All first-year students in the MIT Portugal Bio-Engineering Advanced Study program undergo nine-week laboratory rotations during the spring term. This overlaps with their participation in BioTeams—in which each of several teams of students develop a go-to-market strategy for a promising technology brought to them by MIT Portugal affiliate companies. (Read more about MIT Portugal BioTeams.) Most of the host laboratories are in the participating engineering schools of the Bio-Engineering program; this spring, as a new initiative, three students will also spend nine-week rotations in the biodiesel laboratory of SGC Energia, a new Research Affiliate company of the MIT Portugal Program. MIT Portugal interviewed Filipe Gracio and Roberto Gallardo Marusich, two students conducting their lab rotation at the Department of Biological Engineering at the University of Minho, about the opportunities and challenges inherent in juggling both activities. We also spoke with Dr. Manuela Gomes, who supervises another Bio-Engineering student, António Vicente.MPP: How do the lab rotations complement your coursework in the fall term? FG: The coursework in the fall was good—it allowed me to learn about many different topics. And now the lab rotation gives me an opportunity to focus on topics of my own choice that up to this time had only been briefly addressed. Furthermore, instead of just having classes, I get to be involved hands-on in a specific project that is to my liking. It’s a nice change. RGM: Undoubtedly, experimental work is important in a PhD program in bioengineering, and through the lab rotations, I am able to apply the knowledge I acquired during my undergraduate and master’s studies, which was reinforced during the coursework in the fall. I feel that the coursework was very appropriate, and was closely related to the options we had for the lab rotations. I am currently collaborating in a PhD project related to microalgae. Even though this something new for me, it follows the principles of biochemical engineering that we covered in our coursework. MPP: How is it to combine your lab rotation work with the virtual teamwork on BioTeams? RGM: In our case, the fact that two of us are in Braga has been very helpful. But since one of the members of our bio team is doing the lab rotation in Lisbon, we regularly have ‘virtual’ meetings. It has been an interesting experience. Although sometimes all of us have met in Braga, this has not always been possible, due to the large workload we have during this semester. Therefore, tools like Skype are very useful in helping us to work in an efficient way. FG: On the one hand, it’s not easy to work simultaneously on two different projects of the magnitude of the lab rotation and the BioTeams. The truth is that each of them requires a lot of work and attention. But on the other hand, it is nice to be able to take a step back from the lab rotation and work on something different for a while. As for the fact that my friends and team members are in different cities, that is simply addressed by weekly online meetings using Skype. At the beginning, I thought the virtual meetings would be more of a problem. But so far they have worked out better than I expected. MPP: What do you most appreciate about the lab rotations? FG: Again, it is nice to get some work done on specific projects after one semester of classes and class work. I have my own small project, and that feels good. Also, the lab rotations are a very nice way of meeting the faculty members, the labs and the PIs we are working with. During the first semester we met them briefly, but a two-month opportunity to work with them is really different, and much appreciated. RGM: What I most appreciate about the lab rotation is the opportunity to know about the work that is being done in the universities. And since I am from Chile, this is a good opportunity to be in touch with the Portuguese scientific community. I think that somehow this will be useful as I decide what I want to do for my PhD theses, both in terms of the subject an how to develop it. Manuela Gomes is the supervisor of António Vicente’s work on a project titled “Generation of vascular-like structures by encapsulation of endothelial cells (or precursor cells) in hollow polymeric fibers.” MPP: How do these student rotations compare to those of students in "typical" Portuguese research PhD programs? The students enrolled in the MIT Portugal Program are able to choose different subjects and labs. Therefore, they have the unique opportunity to work in different environments for some time. This will enable them to better choose their research area/lab to carry out their PhD research, since they obtain a different perspective from each specific area. Furthermore, the students get to know other students and researchers, and obtain a better insight of the research going on in different institutions. MPP: What are some of the ways these rotations prepare students to work with industry or pursue technological innovation? The students enrolled in the MIT Portugal Program, when compared to students enrolled in other programs, are trained specifically to pursue technological innovation and to seek out opportunities within different research fields. From this perspective, MIT Portugal students doing lab rotations in institutions that have privileged contacts with industry will definitely be better prepared to understand and identify possibilities when it comes to carrying out translational research that leads to industrial applications. Note: Roberto Gallardo Marusich is supervised by António Augusto Vicente and José Teixeira at the University of Minho. Filipe Gracio is supervised by Isabel Rocha and Lígia Rodrigues (faculty members at DEB-UM). Manuela Gomes is a faculty member at the University of Minho (the 3B’s group: Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biometrics) and supervises MIT Portugal student António Vicente.  António Vicente  Filipe Grácio  Roberto Gallardo | 
