Mayron Pereira Piccolo Ribeiro is one of nearly 400 young foreign researchers awarded a Swiss Government Excellence Scholarship each year to pursue their studies at a Swiss university. These scholarships have facilitated international exchange and research cooperation between Switzerland and over 180 countries since 1961. Mayron from a small town in south-western Brazil. He completed a Bachelor’s degree in theology and psychology before specialising in psychobiology for his Master’s degree in behavioural psychology. In 2017, the scholarship enabled him to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology at the University of Fribourg.

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The Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships are aimed at young researchers from abroad who have completed a master’s degree or PhD and at foreign artists holding a bachelor’s degree. Recipients are selected by the awarding body, the Federal Commission for Scholarships for Foreign Students (FCS).