Fulbright scholarship

Marina Pérez Aliacar, Ph.D. student in our group, has been awarded one of the prestigious Fulbright scholarships for predoctoral stays in the US. This scholarship will allow her to carry out a 9-month research stay at the University of Texas in Austin.

Marina is an industrial engineer by the University of Zaragoza and she works since 2021 in the Aragon Institute of Engineering Research (I3A) at the University of Zaragoza, with a predoctoral grant from the Aragón Government.  Her thesis, supervised by Prof. Manuel Doblaré, is focused on the development of mathematical models to simulate cellular adaptation in tumor evolution, in particular for the case of glioblastoma, the most common and lethal brain tumor. These models may allow to reproduce the acquisition of drug resistance and eventually, help clinicians to design optimal treatments. During her stay at the Center of Computational Oncology in Austin, supervised by Prof. Thomas Yankeelov, she will develop a patient-specific model of the treatment response of glioblastoma, taking into account cellular adaptation.

The Fulbright program, founded in 1946 by Senator J. William Fulbright is one of the world’s most recognized and prestigious international exchange programs. It offers grants in more than 160 countries, providing opportunities for graduate study and research, thereby opening the door to international collaboration and connections between countries. A pioneer in scientific and cultural exchange, the program was awarded the “Premio Príncipe de Asturias de Cooperación Internacional” in 2014. In the words of its founder:

“The Fulbright Program aims to bring a little more knowledge, a little more reason, and a little more compassion into world affairs and thereby to increase the chance that nations will learn at last to live in peace and friendship.”