Education and Training
Education and training activities are an important component of the CONNECT-NM partnership and a Task of the project is dedicated to their organization.
The objective is to contribute to improve the quality of education and training of nuclear materials specialists and to train a generation of young nuclear materials science experts in the innovative methodologies developed in the Partnership. This will be done in a coordinated manner across the EU, in collaboration with existing nuclear education networks.
The Education & Training activities of CONNECT-NM rely on four main pillars:
Online Training
A portfolio of basic and specialised online training courses in the field of nuclear materials research, developed through existing initiatives (e.g. European projects, IAEA, OECD-NEA, or CONNECT-NM partners), is being established and reviewed. A synthesis of the available training opportunities will be made available to the wider nuclear materials community. Gaps in the current training offer will be identified based on the needs of partners and stakeholders, and additional training will be proposed in the identified areas.
Mobility
A mobility programme for young researchers in the field of nuclear materials is organised in collaboration with, or in addition to, specific European initiatives. This programme will make use of the network and resources of the European Nuclear Education Network (ENEN). CONNECT-NM will also support access to dedicated infrastructures associated with nuclear materials science through the partnership’s involvement in the European project OFFERR.
Finally, information on available mobility programmes will be gathered and made available to CONNECT-NM partners, enabling them to make the most of these opportunities.
Young Researcher Network
CONNECT-NM has created a Young Researcher Network to foster dialogue between the Partnership’s established scientific and technical community in nuclear materials and early-career researchers (PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, young professionals, and eventually MSc students). This network also contributes to building long-lasting connections between future professionals across the various areas of the nuclear materials field, thereby supporting their integration into the wider nuclear materials community.
Workshops and other online events will be organised for young researchers. Young researchers are actively involved in the management of workshops and the organisation of events.
Schools
Summer Schools, i.e. short educational events, are organised every year to make students and early-career researchers aware of the latest advances in the field and to enable exchanges with senior scientists.
These schools are organised, as far as possible, in collaboration with European projects and associations (SNETP, EERA, etc.), as well as international organisations (IAEA, OECD/NEA, etc.) and dedicated infrastructures (e.g. the Jules Horowitz Reactor consortium).