Empower | Government of Ireland – UCC Futures Scholars and UCC Futures Fellows Programmes
Contact
- All queries can be directed to uccempowerapplications@ucc.ie
Programme Background
Research Ireland is the national research and innovation funding agency established on 1 August 2024 through the integration of Science Foundation Ireland and the Irish Research Council. Operating under the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Research Ireland works in partnership with Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and other national agencies, including the Higher Education Authority (HEA), IDA Ireland, and Enterprise Ireland.
The Empower Programme is a strategic funding initiative developed by Research Ireland to provide a recurring, predictable, and flexible mechanism through which Irish Higher Education Institutions (“HEIs”) can advance their institutional research and innovation priorities. Alongside other strategic investments that support research excellence and institutional capacity, the Empower Programme focuses on enabling the recruitment and development of doctoral students across all disciplines and research types, from fundamental, curiosity-driven research to applied and translational research. Through sustained investment in research talent, Empower enables institutions to strengthen research excellence, build capability, and deliver on their strategic objectives.
Objectives
The programme has four core objectives:
- Develop excellent research talent across all disciplines by creating a sustainable pipeline of doctoral and postdoctoral researchers and strengthening Ireland's long-term research and innovation capacity.
- Strengthen institutional research and innovation capability through strategic investment in research talent, research environments, and institutional priorities.
- Enhance researcher development and research culture by providing high-quality supervision, training, mentorship, and inclusive research environments that support excellence and responsible research practices.
- Build a resilient, innovative, and connected research ecosystem through coordinated institutional investment that enhances collaboration, sustainability, and impact.
Within this context, University College Cork (“UCC”) has established the UCC Futures Scholars Programme (GoI), supported through Research Ireland Empower, as the University’s mechanism for advancing the doctoral research talent objectives of the Empower initiative. Successful applicants funded through this programme will be recognised as Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship holders.
The programme supports the delivery of the UCC Strategic Plan 2023-2028 and the UCC Research and Innovation Strategy through the UCC Futures Framework. The UCC Futures Scholars Programme (GoI) will support the recruitment of outstanding doctoral researchers across the full disciplinary spectrum, while building a sustainable pipeline of research talent that contributes to UCC's strategic research priorities and future research leadership capacity.
The UCC Futures Framework
The UCC Futures Framework is UCC’s strategic initiative for research and innovation. Since 2023, this creative, inclusive and transformative interdisciplinary platform has focused on prioritisation and deliberate investment in areas of critical research and innovation leadership. UCC Futures comprises ten institution-wide thematic areas, five Futures Strategic Research Centres (FSRC) and is enabled by a suite of Core Research Facilities. Each thematic area and FSRC houses a critical mass of expertise within defined strategic themes, in an environment that enhances disciplinary strength and excellence. These UCC Futures Areas are as follows:
- Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics
- Children
- Collective Social Futures
- Food, Microbiome & Health
- Future Ageing & Brain Science
- Future Humanities Institute
- Future Medicines
- Future Pharmaceuticals
- Quantum & Photonics
- Sustainability Institute
Complemented by FSRCs as follows:
- Cancer Research @ UCC
- Future of Health
- Future of Networks, Systems & Cybersecurity (NASC)
- Future of Sustainable Fermentation (SUSFERM)
- Future of Work & the Economy
The UCC Futures Thematic Areas and FSRCs, together with the Tyndall National Institute as a key UCC-affiliated research centre, provide the strategic foundation for the UCC Futures Scholars Programme. While the programme is anchored within these established research ecosystems, it also recognises the strength of excellent research activity across the wider University, including that led by Principal Investigators (PIs) whose research is not aligned with these structures. Through this approach, the programme will align doctoral recruitment and researcher development with UCC's priority areas of research excellence, ensuring that investment in PhD talent contributes directly to the University's long-term research and innovation strategy.
The UCC Futures Scholars Programme (GoI) will build upon the UCC Futures Framework by strengthening the pipeline of doctoral researchers within and across these strategic research areas. By supporting outstanding PhD candidates in undertaking research aligned with UCC Futures priorities, the programme will enhance research capacity, foster interdisciplinary collaboration, and contribute to the development of future research leaders. The UCC Futures Framework provides the institutional platform through which research excellence is translated into equitable, sustainable and just outcomes for Ireland and the wider global community.
UCC Futures Scholars Programme (GOI)
Applications are open for our Doctoral Scholarship Programme, funded through the Research Ireland EMPOWER Programme.
UCC Futures Fellows Programme (GOI)
Applications for our institutional UCC Futures Fellows programme, funded through the Research Ireland EMPOWER Programme, will open in January 2027.