This morning, Gemma Geis, Minister for Research and University, visited the UIC Barcelona Sant Cugat Campus accompanied by the rector, Dr Alfonso Méndiz, and at certain points of the tour by the three deans of the faculties that call the Campus home: Dr Albert Balaguer, dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences; Dr Lluís Giner, dean of the Faculty of Dentistry; and Dr Esther Jiménez, dean of the Faculty of Education Sciences.
On the occasion of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, the Minister was able to see first-hand the research being carried out at the University, as well as the innovative facilities that make up the campuses, accommodating quality research, teaching and knowledge transfer.
Throughout the visit, Geis visited the main areas of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, the Faculty of Dentistry and the Faculty of Education Sciences. Dr Lluís Giner, dean of the Faculty of Dentistry, heads up teaching at the University Dental Clinic, which has more than 88 booths equipped with the latest technology and which sees more than 82,000 patients each year. The delegation was then able to see the Faculty of Education Sciences’ new classrooms, accompanied by Dr Esther Jiménez, dean of the Faculty and vice-rector of the University Community.
The visit continued on to Support – University Psychology and Psychiatry Clinic, where first-year students from the Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology were taking part in a practical lesson. Dr Albert Balaguer, dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, then showed the Minister around the Comprehensive Centre for Advanced Simulation, one of the most prominent spaces on Campus. This facility spans 1,000 m² and reproduces settings at all levels of care, including primary care, hospital care, social health care and mental health.
Subsequently, the group visited the Biomedical Sciences and Bioengineering laboratories, where they saw the main lines of research being undertaken in these two fields. The Sant Cugat Campus visit concluded at the Cuides UIC Barcelona clinic.
From the Sant Cugat Campus, the institutional visit moved on to the Barcelona Campus, where the director of the UIC Barcelona School of Architecture and the four deans of the faculties on the Barcelona Campus (the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, the Faculty of Law, the Faculty of Communication Sciences and the Faculty of Humanities) greeted Minister Geis.
During her visit on the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, the Minister was able to corroborate the presence of women at UIC Barcelona, where female bachelor’s degree and postgraduate students represent 63.5% of the student body (2020-2021 academic year). As for teaching and research staff, 51% of researchers at UIC Barcelona are women who participate in research groups in fields such as the social and legal sciences (69%), the health sciences (57%), the arts and humanities (50%) engineering and architecture (26%). In addition to these figures, 56% of competitive research projects are led by women. As for the Board of Governors of UIC Barcelona, representation is equal; and of the four vice rectorates, two are led by women.
The Catalan Minister for Research and Universities, Gemma Geis, stressed during her visit to the UIC Barcelona campuses that, despite having an excellent knowledge system, it is necessary that “female researchers are represented at the same level as they are in society”. In this sense, she reiterated that, the Ministry of Research and Universities, in coordination with research centres and universities, “will work tirelessly to make this is possible and make it easier for this talent to be deployed”.
