The ISEKI_Food network vision about the future of the PhD studies in FS&T

Currently, most European and non-European countries are facing changes in their doctoral programs. These changes are partly driven by the new European guidelines and by the uncertain future which surrounds this career. In light of this scenario, the role of the research/doctoral schools is underlined, the importance of innovative structures to meet the future challenges is highlighted and the development of interdisciplinary training and transferable skills are being promoted to meet the needs of the wider employment market. These changes are still in progress and our Thematic Network ISEKI_Food has been carrying out some activities to better understand “the state of the art” of PhD studies in Food Science and Technology.The objective of this presentation is to evaluate the contribution of PhD studies in training food industry employees, research scientists and practitioners and also, to identify the most desirable specific and soft skills (linked to employability of doctoral graduates) that the PhD students should acquire at the end of their studies to face the changes in the labour market.To this aim, specific surveys were developed by the working group “Third cycle studies” (WG5) under the framework of the EC-funded ISEKI_Food 4 project. Some of the most relevant results and conclusions will be pointed out in this presentation.Speaker: Chelo González received her PhD  in 1999 and she is currently a full professor in Food Science and Technology disciplines at the School of Agricultural Engineering and Environment of Universitat Politecnica of Valencia (UPV) (Spain), on the eastern coast of Mediterranean. She is the coordinator of the doctoral program in Food Science, Technology and Management at UPV since 2010. She is the author of more than 46 research papers, 13 book chapters and 109 presentations. Her research activity is carried out at the Institute of Food Engineering for the Development at UPV and has been focused mainly in the physicochemical aspects of food and food processing, development of fermented vegetables milks and bioactive films and packaging materials incorporating natural for food preservation. She has participated in several European projects, where currently is co-coordinator of a Work Package.Moderator: Velitchka Gotcheva from the University of Food Technologies, Plovdiv, Bulgaria. The full presentation and the recording of the session can only be accessed by IFA-members. Non IFA-members can ask for access against a small handling fee of 30 € at office [AT] iseki-food [dot] net