The first graduates of the Degree in Artificial Intelligence at the USC meet the growing demand from industry, public administrations and the research sector
The Universidade de Santiago is celebrating the graduation of the first class of its Bachelor's Degree in Artificial Intelligence, a pioneering program that completes its first cycle of study, backed by an extensive network of collaboration with companies and institutions, with a crucial involvement of CiTIUS in teaching, research and the students' practical training.
When the Bachelor's Degree in Artificial Intelligence at the Universidade de Santiago de Compostela began its journey in the 2022–2023 academic year, artificial intelligence was beginning to establish itself as one of the technologies with the greatest transformative potential for the economy and society. Four years later, as companies, public administrations and organisations of all kinds accelerate the adoption of these tools, USC celebrates a significant milestone: the completion of the academic journey of the first graduating class of professionals trained specifically to tackle the challenges of this new technological era.
A particularly symbolic achievement, this milestone reflects the consolidation of an educational model that has, from the outset, sought to combine academic excellence, cutting-edge research and direct engagement with the real challenges of the professional world.
Ecosystem of collaboration: the recipe for success
Training AI specialists for the first time in Galicia's history has been a major challenge for everyone involved in building the degree programme. Among the many elements that have shaped the educational experience of this new generation of professionals, one of the most distinctive has been the close collaboration established between USC and the socio-economic ecosystem. Through the ECIA Network (Collaborating Entities in Artificial Intelligence Training), made up of 30 organisations, companies, public administrations, technology and research centres, and sectoral associations have actively contributed to student training.
30 public and private sector organisations collaborate with the Degree in Artificial Intelligence through the 'ECIA Network'
This collaboration takes shape through the proposal of real-world use cases for the Integrative Project courses, the hosting of student internships, and the participation of external professionals in mentoring and supervision activities. Currently, 47 professionals collaborate within this framework, helping to bring the reality of the sector into university classrooms.
The experience accumulated over these four years will be reviewed and celebrated during a dedicated event at the ETSE (USC School of Engineering), bringing together participating organisations to highlight the role of cooperation between academia and society in the training of highly specialised talent.
With the support and involvement of CiTIUS
The consolidation of the degree programme has been closely linked to the participation of CiTIUS, a research centre co-funded by the European Union through the Galicia ERDF Programme 2021–2027. Of the 75 faculty members involved in the degree, 35 belong to the centre. When considering only technology-related subjects, CiTIUS researchers account for nearly 70% of the teaching activity.
Nearly 70% of the teaching in technology-related subjects is delivered by CiTIUS researchers.
The centre's contribution also extends to the research activities carried out by students. Of the 35 final-year projects completed by this first graduating class, 31 are supervised by CiTIUS researchers. In addition, students regularly participate in summer internships, collaboration grants and research placements within the centre's different research groups.
This connection between teaching and research provides students with direct access to some of the main lines of work in artificial intelligence currently being developed at USC, including linguistic technologies, trustworthy AI, machine learning and automated reasoning, robotics, high-performance computing, virtual and augmented reality, computer vision, data and process science and engineering, electronic design of smart devices, and hyperspectral imaging.
A week of celebration for an academic milestone
The events organised to mark this first graduation will begin on Thursday, 4 June, with the ECIA Network Workshop, a gathering aimed at recognising the commitment of partner organisations and professionals who have contributed to the students' practical training, with an expected attendance of around 60 people directly involved in the network.
Renowned artificial intelligence expert Ramón López de Mántaras will deliver an outreach lecture at the School of Engineering (ETSE) as part of the celebrations.
Later that same afternoon, the ETSE will host the public lecture 'The Problem of Anthropomorphising Artificial Intelligence' by Ramón López de Mántaras, one of the most influential figures in artificial intelligence in Spain and an internationally recognised authority in the field. The session will explore some of the main conceptual and societal challenges associated with the development of these technologies.
The programme will conclude on Friday with the graduation ceremony of the first graduating class of the Degree in Artificial Intelligence, presided over by the Rector of the University of Santiago de Compostela, Rosa Crujeiras. Among the invited authorities are Alberto Gago, Director of the AESIA, who will serve as the professional sponsor of the graduating class, and Román Rodríguez, Regional Minister for Education, Science, Universities and Vocational Training of the Government of Galicia.
