We talk with Marta Castiñeira and Rafael Rodríguez, two postdocs returning to CiQUS after their international stay. Both researchers received grants from the Xunta de Galicia's talent development programme, which aims to incorporate researchers into the Galician Research&Development&Innovation system and it has two stages: a first stage of work abroad to promote the acquisition and improvement of the doctoral researcher's skills, allowing international mobility. The second stage of the programme allows the researcher to return to Galicia for another year. They tell us about their experience, how they lived the pandemic abroad and how it was their return to Galicia, the opportunities that CiQUS offers them and the challenges for the future.
In which country did you carry out your stay and what line of research were you working on?
R.R. - It was my second postdoc in Rennes (France), I am a materials chemist and I was working with helicenes to make new types of CPL-active fluorescent molecules that can be applied in OLED displays, in security encryption methods, in banknotes, in labels... In different fields.
M.C. - My stay was in the Netherlands, in Groningen, and I was working on the study of new catalytic processes using computational chemistry. I was trying to understand how these processes work, to improve them and make them a bit more "ecofriendly": we were trying to change, for example, reagents or catalysts for slightly "greener" alternatives.
What difficulties did the pandemic cause you in your daily work?
R.R.– We were cut off directly, from one day to the next we had to stop everything until around mid-May. And then we had a cut in the supply of reagents and solvents, and we didn't get a normal supply until September, so there were weeks when we couldn't do a lot of things. During the time of confinement, I wrote a book chapter, a review article, thesis papers.... It was quite good in that respect, although it was very difficult to be isolated alone in a small flat in a forange country.
M.C – In my case, being a theoretical researcher and working with a computer, I was able to continue working and it was a different experience. In the Netherlands the confinement was quite lax, only for a few months. During those months you take the opportunity to work from home: look for literature, write review articles.... For me, the psychological component was more dramatic because my house was very small and, being isolated, having to stay focused and not watching the news repeatly was the hardest thing. When we went back to work, we did it in turns and it was a bit annoying, although personally, I was grateful for it because it allowed me to get back in touch with people.
What did your work experience abroad give you personally and professionally?
R.R.– Professionally, my two-and-a-half-year stay in France gave me a new field of knowledge in which you always face new challenges. At the beginning, it is more difficult to get started, but you learn a lot. I had the opportunity to work with one of the most renowned scientists in Europe in the field of chirality, Dr. Jeanne Crassous.
M.C. – In my case, I also spent two and a half years with a grant from the Xunta de Galicia, which allowed me to work on my resilience on a personal level and gave me a lot of independence. Although I was very insecure about leaving Spain and, at the beginning, the adaptation period was a bit harder, the experience taught me what I am capable of and that I can. We can all do it, you just have to try hard enough or with enough desire. In addition, this stay allowed me to see that in Spain we are very well trained compared to the rest of Europe, and that we have a great capacity for work. On a professional level, it allowed me to learn a lot, to work hand in hand with Prof. Syuzanna R. Harutyunyan, a very good scientist worldwide, and also to learn from the Nobel Prize winner Feringa.
Do you find substantial differences in research careers inside and outside Galicia?
R.R.– In general in Spain, we do very long theses compared to Europe, which means that outside Spain they don't get as solid a training as here. In my case, it was five years of bachelor's degree, one year of master's degree and five years of thesis, approximately eleven years. In Europe it is shortened to six or seven years on average, so it is more efficient outside Spain in terms of time, but not in terms of training.
M.C.– In terms of training, in the Netherlands for example, at the end of their four-year degree (as opposed to five-year degree of Spain) they have a six-month training period that is crucial for deciding what you want to do next. Also, Dutch students know that when they finish their degree they will have a job, so if you decide to do a thesis it is because you want to, you don't do a thesis just to try or because you can't find a job in the industry. Also, the salary is much higher than in Spain. It is true that I selected the Xunta de Galicia’s grant because it allowed me to return, which I think is a strategic grant because if we invest thousands and thousands of euros in a person (in my case the Ministry financed my entire education), it is necessary to allow that person to return to Galicia and give back what was invested in them. To do the opposite and export talent and resources is something that should not be part of a country's strategy.
Strengths you would highlight of the Centre for Young Researchers
R.R. – CiQUS is a relatively new centre and the facilities are state-of-the-art. There are not many places that have facilities and infrastructures as good as these. Little by little CiQUS has grown exponentially and the average quality of the work that comes out of here is really good. In addition, you also stand out as a resource recruiter because it has eleven ERCs, which makes it the first in Galicia and one of the best in Spain..
M.C.– I did my thesis in Vigo, but I came to CiQUS because it is a world-renowned centre. This centre has a lot of prestige because of the quality of the work and that always helps and is strategic, not only to get funding, but also to learn from the best. I hope to be able to establish collaborations internally at CiQUS during these years of return, because my professional field has a lot to offer to researchers who are working at the experimental level: we can mutually benefit from each other.
What does the Xunta de Galicia's talent development programme you joined mean to you?
R.R – For me, the main advantage of the Xunta's programme is that, with a thorough evaluation, if you have a good group to stay with and a good group to return to, it is accessible. It allows you to go abroad for two years and return to Galicia for a year, enough time to evaluate your future career.
M.C. – The Xunta's grant is a unique opportunity to see how things are done abroad and to learn a lot, and then apply it in the return stage. For me, the year of return was a psychological lifeline because the stay abroad has a limit of time, and that gives you strength because beginnings are never easy and not everything always goes well, although with effort the stay usually turns out well and productive.
What challenges do you set yourself for the future in the short and medium term?
R.R. – It's very clear to me that I'm not moving from Galicia or Spain. I wouldn't sacrifice my life for research: going abroad means losing all your family roots and personal relationships. I will try to continue my career in Galicia or Spain by applying to the Ramón y Cajal programme or to European calls such as the Starting Grant but I prefer quality of life and if I have to change my way, I will.
M.C. – I would like to have a career in research: I like what I do, I like teaching and I like researching. I think I'm in the right place. I'm going to fight for a Ramón y Cajal grant and I'm going to try to get European funding (ERC) in future. That's what I aspire to. And I would like to do it in Spain, but I am not going to give up everything to stay here either. I think this is the most important lesson, or one of the most important, that the postdoc gave me: in Spain we do good science but there are other places where very good research is also done and where people who want to work, who have ideas and where they are valued. So, if my country don't value me, I will go where they want me.
