The scholarships aim to support research in cutting-edge areas of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). Selected students will spend three years in Portugal and two years at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh, receiving two diplomas upon successful completion of their PhD.
The two-year period at CMU allows students to integrate into its scientific community and the ecosystem of one of the most prestigious universities in the ICT field. Applications must be submitted online directly to CMU, with specific deadlines for each area.
The programs include areas such as Cognitive Neuroscience and Neural Computation (until December 1, 2026), Machine Learning, Software Engineering, Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction, Robotics, Societal Computing, and Spoken Language Technologies (until December 9, 2026), and Electrical and Computer Engineering, Engineering and Public Policy (until December 15, 2026). All courses are taught in English.
Since its launch in 2006, the CMU Portugal Program has awarded 184 dual degree PhD scholarships, with 104 students successfully completing their studies. The alumni network includes professionals at renowned companies such as IBM, Apple, Google, Meta, Amazon, and universities like Carnegie Mellon University and the University of California Berkeley. In Portugal, many work for leading ICT sector companies, such as Feedzai, Unbabel, and Cloudflare.
