Programme

The Origin InterSpecial minor consists of a research project on the topic of the Origin of Life, conduced in a small interdisciplinary team (3 or 4 people from different Bachelor’s programmes). This minor does not involve courses but is project-based:  you will work in a small interdisciplinary team to a research project offered by researchers at UvA/VU on a topic related to the Origin of Life. Example of possible projects are survivability of microorganisms on planetary analogs experiments or evolution of carbon ultracold solids in Titan's atmosphere. You will use your disciplinary knowledge to find how you can contribute to the research question and work together with the team, supervised by researchers.

This minor does not involve courses, but you will attend a series of half day workshops that will teach you how to work effectively in an interdisciplinary team:

• The cycle of Interdisciplinary research
• Collaboration skills
• Open Science
• Cultural and disciplinary awareness
• Interdisciplinary communication
• Interdisciplinary writing

At the end the teams will present their findings during a symposium.

The goal of Origins Interspecial  is to provide you with expertise and experience in working as a specialist in interdisciplinary teams.

Enrolment and admission

This fulltime 30 ECTS minor is open to at most 24 students from all natural science disciplines. It is particularly interesting for students of Physics and Astronomy, Chemistry, Biology, Artificial Intelligence, Information Sciences, Informatics and Bèta-gamma. International students and students from other Dutch university are also welcome. 

If you wish to apply, please send an email with subject line “Origin Interspecial Application to Alessandra Candian a.candian2@uva.nl before 1 July. Please include the following:

• Your motivation for wanting to take the Origin InterSpecial minor.
• Your transcript of records from your prior and current academic programme(s).

Please note that without these documents we cannot take your application in consideration. If we receive more applications than there are places available, you may be put on a waiting list. Places are granted on a first come, first serve basis. 

Important to know in advance

Please note that this is an intense programme with a full timetable. It is not possible to follow other courses while taking the minor. The workshops of this minor are only open for students of the minor.

Contact

Alessandra Candian:  a.candian2@uva.nl