Two University of Victoria scientists are receiving Rubicon grants for research abroad

Research funders NWO and ZonMw are awarding sixteen recently graduated scientists with Rubicon scholarships to gain experience at a foreign knowledge institution. Two lucky ones come from VU.

Rubicon scholarship winners are nine men and seven women. Almost all of them have been going abroad for two years. Seven of them choose the United States, two for the United Kingdom, and the remainder for South Africa, Israel, Canada, Switzerland, Ireland, Portugal and Belgium. Approximately forty percent of applications are approved.

Spinal cord injuries and mental disorders

For example, scientists are looking at how to recreate human bones using a 3D printer, how memories are stored in the brain, and how you can create ultra-fast electronic switches. From the University of Victoria, Ines Maldonado La Asuncion will investigate a novel treatment for chronic spinal cord injury and Evert Boonstra will lay a new foundation for research into psychiatric disorders.

For this third and final round of Rubicon Scholarships in 2022, 42 applications were submitted, of which 38.5 percent received funding. Financiers NWO and ZonMw award about sixty grants each year.

The Rubicon scholarship is very popular. Since 2005, it has been possible for young scientists to go abroad for a year or two. But those who miss him need not despair. Scholarship has not been shown to have a significant impact on academic careers.