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12 Jan 2023, 13:20
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Newsletter for PhD students and Postdocs
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Dear PhD students and Postdocs,
last September, we invited you to the launch of a new interesting programme for PhD students - MUNI Mendel Doctorandus. The introduction took place on PhD Day 2022. It was the start of the programme, which in its first "trial" semester attracted 45 applicants across faculties and institutes based mainly at the Bohunice campus. Based on the documents sent by the applicants, the MMD committee approved 43 PhD students to be enrolled in the programme.
As part of the programme, MMD students attended interdisciplinary professional lectures, developed new soft skills or attended internships abroad. Programme's first semester is slowly coming to an end, and it is time to inform you about the next round of the admission procedure. If you are interested in joining the MMD programme, please upload your application dossier by January 23, 2023, via the form on the MMD website.
The MMD Committee will then review your application, and you will be notified of the decision by February 2, 2023.
If you have any questions about the programme, I recommend reading the FAQ or the main document or other relevant information, which can be found on the website about the MUNI Mendel Doctorandus.
If you do not find answers to your questions there, do not hesitate to contact me directly: noskova@sci.muni.cz
I wish you success in your application and look forward to seeing you at the MMD Club!
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What does it mean to be part of the MMD programme?
"The inter-faculty MUNI Mendel Doctorandus Programme supports active students and motivates their supervisors to provide the students with stable financial support. Its participants attend interdisciplinary lectures and soft skills courses, and their PhD defences are international. This “extra work” of theirs is recognised with a formal certificate, which gives them an advantage when looking for their next job“ explains the Vice-Dean for Doctoral Studies Prof. Bláha in an interview (full article here).
What are the responsibilities of the MMD student?
In practice, this means that a student admitted to the MMD programme is expected to take a minimum of 8 hours of interdisciplinary courses each semester. Take advantage of the MMD administrator's offer or attend lectures outside of MU. In addition, students are required to complete at least 8 hours of soft skills activities within one academic year. These activities, as well as the interdisciplinary lessons, are recorded by the student and submitted in a semestral report, which is the basis for the student's evaluation and subsequent staying in the programme. The report also includes confirmation of the doctoral student's minimum monthly income and the supervisor's assessment of their work during the past semester.
Also, it is then a pleasant "obligation" for MMD students to complete an internship abroad of a minimum 3-month in another country. The reward for students is deepening their interdisciplinary links, networking, and acquiring soft skills - i.e. deepening the prerequisites for their future careers.
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The MMD Success Story
The MMD student Mgr. Martin Toul from the Loschmidt Laboratories, RECETOX, Faculty of Science, presents his breakthrough, A discovery that could revolutionize lighting.
Read the whole article here.
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We asked enrolled MMD students what they consider to be the main advantages of the programme:
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Mgr. Tomáš Brom from NCBR sees the programme's main benefit in information support and the opportunity to develop his soft skills. "How would I describe MMD? I have never received so many emails, what different seminars and lectures I can attend in a week. You just have to choose. But what I see as the biggest benefit is the support for soft-skills development. These are, in my opinion, essential for us PhD students and are under-represented in our studies."
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Mgr. Kamil Sobek from the Department of Geological Sciences answers this question. “I am surprised by the variety and offer of all kinds of educational courses and lectures available to students and thanks to MMD, I have them “all served on a silver platter”. There is simply no such thing as boredom at Masaryk University in Brno.” He says that “The first semester has given me the opportunity to attend several lectures that have fundamentally influenced the direction I want to take after completing my PhD. The MMD is a great tool to get to know local and international experts from different institutions who provide valuable information and are happy to help you further personal and professional development.”
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Our Tip for Your Interdisciplinary Education
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For the eighth year, the prestigious interdisciplinary seminar, focusing mainly on biomedical disciplines, continues at the Bohunice University Campus. However, the fields of botany or zoology, for example, are not excluded, and the seminar become still broader in scope and focus. The main idea behind the seminar was the need to deepen interdisciplinary links, networking and, last but not least, the ambition to bring "current" science to Brno, where it would be shared with students and PI's across the disciplines. Due to its interdisciplinary focus, the seminar was also added to the recommended activities in a new study programme for talented PhD students - MUNI Mendel Doctorandus. Thanks to this connection, the Life Science Seminar Series continues to bring high-quality experts from around the world to our university.
And what can we look forward to in the spring semester? For example, Dr. Anne Laudisoit (USA) or Prof. Bjorn Schumacher (Germany) will present their papers. See LSS website for more details.
The Life Science Seminars take place every Thursday of the semester. They are complemented by lectures from the Mendel Lectures series, which brings the stars of world science, including Nobel Prize winners, to Brno to present their work to MU students.
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Conferences for PhD and Postdocs
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Sites we recommend to follow:
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