The eighth cohort of the BIST Master’s Programme, the largest to date, celebrated its graduation in a ceremony held at the Barcelona Science Park on 9 September.
Twenty-eight students from fourteen different nationalities have recently completed their Master of Multidisciplinary Research in Experimental Sciences (MMRES) degree, a joint programme of BIST and Pompeu Fabra University (UPF). The programme offered students the opportunity to spend eight months developing their own research projects in cutting-edge laboratories within the BIST Community and UPF’s Department of Medicine and Life Sciences. After presenting their theses, it was time to celebrate with a graduation ceremony.
The ceremony featured the participation of the MMRES programme directors, Dr Roderic Guigó (CRG) and Dr Robert Sewell (ICFO), along with the coordinator Dr Ana Janic (UPF). They reflected on some of the cohort’s highlights, such as the diverse origins and academic backgrounds of the students and the many research collaborations among research groups initiated within the Master’s framework.
Dr Guigó also shared with the students some reflections on the importance of science for democratic societies, noting that “science is about facts, not about ideology or preconceptions” — an idea that is currently being challenged in parts of the developed world.
Dr. Robert Sewell (left photo); Dr. Ana Janic and Dr. Roderic Guigó (right photo)
The event included a keynote conversation between Dr Tamara Vázquez Schröder (ATRAE Research Group Leader at IFAE) and Dr Nora Martin (Barcelona Collaboratorium Independent Fellow at CRG), facilitated by graduating student Alba Tomás. Both Vázquez and Martin, who studied bachelor’s degrees in physics, perfectly illustrated to the students the advantages of embracing multidisciplinarity. While Vázquez is now an experimental particle physicist, Martin develops quantitative and predictive models of biological evolution.
“Education is never over. You just need to stay curious, take the initiative to reach out to other experts and ask questions, and be generous in helping others,” recommended Dr Vázquez Schröder to the students.
“For multidisciplinarity to work, you need to be able to communicate with people who are not experts in your field,” added Dr Martin.
From left to right: Alba Tomás, Dr. Tamara Vázquez Schröder (IFAE) and Dr. Nora Martin (CRG)
After receiving their diplomas, two of the students, Albert Grass and Andrés Gordo, reflected on the group’s experiences over the past year, highlighting the strong bonds they created and the fun they shared.
The ceremony was closed by BIST General Director Dr Eduard Vallory, who encouraged the students “not to lose the joy of discovering”.
Albert Grass and Andrés Gordo (left); graduating students during the ceremony (right)
