Academic excellence and a strong commitment to research have opened the door to an international experience for Mauricio Castro, a student of Logistics and Transportation Engineering at the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics (FCNM) at ESPOL, who was selected by the École de Technologie Supérieure (ÉTS) in Canada to undertake a undergraduate research internship.
As part of this achievement, the Canadian institution awarded him a merit-based scientific scholarship that will cover his stay from January to April 2027. During this period, he will join the Department of Systems Engineering at ÉTS as an undergraduate research intern. This experience will strengthen his professional training in a high-level academic environment.
Behind this opportunity lies a path built in the classrooms and academic spaces of FCNM–ESPOL, guided by professors from the Logistics and Transportation Engineering program. During his studies, Mauricio participated in early research initiatives related to “Improving SVM performance through data reduction and misclassification analysis with linear programming”, an experience that also led to his first scientific publication alongside Dr. Carlos Aníbal Suárez and Dr. Carlos Martín, researchers at ESPOL, and Dr. Michael Liut from the University of Toronto, further strengthening his academic and research profile.
As a preparatory step before his research stay in Canada, Mauricio will begin an eight-week pre-mobility phase, which he will complete remotely from Ecuador. During this period, he will work closely with researchers at ÉTS on the development of mathematical models and literature review.
Later, in January 2027, he will travel to Canada to begin his research stay. In this stage, his work will focus on model validation, computational experiments, and academic paper writing.
“For me, it represents a challenge that I take on with great excitement and, at the same time, a pride in representing FCNM–ESPOL in an international setting. It is also an opportunity to give visibility to a program and a faculty that have provided me with great experiences throughout my education,” Mauricio said.
École de Technologie Supérieure (ÉTS) is a public engineering institution located in Montreal, Canada, and part of the Université du Québec network. Known for its applied, hands-on approach, it specializes in training engineers and developing innovative technologies aligned with industry needs. The university stands out for its strong ties with the private sector, applied research, and technological innovation.
Mauricio’s international experience also highlights the opportunities offered by the Logistics and Transportation Engineering program at FCNM–ESPOL, which trains professionals prepared to design solutions for complex challenges related to supply chains, mobility, logistics, and transportation. Its multidisciplinary training combines mathematics, data analysis, management, technology, and economics to optimize processes, reduce costs, and generate impact across key sectors such as manufacturing, retail, ports, international trade, and services.
This achievement reflects how academic training, research, and internationalization create high-impact opportunities for our students. From the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at ESPOL, we reaffirm our commitment to promoting academic excellence, advancing research and innovation with impact, and transforming knowledge into solutions that contribute to societal development.
Learn more about the Logistics and Transportation Engineering program here:
https://www.fcnm.espol.edu.ec/en/undergraduate-programs/logistics-and-transportation
