SEAI ENERGISE Fellowship Programme
The SEAI Energise Fellowship Programme provides the opportunity for postdoctoral or experienced researchers to apply for research fellowship awards.
New for 2026
The programme has been separated into two separate streams with different terms and conditions.
- The SEAI Based Fellowship stream will have a shorter application form and evaluation process and for the first time, teaching buyout and mobility costs are eligible costs.
- The Academic Fellowship stream will remain mostly unchanged from previous years. Applicants to this stream should be ready to develop their own research idea and be aiming to lead their own independent research programme at the end of the fellowship.
About the programme
This programme is open to postdoctoral or experienced researchers who can apply with the support of a 3rd level educational body.
The primary objectives of the SEAI Energise Fellowship Programme are to:
- Build capacity in the sustainable energy sector.
- Enhance national capabilities and capacities at the energy-policy interface.
- Build capacity in bridging the gap between policy and research.
- Strengthen knowledge to support the clean energy transition.
- Provide career development opportunities for participating fellows.
- Provide researchers considering a transition from academia to the private or public sector with relevant experience and skills.
- Provide researchers with funding in their own name to advance academic career progression, while rounding out professional experience during the fellowship.
- Provide a development opportunity for experience in energy policy and strategic development and implementation.
Categories
The Academic Fellowships category aims to build capacity in the energy sector, providing opportunities for early-stage postdoctoral researchers to lead projects in support of Ireland’s clean energy transition. These awards will fund individual researchers in Irish level third level educational bodies. It is an open call with a bottom-up approach to research topics, i.e. applicants are free to propose their own research idea, as long as projects are aligned with the objectives of the SEAI Research Development and Demonstration programme.
SEAI-Based Fellowship awards will support fellows who have the support of a 3rd level educational body to conduct research on a specified topic, within SEAI. Fellows will typically be based in the SEAI head office in Dublin for the duration of the award. Fellows can apply to one of five topics.
Applicants can submit queries about the SEAI-Based fellowship topics to [email protected]. Answers to these queries will be published in a FAQ document.
| SEAI – Based Fellowship Topics | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Future Visioning: Ireland’s Sustainable Energy System and Society | |
| 2 | Integration of Environmental Impacts (Beyond Scope 1 Emissions) into Long-Term Strategic Electricity Sector Scenario Planning | |
| 3 | Developing National Electric Vehicle Fleet Charging Profiles in Ireland | |
| 4 | Developing a Methodology for Projecting Long-Term Drivers of Energy Demand in Industry and Services Sectors | |
| 5 | Securing the Clean-Power Supply Chain for a Renewable Energy-Based Electricity System: Critical Materials, Components, and Strategic Dependencies | |
SEAI-Based Fellowship | |
|---|---|
| Stage | Date |
| Call Open Date | Wednesday 13th May 2026 |
| Fellowship Information Webinar | Thursday 21st May 2026 10:00 IST (UTC+1) |
| SmartSimple Application Portal opened | Friday 22nd May 2026 |
| Deadline for SEAI-Based Fellowship topic queries | Tuesday 2nd June 2026 |
| Deadline for Application Submission | Thursday 11th June 2026 13:00 IST (UTC+1) |
| Evaluation Stage 1 Eligibility | June 2026 |
| Evaluation Stage 2 Technical Evaluation | June-July 2026 |
| Evaluation Stage 3 Interview | July-August 2026 |
| Award Notification | August 2026 |
Academic Fellowship | |
|---|---|
| Stage | Date |
| Call Open Date | Wednesday 13th May 2026 |
| Fellowship Information Webinar | Thursday 21st May 2026 10:00 IST (UTC+1) |
| SmartSimple Application Portal opened | Friday 22nd May 2026 |
| Deadline for Application Submission | Tuesday 30th June 2026 13:00 IST (UTC+1) |
| Evaluation Stage 1: Eligibility | July 2026 |
| Evaluation Stage 2: Technical Evaluation | July-August 2026 |
| Evaluation Stage 3: National Alignment Evaluation | July-August 2026 |
| Award Notification | September 2026 |
How to Apply
Applicants to the SEAI Energise Fellowship programme will need to submit their application and upload supporting documents through the SmartSimple Application Portal. Full guidelines, templates and reference materials will be available in the Programme Documents section.
Webinar 2026 Fellowships
2026 SEAI ENERGISE Fellowship Webinar Slides (opens in a new tab)| Lead Organisation | Project Title |
|---|---|
| Atlantic Technological University | Power Where It’s Needed the Most: A Geo-Targeted Strategy for Clean Energy in County Sligo |
| Maynooth University | DeepLEAP: Deep-reinforcement-Learning-based control for Energy harvesting And Platform stabilization of wave energy converters integrated to floating offshore wind turbines |
| Maynooth University | Enhancing carbon dioxide capture and its electrochemical reduction with the development of MOFs/COFs and 2D borophene-based supercapacitors (COMET) |
| Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) | Development of Breathable Bio-Based Polyurethane Foam from Indigenous Irish Biomass for Energy-Efficient Building Insulation |
| University of Galway | Retrofitting Ireland’s homes: An examination of existing retrofit programmes and supports, the householder retrofit journey and opportunities for success in Ireland’s retrofit industry. |
| University College Cork | Addressing Realistic Non-Linear Atlantic Waves Effects on Loadings and Dynamics of Floating Offshore Wind Platforms |
| University College Dublin | Community-based Programmes for Sustainable Energy (COPSE): a qualitative, multi-methods analysis of community energy programmes in Ireland |
| University College Dublin | Spatial mapping and AI-based renewable technology framework for utilising emissions and low-carbon fuel integration in Ireland (SMART-IE) |
| University of Limerick | Lignin4BioGas: 3D-Printed Lignin Electrodes for Enhanced Biomethane Production in Microbial Electrolysis Cell-Integrated Anaerobic Digestion |