This week the 2019 class of the BIST-UPF Master of Multidisciplinary Research in Experimental Sciences (MMRES) successfully graduated and a new cohort of incoming students was welcomed as the third edition of the programme launches.
On September 12, 2019, the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST) organized this year’s MMRES ceremony at the Fundació Catalunya La Pedrera to recognize and celebrate the 27 graduates of the MMRES class of 2019 and to welcome the incoming 23 students of the MMRES class of 2020.
The event kicked off with a welcome by Roderic Guigó and Robert Sewell (MMRES Co-Directors) and a keynote speech by Giuseppe Battaglia (Group Leader and ICREA Research Professor at IBEC). Professor Battaglia recently joined IBEC as leader of the Molecular Bionics Group and gave an inspirational talk about nanorobots, in which he emphasized the need for multidisciplinarity in cutting-edge research like that undertaken by the students, something the BIST-UPF MMRES programme strongly fosters. He also underlined the importance of learning the “languages” of many disciplines and training to understand the various approaches employed by mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, etc. to shared challenges.
The event continued with a recognition of and congratulations to the class of 2019 by MMRES Coordinators Núria Bayó (BIST) and Rubén Vicente (DCEXS-UPF). Of the 27 graduating students, many have already been accepted into PhD positions at local and international institutes including Harvard Medical School in Boston, the UPF Department of Experimental and Health Sciences in Barcelona, the Curie Institute and the Saint Louis Hospital in Paris, the University of Birmingham, and the BIST centres IRB Barcelona, ICFO, ICN2, and IBEC, in Barcelona.
Iván Company, María Sanchiz, and Adam Skali, graduates of the 2019 MMRES programme, gave a presentation about their experience, along with tips and advice to help welcome the incoming students. The new cohort consists of another 23 extremely bright and motivated students coming from many countries including the USA, Bulgaria, Azerbaijan, Czech Republic, Germany, and the UK, among others. The alumni also thanked Donna Ramirez, BIST Academic Programmes Coordinator, for her excellent work supporting them throughout the year.
The evening wrapped up with closing remarks by Gabby Silberman (BIST Director) and David Comas (DCEXS Director) and a cocktail hour where everyone had the opportunity to network and get to know each other better.
The BIST-UPF MMRES graduating class of 2019:
Adam Ali
Adrià Terradellas
Adrián Candelas Baonza
Ainoa Guinart
Albert Edo
Alejandra Rodríguez
Antón Rivas
Asier Rodriguez
Blanca María Belsa
Dimitrie Ivancic
Emanuele Fara
Gerardo Ceada
Guillem Murciano
Isabel Cuella
Iván Company
Jasna Nuhic
Joaquim Llacer
Jonathan Piccirillo
Laia Abelló
Laura Medina
Marc Botifoll Moral
María Sanchiz
Miguel González
Mikayla Shelton
Pol Febrer
Sofía Martínez
Vanessa López
The BIST-UPF MMRES incoming class of 2020:
Adrian Acuna
Adrian Pinilla
Aiturgan Zheenbekova
Alejandro Fernández
Andrea Ruiz
Aritz Lafuente
Bronte Swaby
Christian Koch
Guillem Guigó
Jacob Windsor
Jorge Cordero
Júlia Urgell
Kayleigh Earle
Marc Pérez
Milan Dimitrovski
Mireia Codina
Morena Pinheiro
Nerea Montedeoca
Paula Magrinya
Sergi Campos
Simona Barankova
Veronika Parfentyeva
Victor Herrera
More about the BIST-UPF MMRES:
The BIST-UPF MMRES is the only one of its kind in Spain, and aims to equip students with the skills that guarantee success in a research career in an increasingly complex and competitive environment. It emphasizes the importance of research and its multidisciplinary nature, which is especially evident in the participation of each student in two research projects of different disciplines.
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