The 7th edition of the CiQUS Summer Fellowship programme has come to an end. The students have concluded today their first research experience sharing the work developed during this period with the rest of their classmates. Hosted by the different research groups and supervised by CiQUS principal investigators, the beneficiaries had the opportunity to collaborate on various projects at the frontier of knowledge, covering different topics such as bioorthogonal catalysis, computational simulation of chemical reactions and the immunosuppressive effect of adenosine, among others.
During July, they were gradually integrated into the regular activity of the labs where they had contact with state-of-the-art research and acquired skills with advanced equipment and instrumentation. But far from confining themselves to the laboratory, our fellows have not missed the opportunity to attend several scientific activities held at CiQUS, including seminars and an exciting programme of lectures that invited distinguished speakers such as Vincent P. Conticello (Emory University of Atlanta - EEUU), Olga García Mancheño (Universität Münster - Alemaña) e Young Min Song (GIST Wangju - Corea).
"The CiQUS Summer Fellowships programme provide an excellent opportunity to get started in research" ensure the CiQUS directors, who underline the boost for these young students to immerse themselves in the daily activity of a centre in the vanguard of chemistry with top-level facilities. Fifteen fellows have joined us in this edition, not only from Galicia but also from other regions such as Valencia or Castilla y León. That was the story of Joan Miguel Ávila, seven years ago. Coming from the Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona, Joan attended the first edition of the Summer Fellowship programme back in 2015, "a decisive experience that led me to choose the USC and, and CiQUS in particular, to pursue my master's and PhD studies". Only two weeks ago, under the supervision of professors María Tomás and José Luis Mascareñas, Joan defended his doctoral thesis: a real CiQUS Maker. "The facilities provided, the working environment and the quality of the research developed at the centre are just perfect to grow as a scientist," explains Joan. Two of his classmates from that first promotion, David Bugallo and Iván Gallego, have followed the same path by obtaining their PhD in the last year.
Patricia, David, Esther, Antonio, Ainhoa, Javier, Beatriz, Sergio, Lucía, Javier, Manuel, Carla, Iván, Nilia, Inés, Jorge. Nine girls and six boys, all of them full of scientific curiosity with a passion for learning, who have just started in this exciting world. And we are delighted that they have chosen us to do so. We engourgage them not to lose their motivation and to always keep science very present in their lives.
"Programme funded by the Convenio de Colaboración entre a Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Universidade e a USC para o desenvolvemento de accións estratéxicas de I+D+i (2022)"
