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That brain factory Spanish is in the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), halfway between the Faculty of Physics and of Math, is no longer a secret. There, about thirty students begin each month in September to study the double degree that combines these two sciences and whose cut-off mark is the highest in the whole country, a 13,875 out of 14. Practically an A.
And it is precisely this requirement that has meant that, for more than ten years – the double degree was offered for the first time in 2011—, this university center attracts the brightest minds from all over the national territory.
The question, obviously, does not stop there. And it is that after finishing this degree, for what according to the university students who study it, perseverance is necessary and dedicate practically all day to study, the working market it waits with endless possibilities for the thirty students who finish these two races each year. And that is where the questions arise. Where do the spanish brains? Why are these graduates raffled off? What conditions do they have at work?
The best example to find out is Angel Lopez Corps. He is 25 years old and two years ago he finished the double degree in Physics and Mathematics at the UCM. López Corps says that, after finishing the degree, the university students either choose to continue training with a master’s degree and then start the doctorate, or they choose to only do it first and then accept an offer from the private sector. In other words, they are torn between a scientific career or working in a company.
Quantum statistics
Esther Cruz is studying for her doctorate in Germany.
Angel chose the first option. He studied a master’s degree in Theoretical Physics in 2020, as he realized that “he liked more to use the tools of mathematics to solve physical problems.” And now he is in his second year of his doctorate at Complutense. “The branch of physics that I research is quantum statistics. I study how a quantum state behaves when you take it out of equilibrium and let it evolve. I try to solve fundamental questions that may have a technological application immediate “, explains this doctoral student, in conversation with EL ESPAÑOL.
Where would you like to work in the future? Over time, and after some postdoctoral stays that he plans to carry out, Ángel hopes to be able to stabilize in a research center or at the university. Similar is the plan Esther Cruz (25), classmate of his class and who, for two years, has been based in Munich, Germany.
“In fourth grade, I did Erasmus in Munich and I really liked the system they had there. So I finished my double degree again and left. I studied a master’s degree in physics at the Ludwig Maximiliam University (Munich). And in today’s world I am doing my doctorate at the Max-Planck Institute for Quantum Optics, in Ignacio Cirac’s theory group, also in Munich, on quantum computing “, says Cruz.
What this young woman is investigating are quantum algorithms; a new computing paradigm in which instead of doing calculations with computers, it tries to do them with electrons or atoms. It does not seem easy, but he is clear that it is his thing and that, while he can, he will continue to dedicate himself to such research in the Germanic country.
Private company
Esther and Ángel were the 50 percent of their class, they say, who chose a scientific career. But what about the rest? They chose the second option. “Most of them did a master’s degree in Big Data or related to Mathematical Engineering and immediately found work in private companies,” says Ángel. And if there is a safe choice for a safe and well-paid job in the area of Mathematics and Physics, it is in private companies.
Is what holds Sara alvarez, Director of Talent Attraction at Adecco. “The profile of these graduates is very transversal and for this reason it is demanded by multinationals, medium-sized companies, start-ups … They are very attractive careers because at the educational level the graduates are focused on very important trends such as the world of data. They are mathematicians linked to technology and have great value, for example, in areas of quality, the sector farma…”.
Also in the consulting sector, says Ángel López. “These companies are looking for profiles that know how to solve statistical problems, optimization of resources … and all this in a creative way. Requirements that we acquire in this double degree, we have a lot of mathematical baggage,” he says.
Meanwhile, this great job offer is also accompanied by good economic conditions. A junior profile starts with a net salary of 21,000 euros per year, but with two years of experience it can already reach 30,000. And after five, the 40.000.
Astronaut
Ismael Nogal, university student.
While these are the most realistic job opportunities for these graduates, the range of possibilities is vast and many students have even higher aspirations. This is the case, for example, of Isamel Nogal Ayuso (20), in the second year. In a recent interview with this newspaper, he said that since childhood he always had one thing clear, a dream: to be able to be an astronaut one day.
And the truth is that, for the moment, it is going in the right direction. “I want to be an astronaut and I got here to enhance my skills. To this day, I continue to work for it. The European Space Agency (ESA) recently put out job offers. You need a degree, a master’s degree and a year of internships in the scientific field. My goal is that, to be able to dedicate myself to this. And if the opportunity is given me, I will go to infinity and beyond, “said this university student, laughing.
Be that as it may, what is clear is that accessing this double degree is synonymous with success; and to get, in some cases, a job that perhaps very few can dream of. Hence, it is so correct to call both faculties of the Complutense, the Spanish brain factory.
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Reference-www.elespanol.com