The 8th Edition of the Spanish National School on Molecular Materials (VIII-ENMM) was held in Estepona, Málaga, in May 2007, and the authors of this communication, who were responsible for the organization of the meeting would like to share their experience and highlight the usefulness of such a type of short and intensive schools as a very powerful tool to complement the academic background of Ph.D. and Masters students from different Spanish universities or scientific institutions (like the C.S.I.C.). In addition, this kind of events also facilitates the periodic meeting of scientific research groups that are currently working in Spain in the field of the molecular materials and inherently conducting polymers from quite different points of view, thus allowing an update of the latest achievements of each group as well as generating helpful discussions of new ideas and close cooperation between them. The main topics dealt with in these schools include aspects regarding the “low band gap molecular materials and polymers” with outstanding technological properties and with potential applications in organic electronics, photonics and devices. Usual daily teaching schedule comprises four 1 hour-lessons on basic and general knowledge (diffraction techniques, computational chemistry, spectroscopic techniques, electrochemistry, Non-Linear Optics, Liquid Crystals, Dendrimers, Sensors, Organic Solar Cells, OLEDs, OFETs and so on), two and half hours of 45 min-talks on more specific topics (during which a member of every research group provides the audience with an overview of their latest scientific achievements) and another one hour and half session during which the students are strongly encouraged to participate with a 15 min-talk on the specific work they are doing in their parent universities or scientific institutions as a part of their Ph.D. or Master research projects.

The VIII-ENMM was attended by 85 students of which around 75 % decided to present a brief oral communication of their own research activities. This 8th edition of the ENMM was held in a high quality hotel over the sea carefully chosen by the organizing committee with the main purpose to offer a rather comfortable 1-week stay of teachers and students in a close and familiar ambient and at a special economic rate. More detailed information about VIII-ENMM can be found elsewhere in: http://www.uma.es/scai/viiienmm