How different age groups view and behave toward each other can have important consequences for workplace relationships, attitudes and performance, as...
The economy is made up of highs and lows. For a clearer understanding, it is important to know exactly when periods of belt-tightening begin and end...
The study surveys both citizens and politicians to understand whether – and to what extent – they have the same expectations about ethical standards...
The study explores the potential for innovation and entrepreneurship in Portugal, offering recommendations on how to promote a more sustainable and...
The study focuses on the dynamic of the Portuguese housing market up to 2020, looking at its rising prices and possible solutions to the problems that...
Studies the impact of financial constraints on entrepreneurship, reviewing the country’s «Single Amount» initiative - which allows anyone on...
Addresses an issue critical to the well-being of Portugal’s aging population. The study provides recommendations for ensuring the long-term...
A survey of the transport infrastructure network in Portugal, examines the efficiency of the various companies and modes of transport that comprise it...
The Study focuses on Portugal’s export sector, how its companies operate, perform, and what difficulties and obstacles they face.
The study looks at the impact of the 2008-2013 recession in Portugal and how those years’ credit restrictions hampered Portuguese companies.
Application process for the preparation of FFMS studies and policy papers
The application process for the preparation of studies and policy papers promoted by Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos (FFMS) will remain open for the duration of the current study programme (2024-2026). Applications, written in English, should be sent to the following email address: estudos@ffms.pt
FFMS studies should deal comprehensively with the reality in question and include proposals for national public policies. The estimated duration of this preparation is two years, which is followed by a public presentation.
FFMS policy papers are documents that are quick and easy to read, with recommendations and lines of action for decision-makers and those responsible for national public policies. The estimated duration of this preparation is six months, which is followed by a public presentation.
The application assessment process is made up of five stages, while the analysis and decision-making process can go on for a few months more.
Concept note
Applicants must fill in a concept note form in order to explain the goals of the study or the policy paper, its innovation potential for scientific literature, its compliance with the research topics identified in the study programme (2024-2026) and the expected social impact if the project is approved. The proposal submitted will be analysed by the Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos study team, including its scientific consultants, who will decide if it should move on to the next stage of the application process or not.
Project proposal
If the proposal moves on to the second phase, the applicants will be invited to fill in a more detailed form (project proposal), where they should include the literature review, the methodology to be used and the project budget, as well as other information. This second form will then be analysed by the scientific consultant and by two experts from outside FFMS, contracted expressly for this purpose, using the double blind method, the same model as that adopted by international academic journals.
Reassessment and resubmission
After the analysis by the consultant and the external experts and according to their comments, the applicants will be given the opportunity to reformulate their applications. It is important to point out that this phase, as is the case with scientific articles for academic journals, may imply more than one reformulation by the applicants, given that the main goal of this process is to refine the applications and thus make them sounder.
Decision of the FFMS governing bodies
The final proposal, along with the non-binding opinions of the consultant and the external experts, will be analysed by the governing bodies of Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos. Only the projects receiving a positive assessment will be recommended for approval. The governing bodies of Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos reserve the right to reject projects that have received a favourable opinion from the FFMS scientific team if they believe that other applications are better positioned to comply with the statutory mission of Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos.
Ethics Committee
In line with international best practices, the projects approved will be assessed by the FFMS Ethics Committee, which will issue guidelines on how the study or policy paper should be conducted throughout all the development stages. The opinions of the Ethics Committee are aimed at ensuring compliance with the standards set out in the Charter of Ethical Principles in the FFMS Study Area. The Ethics Committee is made up of three independent figures of recognised merit, appointed by decision of the FFMS Board of Directors.
Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos was set up in 2009, with the statutory mission of promoting and learning more about the Portuguese reality.
With this in mind, an FFMS study area was set up and it has published more than 70 academic studies in a wide variety of areas of social science since 2012.
The research topics to be explored in the projects selected by FFMS are determined by its governing bodies beforehand and published in the three-year study programme. In the 2024-2026 three-year period, FFMS prioritises three main research topics: 1) Economic development; 2) Social policies for combatting poverty and inequality; 3) Quality of democracy. You can learn more about the study programme for this three-year period here.
The FFMS study authors, usually academics with ties to national and international universities and research centres, are selected through a transparent public application process in order to assure the integrity and independence of the research produced. This assessment process is always open and favours multidisciplinary international applications.
The FFMS scientific team monitors the development of the projects approved by the governing bodies and assists the contracted research teams with publications and other promotional materials, as well as in the production of events arising from the studies carried out in order to transmit the information collected to the general public, free of charge and easy to access.
Applications can be submitted throughout the duration of this study programme (2024-2026). In other words, from the announcement of the programme to the end of 2026. In the latter case, implementation of the projects approved will only begin in the subsequent three-year period.
Yes. Generally speaking, Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos promotes studies or policy papers that fall under the most varied of areas in social science, doing justice to its statutory mission of learning more about Portuguese society and publishing information on it.
The FFMS research topics to be focused on throughout the 2024-2026 three-year period are available on the FFMS website, in the section on its study programme.
No. FFMS has established no funding limit for its studies or policy papers. The FFMS governing bodies analyse all of the applications submitted and decide, on a case-by-case basis, if the budget requested is in line with the goals of the corresponding project.
Yes. If the contracted researchers have ties to universities or research centres, FFMS may pay up to 20% of all project overheads.
Yes. FFMS accepts applications from individual researchers. Even so, it is rare for projects to be assigned to individual researchers as the studies contracted by FFMS usually involve multidisciplinary teams, sometimes international ones, of a certain size.
On average, the studies promoted by FFMS take around two years to prepare. However, this average value is merely indicative and the preparation of a certain study could take a little more or less time, whenever this serves the purpose of the project.
Yes. Both the contracted researchers and the application reviewers are suitably rewarded for their work. FFMS has a fee table that is applied uniformly and the contracted authors are informed of this.
Normally, the researchers contracted by FFMS are academics with relevant publications in a certain scientific area, so it is unlikely that somebody who has not yet completed their PHD would be coordinating an FFMS study, although there is nothing to prevent this. However, FFMS study coordinators usually contract research fellows and other less experienced researchers to work on their projects.
FFMS studies do not have to be confined to one scientific area. In fact, FFMS favours studies that are transversal to several scientific areas, provided that this option adds to the project in question.
Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos was set up with the purpose of learning more about Portuguese society. Even so, FFMS promotes studies that make it possible to make comparisons with countries similar to Portugal, particularly European Union member states and OECD member states, as well as countries in Southern Europe, whenever this option contributes to understanding more about Portuguese society. You can learn more about the research topics for this three-year period (2024-2026) here.
Yes. FFMS also promotes projects that include international members (Portuguese living abroad or citizens of other countries). FFMS assures the publication of the project results in Portuguese, thus complying with its statutory mission, even if the authors do not speak Portuguese. Nevertheless, it is important to point out that all the studies should focus on the Portuguese reality even if they include data on other countries or communities.
No. FFMS is statutorily prevented from funding master's degree or PhD courses, fellowships or sabbaticals for the purpose of scientific research.
No. FFMS budgets for study publication costs only after these have been approved, in accordance with the communication strategy it has laid out.
Apart from assessing the applications, the FFMS scientific team is also in charge of monitoring the projects approved. To this end, a project manager and a scientific adviser with expertise in the area in question are assigned to each research team contracted. The scientific team also assists in event production and the publication of promotional materials for the studies (books, infographics, videos, etc.).
No. The scientific team only works on publications arising from the scientific studies promoted by FFMS. Any other proposals should be sent to the general email (ffms@ffms.pt).
To learn more about the Portuguese reality, FFMS brought together a team of specialists that promote and validate the preparation of studies and policy papers on three main research topics: 1) Economic development; 2) Social policies for combatting poverty and inequality; 3) Quality of democracy.
