Interdisciplinary science is rapidly advancing to address complex human-environment interactions. River science aims to provide the methods and knowledge required to sustainably manage some of the planet’s most important and vulnerable ecosystems; and there is a clear need for river managers and scientists to be trained within an interdisciplinary approach. However, despite the science community’s recognition of the importance of interdisciplinary training, there are few studies examining interdisciplinary graduate programs, especially in science and engineering. Here we assess and reflect on the contribution of a 9-year European doctoral program in river science: ‘Science for MAnagement of Rivers and their Tidal Systems’ Erasmus Mundus Joint Doctorate (SMART EMJD). The program trained a new generation of 36 early career scientists under the supervision of 34 international experts from different disciplinary and interdisciplinary research fields focusing on river systems, aiming to transcend the boundaries between disciplines and between science and management. We analyzed the three core facets of the SMART program, namely: (1) interdisciplinarity, (2) internationalism, and (3) management-oriented science. We reviewed the contents of doctoral theses and publications and synthesized the outcomes of two questionnaire surveys conducted with doctoral candidates and supervisors. A high percentage of the scientific outputs (80%) were interdisciplinary. There was evidence of active collaboration between different teams of doctoral candidates and supervisors, in terms of joint publications (5 papers out of the 69 analyzed) but this was understandably quite limited given the other demands of the program. We found evidence to contradict the perception that interdisciplinarity is a barrier to career success as employment rates were high (97%) and achieved very soon after the defense, both in academia (50%) and the private/public sector (50%) with a strong international dimension. Despite management-oriented research being a limited (9%) portion of the ensemble of theses, employment in management was higher (22%). The SMART program also increased the network of international collaborations for doctoral candidates and supervisors. Reflections on doctoral training programs like SMART contribute to debates around research training and the career opportunities of interdisciplinary scientists.

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SMART 研究：走向跨学科的欧洲河流科学

跨学科科学正在迅速发展，以解决复杂的人类-环境相互作用。河流科学旨在提供可持续管理地球上一些最重要和最脆弱的生态系统所需的方法和知识；河流管理者和科学家显然需要接受跨学科方法的培训。然而，尽管科学界认识到跨学科培训的重要性，但很少有研究检查跨学科研究生课程，尤其是在科学和工程方面。在这里，我们评估并反思了一项为期 9 年的欧洲河流科学博士课程的贡献：“河流管理科学及其潮汐系统”伊拉斯谟世界联合博士 (SMART EMJD)。该计划在来自不同学科和跨学科研究领域的 34 位国际专家的监督下，以河流系统为重点培养了新一代 36 名早期职业科学家，旨在超越学科之间以及科学与管理之间的界限。我们分析了 SMART 计划的三个核心方面，即：(1) 跨学科性，(2) 国际主义，以及 (3) 管理导向的科学。我们回顾了博士论文和出版物的内容，并综合了与博士生和导师进行的两次问卷调查的结果。很大比例的科学产出 (80%) 是跨学科的。有证据表明不同的博士生和导师团队之间积极合作，就联合出版物而言（分析的 69 篇论文中的 5 篇），但考虑到该计划的其他要求，这可以理解是相当有限的。我们发现证据与跨学科是职业成功的障碍的看法相矛盾，因为就业率很高 (97%) 并且在辩护后很快就实现了，无论是在学术界 (50%) 还是私营/公共部门 (50%) 与一个强大的国际维度。尽管以管理为导向的研究是论文整体的有限部分 (9%)，但管理方面的就业率更高 (22%)。SMART 计划还增加了博士生和导师的国际合作网络。对 SMART 等博士培训项目的反思有助于围绕研究培训和跨学科科学家的职业机会展开辩论。