Government of France/Government of Brazil - CAPES-COFECUB Programme - Abroad

What the CAPES-COFECUB programme funds

This programme funds the travel expenses of researchers travelling between France and Brazil as part of a joint research project. French researchers travelling to Brazil receive up to 1,650 EUR per trip, comprising up to 1,400 EUR for the flight and 125 EUR per day for accommodation for 10 to 15 days. French PhD students and researchers may instead receive a travel grant as well as 1,000 EUR per month for a stay of up to two months in Brazil. On the Brazilian side, CAPES covers the travel, insurance and living costs for Brazilian team members travelling to France. In France, the programme is run by Campus France and COFECUB; in Brazil, by CAPES. Funding is provided for two years at a time and may be extended, meaning that a project can last for up to four years in total.

Who can apply

• You apply as a team, not alone: This is not an individual scholarship. Applications must be submitted as a research team in collaboration with a French and a Brazilian institution. Funding for individual PhD students, postdoctoral researchers and researchers is tied to an approved joint project.
• Project leader: You are either leading a project for ‘experienced’ researchers (you completed your PhD more than 10 years ago) or a project for ‘early-career researchers’ (you completed your PhD less than 10 years ago).
• Field of study: All disciplines are welcome, from the life sciences and engineering to the humanities and social sciences.
• Team make-up: You will need both a French and a Brazilian team, each comprising at least one PhD student. For more experienced projects, larger teams are required, as well as a French project leader with a habilitation (the qualification to supervise PhD students).
• No parallel project: You must not already be leading or participating in another ongoing COFECUB project.
• New topic if you reapply: If you have already completed a COFECUB project, any new application must relate to a new topic. Projects that have been rejected three times cannot be resubmitted.

How to apply

The French project leader submits the application online via the Campus France extranet. The deadline is 9 June 2026, and the platform closes at midnight. So please do not wait until the last day. Reviewers on both sides assess the project anonymously; a joint Franco-Brazilian committee then makes the final decision, which will be announced by 2027 January.

How realistic are your chances?

This programme is extremely competitive: in the year 2025, only around 18% of the projects were selected. Assessment is based solely on the scientific quality of the project and the teams involved, so your chances depend less on your background and more on the strength of your application and your partner. Teams that have received no or only minimal funding from COFECUB to date will be given special consideration where the quality is equal, which benefits newcomers.