The Center for Research in Information and Communication Technologies (CITIC) of the UDC continues to strengthen and increase the attraction of international talent for the development of ICT in areas such as biomedicine and ecology. On this occasion it does so through the European 3i-ICT program, the first awarded to a Galician institution with the support of the EU through Horizon 2020-MSCA-COFUND.

In the framework of this project, 8 people will be hired in pre-doctoral stage, four of which have been selected in the first call and are currently working on their theses, while the other four will join the center soon through the second call. For their recruitment, CITIC has the financial support of the Xunta de Galicia, which through the Department of Culture, Education, Vocational Training and Universities approved last week the collaboration agreement with the University of A Coruña to co-finance the recruitment. The budget allocated by the Galician Government to this program exceeds 560,000 euros until 2026 and can be used to co-finance contracts or supplements to cover associated expenses such as stays in other centers or enrollment in training courses or conferences, among others.

The European 3i-ICT program has generated great interest in its two calls, with CITIC receiving more than a hundred applications from all over the world, highlighting the proposals received from Asia (more than half), followed by Europe, America and Africa. This is highlighted by the director of the center, Manuel F. Penedo, who stressed that “attracting talent is essential for our research center, as each of them enriches our environment and propels us to the forefront of research and allows us to address global challenges. From CITIC we are focused on creating an environment conducive for talent to thrive and grow, fostering international collaborations and professional development opportunities.”

By research areas, Artificial Intelligence and Data Science and Engineering (CID) have attracted the most interest, followed by High Performance Computing and Intelligent Services and Networks. In addition, the theses to be developed by the 4 new hires have as cross-cutting areas of study ecology, biomedical sciences, pharmacology and social psychology.

Innovative international doctoral program

The 3-i ICT (International, Interdisciplinary and Intersectorial Doctoral Program in Information and Communication Technologies) is an innovative international doctoral program that offers eight scholarships to predoctoral research personnel to carry out their studies at the Center for Research in Information and Communication Technologies (CITIC) of the University of A Coruña. It is supported by the European Union through Horizon 2020 under a Marie Sklodowska-Curie agreement (H2020-MSCA-COFUND), which provides funding for regional, national and international training and professional development programs through co-funding mechanisms. In addition, the 3i-i ICT is co-funded by the Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Universidades of the Xunta de Galicia.

At the end of May of this year, the first three thesis projects of the eight foreseen in this European program were presented, which offers a broad training in research and transfer skills and will provide a solid competitive advantage in the professional development of the participants. Models for the prevention of arthritis, natural language processing and wireless virtual sensors have been the focus of these first works of the 3i-ICT.