Postdoc101 Talk Series

Description: Today many universities, institutes or research groups have measures for promoting demographic diversity and gender equality – and indeed, such measures may be a requirement for receiving funding. Yet, universities remain riddled with inequalities, many of which are unjust. This talk is premised on the idea that, in order to promote demographic diversity, we need to take social inequalities into account. The focus of this session is how to contribute to a workplace that is welcoming to everyone.

Speaker: Dr. Anna Welpinghus holds a doctorate in philosophy. Among other things, her research has dealt with unconscious bias. She has been teaching philosophy at Bielefeld University since 2022 and is involved in the development and quality management of the degree programs there. Contributing to good learning and working conditions at universities is important to her. She also offers workshops on how to deal with structural injustice in higher education.

Special Event Announcement: This talk is part of the Postdoc Appreciation Week, and you can find it also on the event’s webpage.

Description: Although equality and attention to gender aspects should be standard practice by now, women in academia still often face a number of challenges in terms of (in-)visibility and recognition. In this panel discussion, three female scientists will present their career paths in academia. What challenges and opportunities have they encountered, how do they perceive their role as female scientists, group leaders and professors, and what do they wish they had known earlier? In addition to these personal insights, this talk also invites you to exchange ideas and connect with the speakers as well as with the other participants.

Speakers: Dr. Amelie Heuer-Jungemann leads the Emmy Noether Research Group “DNA Hybridnanomaterials” at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry (Martinsried, Germany). She previously was a Postdoctoral Fellow at LMU Munich and the University of Southampton.

Prof. Dr. Katrin Paula holds a PhD from the Graduate School of Economic and Social Sciences (GESS) at the University of Mannheim (2019). Before joining the TUM as Assistant Professor (tenure track) of “Global Security and Technology” in 2020, she was a researcher and lecturer at the University of Mannheim.

Dr. Melanie Schirmer leads the Emmy Noether Research Group for Computational Microbiome Research and is a Junior Fellow at TUM. She also successfully acquired an ERC Grant in 2022.

Description: Most pre-docs and postdocs at German universities are working in limited-term employment contracts according to the Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz (WissZeitVG). The WissZeitVG limits the overall duration of employment in limited-term contracts at German universities or research institutes for qualification purposes to 12 years (15 years in the field of medicine). In certain cases, for example for childcare, the WissZeitVG allows extensions of the maximum period of employment. It also contains special clauses for limited term employment in third-party funded projects. This talk aims to equip participants with the necessary basic knowledge of WissZeitVG that is essential for the planning of a career in science. The Talk will be held in English.

Speaker: Dr. Vanessa Adam is a lawyer and consultant at Deutscher Hochschulverband, Bonn (DHV). Her professional focus is employment law, university law and civil servant law. She offers legal consultations on these topics, support in appointment negotiations for professorships as well as general career advice in the academic field to DHV members.

Description: Sooner or later, many postdocs are faced with the question: What's next? A career within academia is a promising option, but by no means the only one. This talk will give you an insight into three different career paths that are possible venues for postdocs: academia, HAW Professorship and entrepreneurship. Our experts will not only give you in-depth information on each of these paths, but will also share their own first-hand experiences. In addition, the talk will offer various opportunities to ask questions and engage in a fruitful exchange.

Speakers: Dr. Vera Kaulbarsch is the coordinator of the Project "Attract2HM" at the TUM Graduate School.

Ass.-Prof. Dr. Sebastian Schwaminger has conducted research in Chemical Engineering as a postdoc i. a. at TUM and MIT before he was appointed Assistant Professor at the Medical University of Graz in 2022. He is also co-founder of Dymium, a start-up that has developed an innovative method for minimally invasive, magnetic removal of kidney stone fragments.

Prof. Dr. Christina Holzapfel is a nutritionist and professor of human nutrition at Fulda University of Applied Sciences. She is also a TUM Junior Fellow as head of the BMBF Junior Research Group "Personalised Nutrition & eHealth" (PeNut) at the Institute of Nutritional Medicine at TUM.

Description: The Embassy of Good Science is a pan-European platform that supports researchers to act with integrity and according to relevant ethical standards. In this presentation, you will be given an overview of the structure and functions of the platform and outline how it can support researchers, especially postdocs. The talk will explain what research ethics and research integrity are and why all researchers should think about ethical challenges before, during, and after conducting research projects. Based on case discussions, the speakers will show how good scientific practice can look like.

Speakers: Dr. Lisa Tambornino works in the areas of research ethics and research integrity for EUREC - the European Network of Research Ethics Committees. She is involved in many different EU projects on research ethics, ethics of emerging technologies and ethics of participation. She studied philosophy, psychology and law at the University of Bonn and has a substantial background in ethics, especially bioethics and medical ethics. She has more than ten years of experience in working in interdisciplinary fields – in research, writing/editorial, project management and teaching.

