The International Mobility Program of the Center for Research in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Materials (CiQUS) at the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) was created as a strategic tool to promote short stays in leading institutes and strengthen the center's global collaborations. Funded by the Galician Government and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), it pursues a triple objective: contributing to the career development of research and technical staff, promoting the growth of the international collaborators network, and increasing the visibility of the center and its scientific activity.
The call is open to all research and technical staff at CiQUS, regardless of their career stage, and is structured into three modalities: one aimed at predoctoral researchers seeking international mention in their thesis; another for those who need access to equipment or training not available in Compostela; and a third designed for principal investigators and junior scientists participating in international scientific projects or meetings.
Selection is carried out through an annual internal call where each applicant proposes the destination and host group, detailing their line of work and alignment with CiQUS's scientific agenda. The management and scientific committee then prepare a prioritized list based on the available budget. According to Almudena García, coordinator of the international mobility program, the reception has been “very good, with all places filled and very positive evaluations from the beneficiaries”.
In recent years, the impact of the program has also been felt outside CiQUS. García explains that “interest from foreign researchers in coming to Compostela is growing, and the center is climbing positions as a reference for scientific excellence”. At the same time, the percentage of theses with international mention has increased to nearly 60%, an achievement in which these grants are “crucial” for completing stays abroad.
For García, mobility is an unequivocal commitment to “global and barrier-free science”, which allows learning from the best research groups and strengthening skills in a multicultural context. The good performance of beneficiaries abroad, she adds, “is already a mark of quality for CiQUS, USC, and the Galician research ecosystem as a whole”.
Testimonials: Voices of Traveling Science
The experiences of Tiago Ferreira and Lucía Gómez show how international mobility is much more than a learning tool: it is a real boost for scientific and personal growth.
In the case of Tiago, a junior scientist, his stay in Bergen (Norway) was a return to a laboratory he already knew well, in a key context for his project on myelin. He explains that returning to the Norwegian NMR Platform allowed him to take advantage of a “fundamental” infrastructure and consolidate already initiated collaborations. For him, the essence of mobility lies precisely in the possibility of connecting with specialists from other areas: “The probability of collaborating if you stay in your faculty is much lower”. International stays, he says, broaden perspectives, enrich methodologies, and allow learning to work with new equipment and laboratory dynamics.
His trajectory through various European countries has also led him to observe cultural and structural differences that, according to him, condition research capacity: scientific tradition, communication of science from childhood, or the importance of common spaces that foster interaction. Despite progress, he believes that “there is still a lack of social and cultural interest in science”, and he sees mobility as one of the most powerful tools to advance in this direction. Therefore, he encourages new generations to go abroad, because the personal and professional interactions that arise there “cannot be obtained through a video call”: they are opportunities that, he assures, change the way of understanding the world.
Lucía Gómez, a CiQUS doctoral student currently at the University of Vienna, confirms this vision from a more incipient but equally enthusiastic perspective. She applied for the mobility grant because, she says, it is an opportunity that democratizes access to these experiences: “It is a possibility that CiQUS gives to people who do not get other scholarships, so that everyone can have this experience”. Her adaptation was easier than expected, and she especially values the human environment and technical learning: new procedures, new ways of organizing the laboratory, and a different way of working as a team. Professionally, she is discovering methodologies that complement her training; personally, she takes with her “people I am meeting and with whom I will be able to keep in touch once the stay is over”.
Gómez is clear: stays are essential to not limit the research career. They allow comparison, absorption of new approaches, and, in the end, “bringing all knowledge together”. “An unforgettable experience”, describes Gómez, and she encourages those who doubt to take the step: “Don’t be afraid; it is enriching in every way and only brings good things”.
“There is no need to fear leaving the comfort zone”
International mobility is not just an opportunity to improve in research: it is also an experience of personal growth. As the coordinator of the CiQUS international mobility program recalls, “there is no need to fear leaving the comfort zone, the language, or other cultures”. And she adds, “we should see this as an opportunity that few professions offer: living an experience with enormous potential for professional and personal growth”. International stays, whether in laboratories in Europe or other continents, allow opening horizons, strengthening skills, and establishing networks that accompany researchers throughout their careers. For CiQUS, supporting this type of mobility is investing in a global, collaborative, and forward-looking science.
By Sara Martínez López, GCiencia.
One of the researchers benefited by the CiQUS mobility program, Sara Falcón, who was in Japan at Chiba University, Institute for Advanced Academic Research (IAAR), in the group of Professor Shiki Yagai.
Researcher Diego Sánchez-Brunete, another of the beneficiaries of this year's CiQUS mobility program, completed his stay in Ireland at Dublin City University, in the group of Professor Andrew Kellett.