The predecessor organization of IC3JM, the Advanced Center for Social Science Studies (CEACS), opened in 1987 as part of the
Fundación Juan March, which supports
social science research along with other cultural objectives. The Foundation is based in the
Salamanca district of central Madrid. CEACS offered master's degrees in social science for Spanish students as well as a programme of four-year grants for students to undertake a master's and write a doctoral thesis. In 2007, CEACS decided to focus on
postdoctoral research as well, and it offered a three-year research grant to top professors worldwide. In September 2013, the
Juan March Foundation and the
Carlos III University decided to jointly support CEACS, and turned CEACS into the Instituto Carlos III-Juan March (IC3JM), and relocated the campus from
Salamanca in central Madrid to
Getafe; the academic staff, activities, programmes, and library of the former CEACS were absorbed by IC3JM. The two organizations collaborated to found the institute in its current incarnation; it is located on Carlos III University campus but both organizations contribute funding. ==Academic focus==