Specific activities of the PhD programme in Vision Sciences
Refresher seminars on research in ophthalmology and vision sciences, and other aspects of biomedical research. These are 50-minute talks followed by a colloquium, held on alternate Wednesdays from 16:30 to 17:30 between October and June each year. See calendar.
Welcome seminar for new doctoral students each year, in which the members of the Academic Committee present the programme, its professors and activities. In addition, a doctoral student in their final year and a graduate of the programme will talk about their doctoral experience and present their thesis and its relation to their current work, respectively.
A group of doctoral students, selected in their second or third year of enrolment in the programme, will give a short presentation on the progress of their doctoral thesis. A panel, made up of three lecturers from the programme together with the coordinator, will select the best presentation, which will receive a diploma and a small prize.
The International Congress of Research in Retina and Vision (SIREV), held every two years alternately with the SIREV-Joven international congress, is the interuniversity training activity specific to this doctorate program, attracting the participation of all the organizing universities. It is specifically aimed at predoctoral and postdoctoral researchers and serves as a meeting point for all participants in this interuniversity doctorate program, including both faculty and students, and those in both clinical and basic training.
Attendance (due to the interest of the topic) or participation (presentation of communications) by doctoral candidates in national and international Conferences, Workshops, or Symposia in fields related to their doctoral thesis is of particular interest for their training. Therefore, doctoral candidates in the programme will be encouraged to participate in these events whenever possible. It will be considered a training activity whenever it has the approval of the supervisor and tutor.
Whenever possible, considering the employment situation of the doctoral candidates, their participation in the periodic meetings of the research group in which they are involved for the development of their doctoral thesis will be encouraged. In any case, it is expected that they hold regular in-person or online meetings with their supervisor and tutor.
Whenever possible, taking into account the personal and professional situations of the doctoral candidates, the completion of a stay in a prestigious research centre, preferably in another country, will be encouraged. This will allow the doctoral candidates to interact with other researchers who are developing related or complementary research lines. The duration of the stays will preferably be 3 months to facilitate the application for the international mention of the doctoral thesis.
A workshop related to emotion management during doctoral training will be organised periodically. As more and more scientific studies indicate the high percentage of researchers who experience anxiety and/or depression during their doctoral training, these workshops will address topics such as identifying and managing emotions, the relationship between thoughts, emotions, and behaviours, and relaxation techniques.