The presence of institutional, academic and professional representatives at this celebration reflects the strategic importance that artificial intelligence has acquired for economic and social development, as well as the role USC aspires to play in educating the new generations of specialists who will lead that transformation.
When the Bachelor's Degree in Artificial Intelligence at the Universidade de Santiago de Compostela began its journey in the 2022–2023 academic year, artificial intelligence was beginning to establish itself as one of the technologies with the greatest transformative potential for the economy and society. Four years later, as companies, public administrations and organisations of all kinds accelerate the adoption of these tools, USC celebrates a significant milestone: the completion of the academic journey of the first graduating class of professionals trained specifically to tackle the challenges of this new technological era.
A particularly symbolic achievement, this milestone reflects the consolidation of an educational model that has, from the outset, sought to combine academic excellence, cutting-edge research and direct engagement with the real challenges of the professional world.
Ecosystem of collaboration: the recipe for success
Training AI specialists for the first time in Galicia's history has been a major challenge for everyone involved in building the degree programme. Among the many elements that have shaped the educational experience of this new generation of professionals, one of the most distinctive has been the close collaboration established between USC and the socio-economic ecosystem. Through the ECIA Network (Collaborating Entities in Artificial Intelligence Training), made up of 30 organisations, companies, public administrations, technology and research centres, and sectoral associations have actively contributed to student training.
30 public and private sector organisations collaborate with the Degree in Artificial Intelligence through the 'ECIA Network'
This collaboration takes shape through the proposal of real-world use cases for the Integrative Project courses, the hosting of student internships, and the participation of external professionals in mentoring and supervision activities. Currently, 47 professionals collaborate within this framework, helping to bring the reality of the sector into university classrooms.
The experience accumulated over these four years will be reviewed and celebrated during a dedicated event at the ETSE (USC School of Engineering), bringing together participating organisations to highlight the role of cooperation between academia and society in the training of highly specialised talent.
With the support and involvement of CiTIUS
The consolidation of the degree programme has been closely linked to the participation of CiTIUS, a research centre co-funded by the European Union through the Galicia ERDF Programme 2021–2027. Of the 75 faculty members involved in the degree, 35 belong to the centre. When considering only technology-related subjects, CiTIUS researchers account for nearly 70% of the teaching activity.
Nearly 70% of the teaching in technology-related subjects is delivered by CiTIUS researchers.
The centre's contribution also extends to the research activities carried out by students. Of the 35 final-year projects completed by this first graduating class, 31 are supervised by CiTIUS researchers. In addition, students regularly participate in summer internships, collaboration grants and research placements within the centre's different research groups.
This connection between teaching and research provides students with direct access to some of the main lines of work in artificial intelligence currently being developed at USC, including linguistic technologies, trustworthy AI, machine learning and automated reasoning, robotics, high-performance computing, virtual and augmented reality, computer vision, data and process science and engineering, electronic design of smart devices, and hyperspectral imaging.
A week of celebration for an academic milestone
The events organised to mark this first graduation will begin on Thursday, 4 June, with the ECIA Network Workshop, a gathering aimed at recognising the commitment of partner organisations and professionals who have contributed to the students' practical training, with an expected attendance of around 60 people directly involved in the network.
Renowned artificial intelligence expert Ramón López de Mántaras will deliver an outreach lecture at the School of Engineering (ETSE) as part of the celebrations.
Later that same afternoon, the ETSE will host the public lecture 'The Problem of Anthropomorphising Artificial Intelligence' by Ramón López de Mántaras, one of the most influential figures in artificial intelligence in Spain and an internationally recognised authority in the field. The session will explore some of the main conceptual and societal challenges associated with the development of these technologies.
The programme will conclude on Friday with the graduation ceremony of the first graduating class of the Degree in Artificial Intelligence, presided over by the Rector of the University of Santiago de Compostela, Rosa Crujeiras. Among the invited authorities are Alberto Gago, Director of the AESIA, who will serve as the professional sponsor of the graduating class, and Román Rodríguez, Regional Minister for Education, Science, Universities and Vocational Training of the Government of Galicia.
The presence of institutional, academic and professional representatives at this celebration reflects the strategic importance that artificial intelligence has acquired for economic and social development, as well as the role USC aspires to play in educating the new generations of specialists who will lead that transformation.