Tom Lindemann works for EUREC where he is involved in several projects on research integrity and research ethics. He has helped developing, organizing and implementing educational and awareness actions to promote research integrity and written on ethical and legal aspects of data protection governance in ICT research. Moreover, he has expertise and experience in stakeholder engagement, project management and grant writing. Before joining EUREC Office, he worked at Saarland University.

Description: This talk will provide scientists and researchers with practical strategies for leveraging the power of storytelling to effectively communicate their work to a broader audience. It will show how stories can inspire curiosity and interest in science, and ultimately advance scientific understanding and progress. The presentation will highlight how storytelling can help to bridge the gap between the scientific community and multiple publics, enabling researchers to connect with non-scientists and inspire them to take an interest in science. The talk will then delve into the elements of effective storytelling, including the importance of creating a narrative arc, using vivid and descriptive language, and leveraging emotional resonance to connect with the audience. The speaker will use real-life examples from scientific storytelling, highlighting successful stories that have captivated audiences and spurred action. The talk will also address common challenges that scientists face when communicating their work, such as jargon and complex technical language, and provide strategies for overcoming these barriers. The speaker will emphasize the importance of tailoring the storytelling approach to the specific audience and context, highlighting the need for flexibility and adaptability in science communication.

Speaker: Dr. Annette Klinkert is an internationally experienced workshop facilitator, trainer and science communicator. Since 2012, she is CEO of city2science, a German company developing innovative communication approaches connecting scientific institutions with urban and regional development strategies. She has created and organized a number of large-scale science communication formats across Germany, such as the science festivals GENIALE, FameLab Germany, WissensNacht Ruhr, MakerFaire Ruhr and Expedition Wissenschaft Paderborn. Since 2016, Dr. Klinkert is the Executive Director of the European Science Engagement Association EUSEA, an international network of more than 120 science organisations, science festivals, foundations and public institutions.

Description: Sustainable development and the sustainable transformation of our societies is the essential challenge for humanity in the 21^st century. The word “Sustainability” has become a common terminology not only in everyday life, but also in academic contexts. But what is behind this buzzword? This talk not only addresses the questions where sustainability is encountered by postdocs and what meaning it has for example in the context of research funding. It also gives an overview and contextualisation in the global, national and institutional perspective (with a focus on the TUM Sustainable Futures Strategy 2030) and introduces significant networks on this topic.

Speaker: Tobias Michl is Sustainability Manager at the TU Munich and part of the TUM Sustainability Office. This presidential staff unit is responsible for the development of the TUM Sustainable Futures Strategy 2030 and the coordination of its implementation.

Description: While we are all aware that women and minority groups continue to be underrepresented in the sciences, it can be challenging to know what each individual can do to reverse these trends. However, at every career stage change meaningful steps can be taken to help the advancement of underrepresented groups.

Additionally, a clear understanding of diversity issues, and the language used to discuss them, are increasingly an important part of faculty and industry hiring processes. Candidates are expected to both understand the challenges of bringing diverse groups to campus, along with proposing steps they will take to increase the retention of under-represented groups. Strong responses to these questions are increasingly important worldwide.

In this talk, we will discuss both the impact and steps forward to creating a more equitable and inclusive academic environment. This overview talk will summarize the current research and provide examples of current steps for improvement. Topics will include defining the biggest issues preventing the success of diversity, equity, and inclusivity initiatives, best practices for inclusive teaching and building research groups, and how to address implicit bias.

Contents:

• Overview of best practices for advancing underrepresented groups in science
• Discussion of how to build inclusive research work environments
• Identifying bias in your research network and
• Discussion and ideas for improvement both now and in future career positions

Speaker: Prof. Andrea Erhardt is an Anna Boyksen Fellow for the Institute for Advanced Studies at TUM and an Associate Professor at the University of Kentucky, USA. She received her PhD in isotope geochemistry from Stanford University, followed by postdoctoral studies at the University of Cambridge. Her research covers both palaeoceanography and mechanisms for increasing diversity in the geosciences.

Description: This talk explores the reasoning behind peer review processes and, by retracing its history, aims to make the current status, procedures and dilemmas of peer review comprehensible. By discussing its inherent trade-offs, deliberating critical arguments which highlight the problems of peer review and presenting current approaches for finding solutions for these problems, the speaker invites the audience to reflect on how to determining the value of scientific insight.

Speaker: Dr. Oliver Grewe organizes and manages peer review processes in research funding, science evaluation and the selection of highly gifted researchers as a program manager of the Volkswagen Foundation, one of Germanies biggest private research funders. He started his career in science management at the German Academic Scholarship Foundation (Studienstiftung) and the Scientific Commission of Lower Saxony (Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen). Since 2015 he additionally supports academics as a trainer and coach.

