EARLYSTAGE RESEARCHERS MOBILITY

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EARLY-STAGE RESEARCHERS MOBILITY

• THE PGDBM EXPERIENCE

GULBENKIAN PhD PROGRAM IN BIOLOGY MEDICINE
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ESRs INVOLVED
PGDBM 103 PGDB 69
Only the PGDBM case will be considered, and only
its first 5 years of admissions (72 ESRs) will
be analyzed for mobility.
Over 10 years experience with international
graduate programs.
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PGDBM

• PLANNED IN 1992, PROTOCOLS SIGNED IN 1993
• LAUNCHED EXPERIMENTALLY IN 1993 FOR 3 YEARS
• (UPON REGULAR REVIEWS, UP TO 100 PhDs)

• Very favorable context for a CULTURE OF
  EXCELLENCE
• FUNDAÇÃO CALOUSTE GULBENKIAN
• Strong tradition of innovation and quality in
  post-graduate
• courses, introduced in 1969 by Prof. N. Van
  Uden at the
• INSTITUTO GULBENKIAN DE CIÊNCIA

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PGDBM AIMS

• EDUCATE 100 BIOMEDICAL SCIENTISTS ON MODERN
• TOPICS, CONNECTED IN THE WORLD
• OPEN PERSPECTIVES TO YOUNG PORTUGUESE
• OPTIMIZE PUBLIC INVESTMENT IN SCIENCE
  EDUCATION
• THROUGH SYNERGY WITH PRIVATE INVESTMENTS
• TRANSFER NEW AREAS, APPROACHES TECHNOLOGIES
• INTERNATIONALIZE PORTUGUESE SCIENCE
• FILL THE MD/PhD GAP

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ORGANIZATION
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PORTUGUESE AUTHORITIES GIVE A GREAT EXAMPLE

• ALL PGDBM/PGDB PhD FELLOWSHIPS ARE PAID BY
• PUBLIC MONEY
• 90 OF THESE ARE SPENT ABROAD WITH INCREASED
• COSTS
• UNIVERSITY FEES AND BENCH FEES ARE AVAILABLE
• TO FOREIGN INSTITUTIONS, ALSO FROM PUBLIC
  MONEY
• NO REQUIREMENT TO RETURN

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A MAJOR INNOVATION IN PORTUGAL OPEN EQUAL
ACCESS
FIGHTING THE INBREEDING

• STUDENTS COULD COMPETE FOR ENTERING THE
• PROGRAM (AND A 4-YEARS FELLOWSHIP) ON THEIR
• OWN QUALITY, AND BEFORE THEY HAD A MENTOR,
• A PROJECT, A HOST INSTITUTION, AND UNIVERSITY
• REGISTRATION.
• THIS WAS POSSIBLE BECAUSE THE PUBLIC AGENCY
• DELEGATED THE SELECTION OF THE MOST PROMISING
• STUDENTS TO THE PGDBMS DIRECTION.

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STRATEGIES I

• RELY ON THE HUMAN AND INTELLECTUAL QUALITIES
• OF THE STUDENTS OPEN NATIONAL COMPETITION
• APPROPRIATE SELECTION INTERVIEW
• NO RECOMMENDATIONS, LITTLE ATTENTION TO GRADES
• APPROPRIATE SELECTION CRITERIA
• HONESTY, GENEROSITY, INDEPENDENCE OF MIND,
  MOTIVATION, ENTREPRENEURSHIP, RATIONALITY,
  ABILITY TO ARGUE AND EXPRESS OWN (AND OTHERS)
  IDEAS, TO BE INTERESTING
• APPROPRIATE SELECTION DIVERSITY
• INFORMED COMMITMENT

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STRATEGIES II

• PERSONAL SUPPORT AND INDIVIDUAL TUTORING
• GUIDED BUT FREE, INDIVIDUAL CHOICES
• COMMUNITY OF PROJECT
• ESPRIT DE CORPS AND NETWORKING

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STRATEGIES III

• FLEXIBILITY REASONABILITY ( A LITTLE
  AUTOCRACY)
• VERY LIGHT STRUCTURE MANAGEMENT
• INTERNATIONAL FACULTY
• MOBILITY INSIDE PORTUGAL AND THE WORLD
• BEST LABS FOR THESIS WORK
• NOT AGAINST, BUT OUTSIDE UNIVERSITIES

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BROAD BASES FOR SELECTIONDIVERSITY
Degrees in BIOLOGY, BIOCHEMISTRY, MEDICINE,
VETERINARY MEDICINE, PHARMACY, AGRONOMY,
BIOTECHNOLOGY CHEMISTRY, PHYSICS, MATHEMATICS,
COMPUTER ENGINEERING, ECONOMY,
MANAGEMENT Degrees from (Universities) LISBOA,
PORTO, COIMBRA, NOVA DE LISBOA, TECNICA DE
LISBOA, AVEIRO, ALGARVE, CATOLICA Gender
females gt males
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PGDBM STRUCTURE

