
ICMAB Training Programs
Training for the ICMAB staff
A well-established protocol is applied anytime a new person joins or leaves the institute. In the case of entrance, the training consists of:
- IT Security test
- Hygiene and Safety course and test
Apart from that, other training that our staff can apply for include:
- CSIC Training courses
- Yearly Medical check-up
- Gender Equality training seminars and workshops
- Emotional Intelligence & Stress Management Training

Scientific training for our researchers

ICMAB Periodical Lectures

Invited Seminars
Transferable skills for our researchers beyond science: bibliographic and documentation tools, intellectual property rights, effective meetings and negotiation, English courses, etc.

Technical Days
These are one-day thematic workshops devoted to one of the experimental techniques available at the ICMAB Scientific Equipment Platforms and addressed to all our research staff. International experts and researchers from the ICMAB and surrounding institutes and universities give pedagogical and informative lectures that serve as an introduction to the fundamentals of the technique and its capabilities and applications. The workshops organized so far include:
- Proximity Microscopies
- X-ray Diffraction
- Spectroscopy (including NMR, EPR, Raman)
- Transmission Electron Microscopy
- Computational methods and Modeling
- Magnetometry
- Clean Room Nanofabrication Techniques

Research Line Workshops
Every year, a different RL organizes a workshop, typically of 2 days, that features international invited speakers, and gives PhD and postdoc fellows the opportunity to present their research and exposes them to a stimulating international environment.

Complementary skills
Transferable skills for our researchers beyond science: bibliographic and documentation tools, intellectual property rights, effective meetings and negotiation, English courses, etc.
ICMAB Doctoral Program
TRAINING
SUMMER SCHOOLS
BNC-b PhD MEETING
ATTENDANCE TO CONFERENCES AND TRAVEL GRANTS
INDIVIDUAL MENTORING PROGRAM
Every PhD candidate will be assigned a mentor (permanent ICMAB researcher from a different Research Unit) that will guide the PhD fellow with all issues that go beyond the scientific day-to-day of the PhD Thesis. These include, but are not limited to:
- Relation with the supervisor and quality of the supervision received
- Monitoring of the PhD Thesis progress
- Monitoring of the Career Development Plan
- “What’s next” orientation
The PhD candidate and the mentor will formally meet every three months and additional informal meetings will take place as often as needed
CAREER DEVELOPMENT PLAN (CPD)
Every PhD fellow will have a personalized CDP, designed together between the supervisor and the PhD candidate, which will include:
- Details on the scientific project
- The timeline of training
- Secondments to other institutions
- Contacts with industrial partners
- List of skills to be obtained during training
- Activities tracking
- Objectives monitoring
- Quality assessment
SCIENTIFIC STAY ABROAD
The international mobility of PhD candidates will be implemented to specifically boost scientific interactions with other internationally renowned research centers in the materials science and related fields.
COMPLEMENTARY AND TRANSFERABLE SKILLS TRAINING
Courses on career development skills will be designed and organized to focus on:
- Scientific writing
- Project Management and Career Development Plan
- Open Science and Data Management
- Communication, dissemination and presentation skills
- Training in health and safety issues
- Leadership, intellectual property rights and entrepreneurship and Innovation
Apart from the training received at the ICMAB, PhD candidates will be encouraged to take part in the existing courses offered by other universities, such as the UAB, UB or UPC
Milestones (MS) for the PhD
Milestones requested by the ICMAB. The University Programme in which you are enrolled (UAB, UB, UPC…) may have other milestones and requirements for your yearly PhD evaluation.

YEAR 1
During this year, the main tasks of the PhD candidate are to be introduced to laboratory work and to begin the literature search to know the state-of-the-art of the research.
- MS1: Career Development Plan (CDP)

YEAR 2
During this year, the PhD candidate is efficient at practical laboratory working, and starts evaluating and publishing the own scientific results. It is important in this year to start networking and presenting the own research in conferences, as well as learning new skills in technical days or workshops.
- MS2: Attend a certain number of Seminars and Periodical Lectures organized by the ICMAB and other surrounding centers.
- MS3: Attend at least one conference of your field and present your research in a poster or oral presentation.

YEAR 3
By the end of this year, the writing of the PhD Thesis takes place, as well as the defense of the PhD Thesis. Before that, it is the best opportunity to take complementary skills training and perform research stays to broaden up the expertise and contacts.
- MS4: Attend at least one workshop of your research field
- MS5: Attend at least one complementary skill training course
- MS6: Attend at least one summer school on your research field
- MS7: Perform one research stay (if possible)