Selection process

The selection of candidates is performed by the UdL/UPM-CBGP/Agrotecnio/ICIHEAM Zaragoza Studies Commission of the Master, composed by representatives of the organizing institutions, based on the application documents sent by the candidates. Academic results and any previous professional experience related with the area of specialization are the main aspects considered. Given the international character of the programme, the geographical diversity of the students is also favoured.

The Studies Commission informs candidates on their admission and financial conditions of their participation within approximately one month after the stated application deadline.

Registration procedures

In order to formalize their registration, the candidates accepted must make payment of the registration fees by bank transfer, fill in the form of acceptance of participation norms, send three passport-sized pictures and prove to be in possession of a valid healthcare insurance for Spain. They must also submit their academic documents duly legalized and, where appropriate, translated into Spanish by a certified translator. Participants will receive detailed information on compliance with these formalities and the procedures to perform them.

CIHEAM Zaragoza takes out a collective healthcare insurance policy for their scholarship holders. Other students may also take advantage of this policy upon payment of the stipulated sum.

Students from non-EU countries should make the necessary administrative arrangements far enough in advance with their closest Spanish Embassy or Consulate to obtain a visa to enter and stay in Spain.

Full-time students must register for 60 credits in one academic year. Part-time students whose ultimate goal is to obtain the Master's degree must register for at least 20 credits. Those interested in partial participation without aiming at obtaining the diploma may register for the amount of credits they wish to.

For more information on the practical aspects of the incorporation and participation in the Master please refer to the section Practical information for students.

Scholarships

First part of the programme

Candidates of any nationality may apply for full or partial registration fee scholarships.

Candidates from CIHEAM member countries (Albania, Algeria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Lebanon, Malta, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey) may also apply for scholarships covering the cost of full board accommodation. Candidates from other countries who require financial support should apply directly to other national or international institutions.

The Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), attached to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Spain, offers scholarships to candidates from other countries wishing to complete their education in Spain. To obtain information about these scholarships, please refer to the website www.becasmae.com (where you may also submit your application directly), or contact the Embassy of Spain in your country or the nearest Consulate Office. The call for applications usually opens at the beginning of December and the deadline is at the end of December or the beginning of January. Those interested in obtaining a provisional admission from CIHEAM Zaragoza, must send to CIHEAM Zaragoza a duly completed application form, a detailed curriculum vitae and certificates proving curriculum statements (particularly copy of the university degree and of the transcript of records), together with a letter clearly requesting the application to be considered in order to obtain a provisional admission to apply for an AECID scholarship. In their application for an AECID scholarship applicants should state that the duration of the Master programme is 2 years, so that the scholarship granted for the first year may be renewed for the second year.

Both CIHEAM Zaragoza and UdL participate in the Erasmus mobility programme, therefore students from diverse European universities with a mobility grant may be admitted in this Master programme.

Second part of the programme

To be eligible for a grant or renewal of a CIHEAM Zaragoza scholarship to participate in the second part of the Master, the student must have obtained an average score equal to or greater than 70 out of 100 in the first part of the Master.

In the case of AECID scholarships, application for scholarship renewal for the second part of the Master must be submitted before the deadline established by AECI (typically March).

Credit recognition

Credit recognition adheres to the established in the Royal Decree (RD) of 29 October 2007, amended by Royal Decree of 2 July 2010 (Spanish Official Gazette BOE dated 30 October 2007, and 3 July 2010). Candidates, according to this regulation, and depending on their previous education and professional experience, may apply for the transfer and recognition of credits in the first part of the Master. However, given the usual heterogeneity of the students in this Master, this process will be carried out on an individual basis through the UdL/UPM-CBGP/Agrotecnio/CIHEAM Zaragoza Studies Commission of the Master.

Candidates interested should request their credit transfer or recognition during the first call for admission, stating so in the application form and explaining the bases of their request in a document attached. Applicants will receive instructions from the UdL/UPM-CBGP/Agrotecnio/CIHEAM Zaragoza Studies Commission of the Master on the documentation to be submitted. Through this Committee, the organizing institutions will analyze in detail each of the cases and shall inform the applicant of the result and the procedures to perform.

Requisites for enrolment in the second part of the programme

To be able to pursue the second part of the Master (Units 11 and 12), the student must have passed all the Units of the first part of the Master and submitted the "Practicum in Plant Breeding" and the "Master’s Final Project (Master Thesis)" protocols supported by the corresponding supervisors and institutions in which these activities will be developed. In the course of the second semester of the first academic year, IAMZ publishes the basis for the presentation of protocols and scholarship applications for the second part of the programme.

The protocols are examined by an evaluation committee formed by the UdL/UPM-CBGP/Agrotecnio/CIHEAM Zaragoza Studies Commission of the Master and Master lecturers, who will consider: (i) the coherence and viability of the project; (ii) the scientific-technical guarantees of the supervisors and host institutions; and (iii) the concordance between the topics chosen and previous training of the candidate, the foreseeable professional insertion and the training or productive demands in the student's country of origin.

Once these requirements are met, to formalize their registration students should make payment of the registration fee and prove to be in possession of a valid healthcare insurance for Spain. Students will receive detailed information on compliance with these procedures.

The period between registration to the first part of the Master and the Master of Science degree awarding date may not exceed four years. In exceptional and duly justified cases, special exemptions may be granted.

Mobility

Both Master organizing institutions hold the Erasmus Mobility Charter and are active in the European student mobility scheme.

IAMZ – Erasmus Charter for Higher Education 2014-2020                          Erasmus Policy Statement

These aids are in the framework of the Erasmus+ mobility programme KA103: Mobility for traineeships (work placement in industries, research institutions or other relevant workplaces) in countries participating in the Erasmus+ programme. The traineeships are carried out during the second year of the Master, as a part of the Master thesis and in agreement with the tutor of the thesis, or at the end of the second year, for a maximum financed period of 3 months. Students of any nationality registered at CIHEAM Zaragoza can apply for these aids. Each academic year the conditions of the call are announced as well as the deadline for application. Students have to prove a good knowledge of the language in which they will communicate with the traineeship tutor.

CIHEAM Zaragoza can also receive students from European universities. Students interested must approach CIHEAM Zaragoza to be informed of the study conditions according to their choice, and the necessary arrangements for signing the corresponding agreements with their institutions.

On the other hand, students of any nationality, in the second part of the Master can carry out the "Practicum in Plant  Breeding" and the “Master’s final work (Master Thesis)” in collaborating institutions (universities, research centres or companies). This flexibility provides the training offer with a plurality in agreement with that existing during the first part of the programme, and reinforces the collaboration between institutions carrying out their research activity in this specialty. It also means greater diversity in terms of the topics which the students can choose to complete their training within this specialization.