Connecting science and industry ecosystems to promote regional excellence

This cooperation program is one of the lines of the ‘ProfESIonalizate’ program launched by the School of Computer Science (University of Castilla-La Mancha, UCLM) located at Ciudad Real. The main objective is that the participant companies, mainly SMEs, characterize professional profiles so that future graduates adjust better to the regional labor market. These agreements allow companies to choose a student and select optional subjects to train the desired professional. Participating companies offer students the possibility of an internship in the company to strengthen the specific training. In this context, students can also write their dissertations in line with the necessities of the company. It could be cataloged as an open educational bridge between research and industry. Thanks to the many ICT projects arising from this initiative the regional ICT industry has grown considerably, the numerous innovativeness solutions have increased their competitiveness and the regional excellence which can help to its integration into the global value chains. Furthermore, this collaborative environment brings the opportunity to generate potential clusters facing up regional challenges. Therefore, this program offers a perfect scenario to promote employability, transfer knowledge, generate innovation and encourage young entrepreneurship spirit.