• ONE YEAR OF GRADUATE EDUCATION (IGC BASED)
• COVERING THE WHOLE OF MODERN BIOMEDICINE
• BY THE VERY BEST SCIENTISTS WE COULD GET
• MODULAR COURSES (1-3 WEEKS) WORKSHOPS
• 25-30 WEEKS OF COERCIVE TOPICS
• 10-15 WEEKS OF OPTIONAL TOPICS
• WRITE MONOGRAPHY
• GIVE A SEMINAR TO BIOLOGY TEACHERS
• DECIDE ON SUBJECT AND SUPERVISOR
• WRITE THESIS PROJECT DISCUSS IT AT RETREAT
• THREE TO FOUR YEARS THESIS WORK

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LARGE INTERNATIONAL FACULTY The PGDBM
Faculty in 7 years 583 with
affiliation in Portugal 148 abroad 443
Institutional origin in USA (148), UK (102), Fr
(81), and all other European countries but 4
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INTERNATIONAL FACULTY

• QUALITY DIVERSITY
• PROMOTING MOBILITY AND NETWORKING
• OPENING HOST LABS FOR THESIS WORK
• BREAKING LOCAL INBREEDING AND
• INTERNATIONALIZING PORTUGUESE SCIENCE
• PROMOTING THE REPUTATION OF PORTUGUESE
• SCIENCE AND THE GULBENKIAN STUDENTS

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INTERNATIONAL FACULTY

• THE PGDBM COUNTED ON THE SUPPORT OF MANY
• INSTITUTIONS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD THAT PAID
• THE SALARIES OF THE TEACHERS.
• EVEN WITH UNLIMITED RESOURCES IT WOULD
• HAVE BEEN IMPOSSIBLE TO ASSEMBLE SUCH A
• LARGE, DIVERSE, INTERNATIONAL FACULTY OF
• WOLRDWIDE EXCELLENCE.
• The PGDBM paid back with excellent students.

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ONE YEAR OF GRADUATE EDUCATION

• RESULTS
• SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED BY 103/112.
• ALL THESE LEARNED
• TO WORK VERY HARD AUTONOMOUSLY
• MODERN BIOLOGY AREAS, PERSONS, LABS, INSTITUT.
• TO THINK, DISCUSS, CONNECT
• CHOICES OF TOPICS WERE AS DESIRED
• DIVERSE AND STATE-OF-THE-ART
• ALL FOUND THE SUPERVISOR AND LAB THEY WANTED
• (SOMETIMES MORE THAN ONE)
• ALL BECAME COSMOPOLITAN SCIENTIST APPRENTICES

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THESIS WORK
HOST LABORATORY PORTUGAL 11 ABROAD 92
UK (36), USA (30), FRANCE (10), GERMANY,
HOLLAND, SWEDEN, SWITZERLAND, SPAIN CLOSE TO
100 LABS COLLABORATED WITH THE PROGRAM
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THESIS WORK/RESULTS

• BY THE END OF 2004
• ALL BUT 3 (100) WILL HAVE RECEIVED A PhD
  DEGREE
• 48 FROM PORTUGUESE
  UNIVERSITIES
• HAVE PUBLISHED OVER 500 PAPERS (MANY IN
  Nature,
• Science, Cell, PNAS, Genes Develop., ETC.ETC.)
• HAVE PRESENTED HUNDREDS OF COMUNICATIONS TO
• CONGRESSES AND WON A VARIETY OF PRIZES
• MANY HAVE OBTAINED FELLOWSHIPS (EMBO, HFSP,
  EU,
• HH, ETC.), RESEARCH CONTRACTS AND POSITIONS

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• THESE STUDENTS ARE OUTSIDERS TO
• THE LOCAL UNIVERSITY SYSTEM
• FIGHTING THE BRAIN-DRAIN
• PORTUGUESE UNIVERSITY PERSONALITIES
• AT THE PROGRAMS SCIENTIFIC COUNCIL
• PORTUGUESE SUPERVISOR AND REGISTRATION
• PORTUGUESE PATRON FOR EACH CLASS
• PRESENCE OF SUPERVISORS AND OTHER
• UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS AT RETREATS
• GRADUATE COURSES AT UNIVERSITIES AND/OR
• ORGANIZED BY LOCAL UNIV. PROFESSORS

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PORTUGUESE UNIVERSITIES SHOW LEVELS OF
INBREEDING THAT ARE AMONGST THE HIGHEST IN THE
WORLD
FIGHTING THE INBREEDING

• ALL PGDBM/PGDB STUDENTS ARE OUTBRED
• BUT
• 21 ARE ALREADY WORKING IN LOCAL UNIVERSITIES

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ESPRIT DE CORPS NETWORKING

• ANNUAL RETREAT FOR ONE WEEK TO START THE YEAR
• ALL STUDENTS IN THE PROGRAM IN ALL SESSIONS
• INCOMING STUDENTS ATTENDING
• ONE-YEAR STUDENTS DISCUSSING THEIR PROJECTS
• ALL OTHERS REPORTING ORAL COMMUNICATIONS
• EXAMPLARY FIGURES OF SCIENTISTS INVITED
• CLOSING SESSION INTERNAL DIPLOMS MEDALS
• BOARD OF TRUSTEES, SCIENTIFIC COUNCIL,
• GOVERNMENTAL AND UNIVERSITY AUTHORITIES
• TALK BY A MAJOR SCIENTIFIC FIGURE
• RECOLLECTIONS ON THE CLASS PATRON

