UCA-SAS 2026 Linked Positions Competition: Key Points for Academics and Healthcare Professionals

Key data

The University of Cádiz and the Andalusian Health Service are launching a joint 2026 competition for access to linked positions within university teaching bodies. These are not ordinary posts: they require the holder to simultaneously work as a university academic and as a healthcare professional at SAS public centres. The regulatory reference is the Resolution of 10 March 2026 (BOE-A-2026-6283), published on 17 March 2026.

For human resources managers at both institutions, this call involves coordinating selection processes that span two distinct regulatory frameworks: that governing access to university teaching bodies and that governing agreements between universities and regional health services.

What does this regulation establish?

The resolution announces a competition for access to linked positions between the University of Cádiz and the Andalusian Health Service. The concept of a linked position means that a single professional simultaneously holds a teaching post at the university and a care post at a public healthcare centre.

The process is governed by two regulatory frameworks that must be complied with jointly:

• The regulations governing access to university teaching bodies (academic requirements, accreditation, teaching and research merits).
• The agreements signed between universities and regional health services, which regulate the conditions of the linked clinical activity.

The areas in which these positions are common, according to the resolution, are:

Candidates must demonstrate both the academic profile required for the relevant university teaching body and the healthcare professional requirements established by SAS. Dual accreditation is a necessary condition for participating in the competition.

Economic and operational impact

This call has direct consequences for human resources planning at two major Andalusian public institutions. From an operational standpoint, the effects are as follows:

• University of Cádiz: must manage a selection process that does not depend exclusively on its own academic criteria, but is also conditioned by SAS requirements. This lengthens and complicates the process.
• Andalusian Health Service: filling these positions affects the availability of clinical professionals at its centres, as the holder of the linked position carries out part of their working hours in the care setting.
• Healthcare training in Andalusia: the resolution has a direct impact on the quality and continuity of training for future healthcare professionals, by ensuring that university academics in clinical areas maintain active care activity.

No financial amounts associated with the positions or specific budget allocations are published in the resolution. Remuneration is governed by the agreements and salary scales in force at each institution.

Who is affected?

• University academics at the University of Cádiz currently in post or seeking access to university teaching bodies in areas with clinical activity (Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy).
• SAS healthcare professionals with a sufficient academic profile to access university teaching body positions.
• Human resources managers at the University of Cádiz and the Andalusian Health Service, who must coordinate the joint selection process.
• Deanships and university departments at UCA's Health Sciences faculties, whose academic staffing will be affected by the outcome of the competition.
• SAS public healthcare centres in the province of Cádiz, which will host the clinical activity of the holders of the linked positions.

Practical example

A specialist doctor working at an Andalusian Health Service hospital in Cádiz who also has the academic profile required to access a university teaching body may apply for this competition. If they are awarded the linked position, they will carry out their activity in two simultaneous settings:

• As a university academic at the University of Cádiz, delivering teaching in the area of Medicine.
• As a healthcare professional at their SAS centre, maintaining active clinical care activity.

For SAS HR managers, this means that the professional is not released from their clinical activity upon taking up the teaching post: the link is precisely the defining condition of this type of position. Shift planning and care workloads must be adapted to this dual commitment.

What should institutions do now?

1. Review the full resolution in the BOE (BOE-A-2026-6283) to identify the exact number of positions announced, the deadlines for submitting applications and the specific requirements for each position.
2. Coordinate the HR departments of UCA and SAS to align the academic and healthcare assessment criteria for candidates, avoiding duplication or contradictions in the process.
3. Inform potentially interested professionals in the affected clinical and academic departments (Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy) about the opening of the competition and the dual accreditation requirements.
4. Verify compliance with the current agreements between the University of Cádiz and SAS governing the conditions of linked positions, to ensure that the selection process complies with what has been agreed.
5. Plan care coverage at the affected SAS centres, anticipating that the holders of linked positions will carry out part of their working hours in the university setting.

Official source

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific decisions, please consult a qualified professional. Source: https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2026-6283