The Incorporation of Postgraduate Students into Mars Science at the National Space Science and Technology Center and the United Arab Emirates University

At the United Arab Emirates University (UAEU), the graduate study program “Master of Science in Space Science” has started in the year 2021. This interdisciplinary study program is led by the UAEU College of Science, in collaboration with the College of Engineering, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, and College of IT, and supported by the National Space Science and Technology Center (NSSTC). The NSSTC is located on the UAEU main campus in Al Ain, UAE and has the status of a research center. In addition to Space Science students, postgraduate students from various STEM disciplines, including Physics, Engineering, Information Technology, Remote Sensing, Geographic Information Systems, and others, are eligible for scholarships by the NSSTC. These include the NSSTC scholarship for MSc in Space Science students, administered in collaboration with the UAEU College of Science and College of Graduate Studies. Also, there is the “MSc in Space Science Scholarship under the Arab Space Pioneers Program”, the MSc studentship at the NSSTC, and the PhD scholarship by the NSSTC. The funding period of MSc student scholarships is up to two years and may include the work on the MSc graduation thesis. The latter may be supervised jointly by NSSTC researchers/affiliated faculty and professors from University Colleges. Holders of MSc studentships and other postgraduate scholarships work part-time at the NSSTC and are thus involved in ongoing research and development projects. The thematic focus of MSc studentships at the NSSTC is elective. One option is Mars Science. This presentation analyses recent experience from the involvement of MSc students into Mars Science at the NSSTC, UAEU.