Nineteen freshmen and four students who will be writing their theses at Wroclaw Tech have officially started their new semester today. They have all come here to pursue the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree programme in Chemical NanoEngineering (CNE).

For over four years now, our university, along with Aix-Marseille University (France) and Tor Vergata University of Rome (Italy), has been providing education to future specialists in the area of chemical nano-engineering under the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree programme.

The first three semesters are the same for all students, who will spend one semester in each of the cities – Marseille, Wrocław, and Rome. The final semester, on the other hand, will be dedicated to their master's thesis projects, to be completed at one of the partner universities or an affiliated institution.

The second semester of study officially began on Friday at Wrocław Tech’s Faculty of Chemistry.

“The students spent a few recent months in Marseille, where they acquired basic knowledge, mainly in the field of chemistry,” explains one of the project coordinators. Professor of the University Piotr Rutkowski, PhD, Dsc, Eng. “It’s an essential foundation, which they need to now proceed with more advanced work,” he adds.

CNE students will be joining classes in our laboratories on Tuesday to build on what they have lately learned. “This group is very interested in becoming involved in tangible research work, so, certainly, they won’t be bored with us,” assures Professor of the University Elżbieta Zienkiewicz, PhD, Eng. “We have planned many interesting tasks for them. In our laboratories, they will work on the production of ultrathin porous materials that can be used in medicine as drug carriers and polymers that respond to external stimuli, among other things,” she elaborates.

In addition to studying hard in the summer term, everyone will spend eight days in Krobielowice in June. It is there that a summer school is organised for the current first- and second-year students, as well as graduates of CNE. More than 30 people are expected to come this time. “It will be eight days of knowledge-packed classes with photovoltaic cells as the main theme,” says Prof. Elżbieta Zienkiewicz. “In addition to attending workshops and lectures, the participants will also be meeting with their older fellow students to discuss where and how they can then continue their studies at the doctoral level,” she explains. Renowned academics from universities all over the world will teach classes at the summer school. “Prof. Michael Roth from UC Berkeley, a specialist in computer simulations, will be one of them, as well as Professor of the University Robert Zaleśny, PhD, Dsc, Eng., of Wrocław Tech’s Faculty of Chemistry, who will deliver a lecture,” says Prof. Piotr Rutkowski.

Friday's meeting was also attended by Prof. Bogdan Kuchta (Wrocław Tech’s Faculty of Chemistry, Aix-Marseille University), the main coordinator of the programme, and Prof. Szczepan Roszak and Anna Jakubiak-Marcinkowska, PhD, Eng. (both from the Faculty of Chemistry).

It's worth being at Wrocław Tech

This week, CNE students also took part in Orientation Week for new international students. “It’s an excellent opportunity for them to get to know the university and Wrocław and to bond with other foreigners,” says Prof. Piotr Rutkowski. “We plan to take our students to the National Music Forum and on a cruise on the Odra River soon. We are also organising an Italian language course for them because, after all, they will be in Rome in a few months,” he announces.

Each member of this 23-strong group comes from a different country. The freshmen include people from Moldova, Ecuador, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Spain, Pakistan, Mexico, the Philippines, and Nigeria.

Narzaya Ganbat from Mongolia is one of them: “I graduated with a degree in nano-engineering from the Mongolian State University in Ulaanbaatar. I wanted to get ahead in this field, so I started looking for some scholarship opportunities and that's how I came across the CNE degree programme.

This is my first trip abroad, and my first semester in Marseille was a mixture of excitement about the new experience and longing for my family. We mainly covered basic chemistry, and I learned a lot of useful things.

It’s my first time in Poland. What I like about Wrocław is that there are large spaces here. Some of the older buildings remind me of my city, it’s a similar style, so I feel more at home here. I can't wait for springtime as I suppose it will be beautiful here. One of the reasons I decided to do this programme is that I want to gain as many new experiences as possible to help me decide what to do after I graduate.”

There are also four students at the university who have chosen to write their theses at the Faculty of Chemistry. One of them is the Colombian Juan Felipe Alvarado:

“I decided to write my thesis at Wroclaw Tech for two reasons. First, during the summer holidays, I did an internship under the supervision of Prof. Piotr Młynarz from the Faculty of Chemistry, and I’d like to complete the research that I started. And the other aspect I found important was student life. It’s here that you have the best climate for learning and convenient places to work, which makes studying much more enjoyable and comfortable.

I’m currently analysing the dynamics of proteins in the presence of nanoparticles using the nuclear magnetic reside (NMR) spectroscopy technique. I enjoy dealing with this subject, which is why I want to continue my studies in this field during my doctoral studies. I’ve applied to the Johannes Kepler University in Linz and am awaiting a positive outcome of the admission process.

New students to arrive in October Another group of students will start doing this unique course in October 2023. As many as 336 people applied for the seventeen available places. Who will be successful in qualifying for the degree programme will be decided by the admissions committee in its March meeting at Wroclaw Tech.

Here you can find:

programme details           description of courses offered