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ESPRIT DE CORPS AND NETWORKING

• MOBILITY IN 1ST YEAR (DE-LOCALIZED COURSES)
• TUTORING, TEACHING ADVISING NEW COLEAGUES
• AND COACHING THEM ABROAD
• GULBENKIAN AUTUMN MEETINGS (POST-DOC MEETS)
• A BASE INSTITUTO GULBENKIAN DE CIENCIA
• RECORDS OF INDIVIDUAL CAREERS
• AIM
• NATIONAL NETWORK OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES LABS

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MOBILITY
IN 72 CASES (FIRST 5 ADMISSIONS)
DROPPED-OUT (but still hope for 2) 3
NEVER MOVED FROM LAB 7 (2P, 2UK, 2NL, US)
MOVED ONCE 26 MOVED
TWICE 26 MOVED THREE TIMES 10
NEVER CHANGED COUNTRY 20 CHANGED
ONCE 33 CHANGED 2 OR 3 TIMES 16
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NO FEAR OF ESR MOBILITY

• OF 69
• ARE IN PORTUGAL (OR PREPARING TO RETURN)
• 1ST CLASS 10 (11)/16
• 2ND CLASS 6 (8)/14
• 3RD CLASS 9 (10)/14
• 4TH CLASS 2 (4)/12
• 5TH CLASS 4 /13
• TOTAL 31 (37)
• 18 ARE PIs OR AUTONOMOUS IN THEIR ACTIVITIES
• 21 (1110) ARE ON UNIV/UNIV-ASSOCIATED
  POSITIONS

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LATERAL MOBILITY

• OF 69
• BIOTECHS AND INDUSTRY 7
• INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OFFICES 2
• NGOs RELATED
• PICPL, SCIENCE FOR DEVELOPMENT 6
• SCI. COMMUNICATION PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING 4
• MD/PhDs IN PORTUGUESE HOSPITALS 4

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SUBJECTIVE IMPRESSIONS

• EU MOBILITY PROGRAMS FOR UNDERGRADUATES
• GROUPOGENESIS DIVERSITY IS FUNDAMENTAL
• FROM YEARLY GROUPS TO THE CORPS RETREAT
• FROM THE CORPS TO THE OVERALL PLAN
• AN INSTITUTIONAL PLATFORM IS NECESSARY
• IF STRONG ENOUGH, OTHERS ARE MOST WELCOME
• VERY RAPID EVOLUTION OF TARGET POPULATION IN
• MOTIVATIONS, EXPECTATIONS, AND LIFE-STYLE
• ELITISM vs CULTURE OF EXCELLENCE

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FUTURE

• PGDB RUNNING FOR 4 YEARS
• SPECIFIC PROGRAMS (MD/PhD, COMPUTATIONAL BIOL.)
  BUT KEEPING TO SIMILAR PRINCIPLES
• (EXCELLENT) SCIENCE FIRST
• UNICITY OF BIOLOGY
• BIOLOGY-BASED MEDICINE
• INTERSICIPLINARITY
• DIVERSITY OF INDIVIDUALS
• MOBILITY
• HOPE THAT EU/MARIE CURIE FINDS THIS INTERESTING

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FUTURE

• IN PORTUGAL, THERE IS A STRONG NEED TO
• ESTABLISH CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS
• OPEN ALL UNIVERSITIES TO OUTBRED SCIENTISTS
• OPEN THE SOCIETY TO HIGHLY DIFFERENTIATED
• PROFESSIONALS

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THANKS TO
WHO PAID FUNDAÇÃO CALOUSTE GULBENKIAN
FUNDAÇÃO PARA A CIÊNCIA E A TECNOLOGIA
SECRETARIA DE ESTADO DO ENSINO SUPERIOR
FUNDAÇÃO LUSO-AMERICANA PARA DESENVOLVIMENTO WHO
HELPED PAULO VIEIRA MARIA JOSÉ MARINHO
GRETA MARTINS MANUELA CORDEIRO ALEXANDRE
QUINTANILHA MEMBERS OF THE SCIENTIFIC COUNCIL
ALL 581 TEACHERS AND 100 SUPERVISORS
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THANKS TO
WHO DID IT ALL THE 100 (102 ?) WHO ARE NOW
SCIENTISTS THE OTHER 10 IN THE 112 INITIALLY
SELECTED WHO WERE BORN FOR OTHER
ADVENTURES THE OVER 1,000 WHO APPLIED AND GAVE
US THE GREAT PLEASURE TO INTERVIEW THEM
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