Three days of networking and learning for PhD students in IRS Transtech
PhD students in Mid Sweden University's international graduate school IRS Transtech gather for three days in Sundsvall. On the agenda are presentations of their research, networking and discussions on common challenges.
The PhD school is run at Mid Sweden University in close collaboration with 16 international partner universities and 18 industrial partners. The project started in 2023 and is funded with over SEK 30 million from the Knowledge Foundation and Mid Sweden University.
IRS Transtech (International Research School in Transformative Technology) focuses on industrial transformation and the development of the sustainable technology, materials and processes of the future. It is a joint initiative from Mid Sweden University's three research centres – STC, FSCN and STRC – and is an important part of the university's strategy to build strong international research networks.
Presenting research
The purpose of the days is to give PhD students tools to develop their research, build networks and discuss horizontal topics that affect research, such as the development and use of AI. Each PhD student presents their research and discusses connections to transformative technologies. At the same time, they receive support in communicating their research and planning their future careers.
"The idea of these days is to give the PhD students that extra something that you may not get through your doctoral studies," says Mattias O'Nils, centre director of the STC Research Center and project manager for the graduate school.
"It's about building networks, broadening expertise and developing individuals to provide the opportunity to influence society with their research.
Valuable meeting place
The PhD students emphasize the value of the days.
"We spend so much time in the laboratories, so it's extremely valuable to meet colleagues. My research focuses on AI and machine learning, and then it is very rewarding to discuss how AI can be used as a tool in other research areas," says Quynh Nguyen Phuong Vu, PhD student in electrical engineering.
Markus Kaarto, PhD student in engineering physics, also highlights the benefits.
"For me, statistics are in focus, but you need data to apply it to. Through these conversations, I gain insight into perspectives and needs I did not know existed. You can't work with statistics alone," he says.
The research management sees great advantages in international collaboration. Collaboration with foreign universities strengthens both the research environment and the quality of research.
IRS Transtech will also contribute to companies and industry partners learning to apply transformative research and development methods. By introducing new process technologies and ways of working, the goal is to contribute to companies becoming more efficient, innovative and sustainable.
Facts: Universities in IRS Transtech
Universities that are part of the collaboration:
- Vienna University, Austria
- Technische Hochschule Ostwestfalen-Lippe (TH OWL), Germany
- University of L'Aquila, Italy
- University of British Columbia, Canada
- University of Salerno, Italy
- Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETH Zurich), Switzerland
- Technische Universität Chemnitz, Germany
- Aalto University, Finland
- National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Pakistan
- University of Eastern Finland, Finland
- École Nationale d'Ingénieurs de Tunis (ENIT), Tunisia
- Newcastle University, United Kingdom
- Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), Spain
- Clemson University, USA
- University of Tampere, Finland
- Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain