Periodic Reporting for period 1 - IRB_DREAM (IRB DoctoRal fEllowship ProgrAMme: attracting international talent (IRB_DREAM))
Reporting period: 2021-09-01 to 2023-08-31
IRB Barcelona is a multidisciplinary institute where scientists address challenging and pressing biomedical problems in a collaborative fashion in order to provide groundbreaking solutions to unmet medical needs.
IRB_DREAM is fully committed to increasing public awareness by explaining progress in the biomedical sciences. European society is the ultimate beneficiary of the highly qualified professionals that this doctoral programme will produce, as IRB_DREAM fellows will contribute to enhancing the innovation capacity and competitiveness of the EU.
The objectives of IRB_DREAM are fully aligned with IRB Barcelona´s mid-term strategic objectives:
- to enhance the international visibility of the Institute
- to boost translational research by devoting resources to new collaborations with hospitals
- to continue promoting knowledge and new technology transfer to the industrial sector
In this context, IRB_DREAM is instrumental for training highly qualified research professionals that are capable of producing and efficiently managing extraordinary results that have a far-reaching impact with regard to tackling the health challenges of the future. Acknowledgement of the outstanding performance of IRB_DREAM alumni by employers will, in turn, contribute to positioning IRB Barcelona at the forefront of the best PhD programmes in Biomedicine in Europe.
IRB_DREAM is fully committed to increasing public awareness by explaining progress in the biomedical sciences. European society is the ultimate beneficiary of the highly qualified professionals that this doctoral programme will produce, as IRB_DREAM fellows will contribute to enhancing the innovation capacity and competitiveness of the EU.
The objectives of IRB_DREAM are fully aligned with IRB Barcelona´s mid-term strategic objectives:
- to enhance the international visibility of the Institute
- to boost translational research by devoting resources to new collaborations with hospitals
- to continue promoting knowledge and new technology transfer to the industrial sector
In this context, IRB_DREAM is instrumental for training highly qualified research professionals that are capable of producing and efficiently managing extraordinary results that have a far-reaching impact with regard to tackling the health challenges of the future. Acknowledgement of the outstanding performance of IRB_DREAM alumni by employers will, in turn, contribute to positioning IRB Barcelona at the forefront of the best PhD programmes in Biomedicine in Europe.
During the first two years of the project efforts have been focused on the attraction of the best international talent to IRB Barcelona. This has been achieved through two calls for applications (5 fellowships in 2021 and 5 more in 2022) which have allowed IRB Barcelona to incorporate 10 doctoral candidates. The mobility of the COFUND fellowships has successfully contributed to attract international talent to IRB Barcelona, which was one of the key aims of the project (the IRB_DREAM fellows come from 7 different nationalities). IRB_DREAM has also represented a step forward for IRB Barcelona in the consolidation of best practices in terms of selection, recruitment, supervision and training of doctoral candidates. Among the main achievements, we would like to highlight that IRB Barcelona has successfully implemented the personalised career development plan for all IRB_DREAM fellows, which is progressively being extended to all fellows enrolled in the IRB Barcelona PhD programme.
The ten fellows have successfully completed the first and second year, respectively, of their doctoral training programme. Between M25 and M60, all efforts will be focused on developing the full potential of fellows, enhancing the impact of the results of their research projects as well as their professional development through a broad complementary training offer.
The ten fellows have successfully completed the first and second year, respectively, of their doctoral training programme. Between M25 and M60, all efforts will be focused on developing the full potential of fellows, enhancing the impact of the results of their research projects as well as their professional development through a broad complementary training offer.
In line with the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Work Programme, the IRB_DREAM Programme is enhancing the career prospects of the fellows by:
- Increasing and diversifying the set of skills, both research-related and transferable ones: by working in the Institute’s unique infrastructures and excellent research facilities, core facilities and services and in the local/regional ecosystem in which the centre is located, fellows acquire knowledge in a broad range of techniques and scientific skills. These capacities are further developed through access to the training courses both in scientific and transferable skills and a Personalised Career Development Plan. The fellows are closely guided and mentored by their supervisors, their TAC and the Career Advisor.
- Fostering interdisciplinary and intersectoral exchange: fellows are continuously exposed to the non-academic sector through a series of activities, including training series (courses on entrepreneurship, intellectual property, technology transfer and innovation process, etc.), networking activities with companies, personalised follow-up by Innovation Department staff, including visits and secondments to industry, and personalised advice for those interested in undertaking a non-academic career path.
