RMIT: RMIT set to lead a €9 million innovative global doctoral training program in Europe
Taking the top spot with a score of 99% out of over 66 funding proposals in Europe, a €9 million RMIT European Doctoral Innovators (REDI) COFUND proposal has been approved for funding by the European Commission.
The REDI doctoral training program, which is funded through the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) COFUND grants scheme, will be led by RMIT Europe and support 41 new PhD positions with academic and industry partners in Europe.
The successful award will significantly boost research links between Europe and Australia through industry-linked doctoral training positions in business, arts and sciences.
PhDs will be dual awarded by RMIT and the project’s academic partners, with the establishment of these multiple co-supervision agreements expected to generate many more collaborative PhDs long after REDI concludes.
RMIT Europe’s Executive Director Marta Fernandez said the five-year program offers unique intercontinental and intersectoral doctoral training opportunities for early-stage researchers.
“We will be working with a network of 24 academic partners across 11 countries,” she said.
“PhD students will also spend time on placements with the program’s 40+ industry partners in Europe as well as complete a 12-month secondment at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia.
“An annual gathering at RMIT Europe in Barcelona will serve to bond the community of multidisciplinary and multicultural researchers through engagement in transversal skills and training workshops, among other activities,” Fernandez said.
“This is a tremendous program that will enable early-stage researchers to gain a wealth of intersectoral skills, experiences and relationships that will catapult them into their chosen research careers.”
RMIT researchers who contributed to the impressive successful funding award and who will also supervise the PhD students include Associate Professor Andrey Molotnikov, Professor Anne-Laure Mention, Distinguished Professor Arnan Mitchell, Dr Daniel Lester, Associate Professor Elizabeth Grant, Professor Flora Salim, Dr Gerrit De Waal, Professor Ivan Cole, Associate Professor Jenny Zhang, Professor John Fien, Professor John Thangarajah, Professor Laurene Vaughan, Distinguished Professor Leslie Yeo, Professor Mark Easton, Dr Mauro Baracco, Distinguished Professor Milan Brandt, Associate Professor Nitin Mantri, Professor Pier Marzocca and Professor Xun Yi.