Hello.
Hello!
Thank you for accepting our invitation.
First I would like you to introduce yourself,
your home University,
your research area and the doctoral school you belong to.
Fine, my name is Milagros Herrera
and I am from the
National Technological University of Buenos Aires in Argentina.
I am currently doing a jointly supervised thesis at the atmospheric optics laboratory.
My research topic is the estimation of errors
in recovery parameters for an algorithm called Grasp,
using various remote detection instruments.
OK.
And why did you choose
to do your PhD as part of the international joint supervision initiative?
Well, that was partly luck
because when I started my thesis in Argentina, where
a PhD takes five years,
I was already finishing my first year of the PhD
and I went to a conference
where my current research group was taking part,
and so I met them in the "conference" atmosphere.
And the group
suggested I come to the University of Lille
to do a thesis under joint supervision, because the (research) topics in question
were practically the same.
But here, of course,
the thesis is a bit more specific.
And so we repositioned it in line with that proposal.
How did you go about choosing the best partner University
to split your PhD between Lille and your host University?
Well I
started my PhD in Argentina
at the National Technological University
and they already had experience
of jointly supervised PhDs in other countries, including France,
but specifically with the University of Lille it was the first time. And
when we discussed the possibility,
the University of Lille
offered a really attractive environment.
Because here everything is already well looked after.
Things are well organised for starting the joint supervision process
and the University in Argentina signed the papers
and sent them off to the University of Lille.
And it was ....
I already had my University there and there was ...
support
(vocabulary error, helped by Gauthier)
between the two universities to make all of the procedures straightforward.
Ok.
So, can you tell us a bit
about the appeal of doing a PhD under joint supervision
and how you benefited from it?
Yes, okay.
I think there are different aspects,
professional considerations for one.
It's really great because you get the chance
to leave one laboratory
that you know in your own country with
its own work methods
and to be immersed in a different
group, one that is totally new.
Here I find it's a really international group
because for me specifically
I work in a group with people from different countries
and that's part of the experience.
It's
really a fantastic experience
in professional terms, but also personal and ... professional.
It gave me the opportunity to combine
two research groups
and progress with different points of view.
Different worlds, different points of view,
so yes, two different points of view.
And that way,
you can see your thesis from different perspectives,
but also with personal interests.
For me, it was an opportunity for example to learn French.
When I arrived here, I didn't have a word of French.
Now I think it's a good thing
to be able to
benefit from the culture as well through the language.
And I also believe that knowing people from lots of different countries
makes you see things with a bit more openness
That's something I find very appealing.
OK, great, listen, thank you very much.
But I do have one last question for you.
Do you have any advice for future PhD students
to encourage them to do their thesis under the international joint supervision initiative?
Yes, and personally I'm really happy
about this experience, and my advice would be that
you're free to choose, to make choices.
And you know, sometimes
you might think that you're in a situation in a particular environment,
that you already have a University,
but there are different opportunities
everywhere and here for example
is a university that is open to many different countries,
many different people with projects
and associated with different partners too.
And that opens up a lot of opportunities for everyone, all students.
My advice is not to be afraid
to go and ask.
Asking a question isn't intrusive, quite the opposite.
It's about showing you're interested, and that can open a lot of doors.
It's the most important thing.
Indeed.
So you have to go for it. Yes,
it's fantastic.
So listen, many thanks for answering these questions
and for sharing with us today.
And I know you'll be defending your thesis soon.
It's in the next few months.
Well, we'll be thinking of you. Many thanks!