The academic year 2022/2023 marks the end of the first complete cycle of doctoral programmes at the University of Gdańsk's doctoral schools, established over four years ago. Ricard Ravell Rodríguez was the first doctoral student at UG to receive a doctoral degree through the doctoral school mode.
The UG offers training in four doctoral schools: the Doctoral School of Natural Sciences, the Doctoral School of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Intercollegiate Doctoral School of Biotechnology of the University of Gdańsk and the Medical University of Gdańsk, and the Doctoral School of Quantum Information Theory.
Here is a summary of the doctoral training course in the Doctoral School of the Humanities and Life Sciences in the 2022/2023 academic year.
Forty-five doctoral students in the 2022/2023 academic year began their training in the Doctoral School of Natural Sciences UG in one of five disciplines: biological sciences (13 students), chemical sciences (16), physical sciences (7), mathematics (3), earth and environmental sciences (6). As of July 2023, the school's total number of students is 166.
'This year has been an exceptional one, with the first full stage of doctoral training completed, and on July 6, the UG Physical Sciences Discipline Council awarded a young researcher, Ricardo Ravell Rodríguez, a doctoral degree in the discipline of physical sciences for his thesis entitled. "Different levels of approximation in quantum open systems and their applications", written under the supervision of prof. dr hab. Michal Horodecki from the International Centre for Quantum Theory (ICTQT),' says the Director of the Doctoral School of Natural Sciences UG prof. dr hab. Adam Prahl.
The curriculum of the UG Doctoral School of Natural Sciences includes subjects implemented throughout the school ('The Art of Presentation', 'Occupational Health and Safety', 'Information Sources and Information Management', 'Philosophy of Science', 'Doctoral workshops', 'English’, 'Commercialisation of research', 'Protection of intellectual property') and subjects within the disciplines ('Creation of scientific texts', 'Research project management', 'Research workshop', 'Doctoral seminar', 'Doctoral thesis', 'Teaching practice', 'Reporting session').
How did the past year go for students?
'The academic year 2022/2023 proved to be an extremely unique and groundbreaking year for us. For the first time in the school's history, we were privileged to observe the defence of our colleagues. This is a significant achievement and a testament to the effectiveness of our education programme. What's more, this year we have fine-tuned key developments in doctoral training that will undoubtedly benefit future teaching,' says mgr Mateusz Adam Baluk of the School of Doctoral Studies in Science and Life Sciences. 'The important contribution of the Doctoral School's Council cannot be overlooked, which not only represented and protected the rights of our doctoral students but also played a key role in co-organising the international Baltic Chemistry Conference or the 3rd Young Science Congress at the University of Gdańsk. We hope the coming years will bring even more positive changes and a continuation of the fruitful cooperation within the Doctoral School.'