First summary of CRASP and Elsevier scholarships
From research on soil contamination in war-affected areas, through cybersecurity and artificial intelligence, to financial education needed for Ukraine's reconstruction. 30 PhD students and young scientists from 19 Ukrainian universities received CRASP and Elsevier scholarships enabling them to carry out research internships at 14 Polish universities. It's not just financial support. It also means access to laboratories, infrastructure, scientific supervision, and an international research environment.
The program, financed by Elsevier and implemented by the Conference of Rectors of Academic Schools in Poland, is addressed to Ukrainian doctoral students and researchers up to 35 years of age cooperating with CRASP member universities.
Each scholarship amounts to PLN 17,000 and is intended to finance at least a three-month research internship in Poland. The host universities provided scholarship holders with academic supervisors, as well as free access to a workplace, infrastructure, and materials necessary to conduct research. The funds received by scholarship recipients could cover, among other things, the costs of living and accommodation in Poland.
It is this practical dimension of the CRASP and Elsevier scholarships that is one of the most important elements of the program: creating conditions in which a young scientist can not only stay in Poland, but also actually conduct research.
- In this way, we support not only the development of individual people, but also the development of Ukrainian science serving freedom and the future - emphasizes Prof. Bogumiła Kaniewska, chairwoman of CRASP.
The scope of the scholarship holders’ research demonstrates how diverse issues can come together in one program. Some deal with soil contamination in areas affected by war, ecological safety, and sustainable development. Others conduct research on cybersecurity, cryptography, data transmission security, artificial intelligence, robotics, and intelligent monitoring systems.
The implemented projects also include those related to the use of drone imaging, waste management, and fish welfare. There was also no shortage of social and economic research: on the rule of law and democracy in Eastern Europe, green finance and the circular economy, the digital transformation of international trade, and the management of public-private partnerships in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine.
Particularly significant is the project on financial education for children and youth from the perspective of Ukraine's reconstruction. This is an example of research that is deeply rooted in the reality of Ukrainian society today.
For some participants, the very departure from Ukraine was a challenge. This especially applied to men, who had to obtain appropriate permits and sometimes spread their stay in Poland over time. Upon arrival, it was necessary to quickly adapt to the new research environment, learn new tools, and reconcile the schedule of one’s own research with the work of the laboratories. There was also a language barrier.
This is why an internship is not just a line item on one’s CV. For participants, it means the opportunity to maintain the continuity of scientific work despite conditions that often make this continuity difficult. Some of the research carried out directly touches on the problems of the war reality in which the scholarship holders live, study and work.
The effects of the program are not only the experiments performed or the data collected. Interns acquire new competences, present research results, conduct seminars and lectures, and begin working on scientific articles.
Among the results and benefits associated with the implementation of the internships, the partial report on the implementation of the scholarship program also indicates joint publications, knowledge exchange, building international networks of contacts and the prospect of further cooperation on subsequent projects.
The benefits of the program apply to both sides - Poland and Ukraine. Polish teams are gaining new partners, and cooperation is conducive to expanding the topics of ongoing projects and internationalizing doctoral schools.
- This initiative was designed as real support for young researchers from Ukraine, and at the same time as an investment in the future potential of scientific cooperation between our countries - says Prof. Marek Pawełczyk, the Rector of the Silesian University of Technology, Chairman of the Committee for International Cooperation of CRASP.
According to the partial report on the implementation of the CRASP and Elsevier scholarship program (data from January 15th this year) 16 scholarship holders were at that time in the process of completing their internship, four had completed it and submitted reports, eight were still waiting for their stay to begin, and two had resigned. The project was scheduled to run until August 31, 2026, and its final settlement was scheduled for October 31 of the same year.
However, the CRASP and Elsevier program shows already at the implementation stage that support for scientists does not end with the provision of funds. It may mean access to a laboratory, a new research method, a first joint article, contact with a future partner in an international project – or simply the opportunity to continue research when conditions in one’s home country make it particularly difficult.
And it is in this respect that CRASP and Elsevier scholarships become more than just assistance for specific individuals: they are an investment in the relations between the academic communities of Poland and Ukraine and in the scientific potential that will also be needed in the reconstruction of our neighbouring country.
Source: www.krasp.org.pl
