework, France-Spain joint supervision, non-academic secondment, start September/October 2027. Salary figures (€2,400-€2,550 gross per month) come from programme announcements and are stated to vary by host institution — confirm the exact salary, the mobility rule and the full eligibility criteria on the official TERRA-MED pages before applying, as these pages carry the binding terms.
The last date to apply is 31 Dec 2026. Apply a few days early — portals slow down near the deadline.
Yes — according to the official source, this opportunity is fully funded. Confirm exactly what is covered (tuition, stipend, travel) on the official page, since packages differ.
On the official page linked above, via the Apply button. Parwaz never collects applications, documents or fees — if anyone asks you to pay to apply, it is a scam.
Source: terra-med.euroregio.eu (official)
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