The rector of the UPO, Francisco Oliva Blázquez, and the SENC board member, Lydia Jiménez Díaz, signed the agreement establishing a framework to improve the academic quality and global visibility of this training initiative, closely linked to the university's campus in Carmona for decades.
The National Neuroscience Courses, held biennially in Carmona since the late nineties, serve as a key meeting point for established and emerging researchers. Its format, focused on scientific discussion and direct idea exchange in Spanish, is a hallmark that both institutions aim to preserve and enhance.
“"The intensive format, based on the discussion of scientific problems and direct exchange of ideas rather than presentations and lectures, along with the use of Spanish as a language of scientific communication, constitutes one of the identifying features that UPO and SENC wish to preserve and promote."
The most recent edition, the XVIII National Neuroscience Course in June 2025, gathered nearly fifty participants at the Casa Palacio de los Briones, addressing advances and challenges in the study of the nervous system. The first edition dates back to 1990, with the goal of offering advanced, participatory, and multidisciplinary training for new generations of neuroscientists.
The agreement also includes the participation of high-level faculty and the attraction of international students. The UPO and SENC will explore program accreditation with ECTS credits, its potential integration into doctoral programs, and the creation of micro-credentials.
This collaboration is based on the historical link between the UPO and neuroscience research, consolidated since the creation of the Neurosciences Division in 1999. Currently, several research groups in the Department of Physiology, Anatomy, and Cell Biology work in areas such as the neurophysiological bases of behavior, learning, and memory, also reflected in the Master's Degree in Fundamental and Translational Neuroscience and the Doctorate in Neurosciences.