- Enhancing networking and communication capacities with peers and the general public to broaden the research and innovation impact: fellows have been encouraged to participate in ENABLE activities, both in organisation aspects and by presenting their results. In addition, fellows benefit from increased opportunities to undertake communications activities with patient associations and social networks involved in the corresponding health problems, thereby enhancing the visibility of their projects to the pharmaceutical and biotech industries.
Furthermore, the IRB_DREAM Programme is strengthening human resources on a regional, national and international level in terms of:
- Excellence in Research Training
- Excellence in Complementary Training and Personalised Career Development Advice
- Excellence in Recruitment and Working Conditions
- Promotion of International Mobility and Networking
- Promotion of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) Principles
- Integral Quality Assurance Strategy
The IRB_DREAM programme is contributing to the implementation of measures aligned with the principles set out by the EU for human resources development in research and innovation, such as the Principles for Innovative Doctoral Training and the European Charter for Researchers & the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers. Moreover, IRB Barcelona was awarded the "HR Excellence in Research" logo in 2014, in recognition of its commitment to the continuous improvement of its human resources policies, and was renewed successfully in January 2023. The award confirms the efforts made by IRB Barcelona to ensure fair and transparent recruitment and appraisal procedures.
In terms of measures proposed measures to exploit and disseminate the results, throughout the duration of their grant, fellows will be supported by the experience and resources of the Supervisory team, the TAC, and the different IRB Barcelona Administration departments, which will provide guidance on issues related to the dissemination and further use of the results generated from research projects, including the following: (i) publication policies and internal procedures; (ii) identification and management of protectable Intellectual Property (IP) assets that may derive from the results; and (iii) evaluation of potential exploitation routes, etc.
- Increasing and diversifying the set of skills, both research-related and transferable ones: by working in the Institute’s unique infrastructures and excellent research facilities, core facilities and services and in the local/regional ecosystem in which the centre is located, fellows acquire knowledge in a broad range of techniques and scientific skills. These capacities are further developed through access to the training courses both in scientific and transferable skills and a Personalised Career Development Plan. The fellows are closely guided and mentored by their supervisors, their TAC and the Career Advisor.
- Fostering interdisciplinary and intersectoral exchange: fellows are continuously exposed to the non-academic sector through a series of activities, including training series (courses on entrepreneurship, intellectual property, technology transfer and innovation process, etc.), networking activities with companies, personalised follow-up by Innovation Department staff, including visits and secondments to industry, and personalised advice for those interested in undertaking a non-academic career path.
- Enhancing networking and communication capacities with peers and the general public to broaden the research and innovation impact: fellows have been encouraged to participate in ENABLE activities, both in organisation aspects and by presenting their results. In addition, fellows benefit from increased opportunities to undertake communications activities with patient associations and social networks involved in the corresponding health problems, thereby enhancing the visibility of their projects to the pharmaceutical and biotech industries.
Furthermore, the IRB_DREAM Programme is strengthening human resources on a regional, national and international level in terms of:
- Excellence in Research Training
- Excellence in Complementary Training and Personalised Career Development Advice
- Excellence in Recruitment and Working Conditions
- Promotion of International Mobility and Networking
- Promotion of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) Principles
- Integral Quality Assurance Strategy
The IRB_DREAM programme is contributing to the implementation of measures aligned with the principles set out by the EU for human resources development in research and innovation, such as the Principles for Innovative Doctoral Training and the European Charter for Researchers & the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers. Moreover, IRB Barcelona was awarded the "HR Excellence in Research" logo in 2014, in recognition of its commitment to the continuous improvement of its human resources policies, and was renewed successfully in January 2023. The award confirms the efforts made by IRB Barcelona to ensure fair and transparent recruitment and appraisal procedures.
In terms of measures proposed measures to exploit and disseminate the results, throughout the duration of their grant, fellows will be supported by the experience and resources of the Supervisory team, the TAC, and the different IRB Barcelona Administration departments, which will provide guidance on issues related to the dissemination and further use of the results generated from research projects, including the following: (i) publication policies and internal procedures; (ii) identification and management of protectable Intellectual Property (IP) assets that may derive from the results; and (iii) evaluation of potential exploitation routes, etc.