The IIBM collaborates with the program of the Community of Madrid 4º ESO + company

• The program 4º ESO + company aims to bring the world of work closer to the students of 4th year of Secondary Education (ESO) through educational stays in different companies
• This year, the IIBM has doubled its offer with respect to 2022: three research groups and the "Sebastián Cerdán" biomedical Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) service have welcomed seven students from four different schools in the Community of Madrid

Once again, this year the Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas Alberto Sols, IIBM (CSIC-UAM) participates in the program that the Community of Madrid (CAM) launches to the educational system, in particular to the Secondary Education Institutes (IES), so that students in the 4th year of ESO who request it, can make a stay in a company in the Community.

This activity was initiated more than a decade ago by the Department of Education of the CAM and year after year the number of educational centers that request to participate in this activity increases considerably. Likewise, the number of companies wishing to host students is also increasing.

The CSIC has been collaborating with this program since its beginnings and makes the facilities of its research centers available to students in the 4th year of ESO. The CSIC's aim is to bring science closer to society and to encourage scientific vocations among young people.

Between the months of March and April, the seven students spent a week at the Institute, enjoying the life of the laboratories, the experiments, our installations, etc. Two of these students have even written day by day what they were learning in a twitter thread. They are Daniel Araque Saiz and José de Lucas Fernández Bravo from Colegio San Jaime de Majadahonda who spent a few days in the laboratory of Isabel Sánchez.

Three students from the Lope de Vega School in Alcalá de Henares, Eduardo Velayos Navarro, Naia Gamboa Sáez and Gonzalo Fernández Llarandi, were at the "Sebastián Cerdán " biomedical NMR core unit, learning magnetic resonance techniques with Teresa Navarro and other members of the core unit. A student from the Ramiro Maeztu School was welcomed by María Monsalve, Diego Lomás Sánchez. The last student who was among us was Greta Blas de Paz from IES Isabel la Católica in Madrid. Ángela Martínez Valverde and her team hosted this student. The particularity of this stay was the coincidence with the external diagnostic tests of 4th year of ESO, which were announced later. Greta decided to do both activities: she took the exams at her school first thing in the morning and then came to the Institute, as she did not want to miss the experience of being part of a research laboratory for a few days.

The seven 4th ESO students have stood out for their curiosity, enthusiasm and eagerness to learn. They have greatly enjoyed our scientific environment. The host laboratories have also felt very fortunate to have been able to show a little bit of their science to these excellent students. The IIBM hopes that in 2024 there will be a greater number of research groups that want to join this instructive program, in order to bring our work closer to young students and promote scientific careers in Biomedicine.