Description: The postdoc phase is not only a stage full of interesting opportunities and exciting options to advance a career in science, but it also may pose great challenges and necessitate difficult decisions. This talk will give you a deep and personal insight into an individual career path as a postdoc: Which decisions have to be made when, how do you position yourself in a highly competitive international environment and how can you raise appropriate funding for your research? In addition to this, you will have numerous opportunities for mutual exchange and networking with other fellow postdocs from different disciplines and institutions in this talk.

Speaker: Dr. Jesús Agustín Banda Vázquez studied Genomic Sciences (2006-2011) at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM, Mexico). Regarding graduate studies in Biochemical Sciences, he obtained his MSc (2013) at the Biotechnology Institute (IBT, Mexico) and his PhD (2018) at School of Medicine, UNAM. His research experience regards protein engineering and protein design by means of computational methods and experimental testing. His expertise has been developed and applied in Mexico (IBT and School of Medicine at UNAM), Germany (Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology at Tübingen and Helmholtz Zentrum at Munich), and Canada (University of Ottawa). With an interest in applying his expertise to lighting devices, Dr. Banda Vázquez is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellow at the Technical University of Munich working at the chair of Biogenic Functional Materials with Prof. Rubén D. Costa. His research focuses on prediction and improvement of suitable sustainable materials for Bio-hybrid LEDs.

Dr. Anna Zieleniewskareceived both her BSc (2013) and MSc (2014) in Chemical Technology with a specialization in Organic Chemistry from the Warsaw University of Technology (Poland) under the supervision of Prof. Dorota Gryko. She completed her PhD degree in Physical Chemistry in 2019 at Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg (Germany) in the Guldi group. During that time her research focused on studying the charge transfer properties of organic molecular wires. Then she moved to Colorado to do her Postdoc under the supervision of Prof. Garry Rumbles at National Renewable Energy Laboratory (2019-2021). Where she worked on the development of the time-resolved microwave conductivity method and its application in photocatalysis. Dr. Anna Zieleniewska is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow at the Technical University of Munich working at the Chair of Biogenic Functional Materials with Prof. Rubén D. Costa. Her research focuses on the development of dual devices for light and temperature management.

Description: Within the work context, having imposter syndrome refers to recurring thoughts that you are simply not good enough for the position you have and that you cannot perform appropriately. The main thesis presented in this talk is that the imposter syndrome is based on “thought errors”. “Thought errors” are thoughts that appear helpful and benevolent on the one hand, but create a negative effect at closer inspection. By the end of the talk, you will have a deeper understanding of why and how an imposter syndrome develops. Plus, you will hear some strategies on how to move forward.

Speaker: Prof. Christine Lohmeier is a communication scholar and a certified coach. She offers workshops, courses and 1-on-1 mentoring for postdocs in particular and academics in general. Her offers support clients in reaching their goals (inside and outside academia) and raising the level of their (self-)leadership. An active academic herself, Prof. Lohmeier intimately knows the challenges many PhD students, postdocs and professors face. She uses cutting-edge cognitive-based techniques and insights from developmental and positive psychology to teach her clients how to bring joy and fun into their day-to-day while pursuing their goals.

Description: This talk will give a brief overview of the possibilities for the appointment package and salary negotiations. It shows the basic principles of the salary system for professors in Germany and gives a structural overview of the W-Salary systems as well as of the possibilities for negotiating appointment increments.

Speaker: Hans-Conrad Ostermeyer is a lawyer as well as in-house lawyer at Deutscher Hochschulverband (DHV). He gives legal advice to the members of DHV and supports members during their appointment negotiations. His areas of expertise are university law, public service law and employment law.

Description: Being a postdoc can be an exciting start to an academic career and/or a career in research – the opportunity to focus entirely on research activities. However, it is also a very stressful time with most research being funded via fixed term contracts. Balancing doing the day job with planning the next steps in your careers can be difficult with lots of options but not necessarily the skills to assess these options.

Speaker: Dr Liz Elvidge, Head of Postdoc and Fellows Development at Imperial College London. Liz is a leading expert in the support and development of postdocs and fellows. Her no nonsence approach to supporting early career researchers results in postdocs and fellows taking responsibility for their careers and moving onwards to fantastic opportunities and work places. She is co-author of "What every Postdoc needs to know" (available via TUM eAccess!). This talk will give an overview of how to move forwards in your career. Be prepared to ask lots of questions!

Description: Establishing one’s own Junior Research Group with third-party funding provides an important next step in the career of mid-career researchers. However, the application process is usually complex and competitive and, if successful, the new position comes along with its own challenges such as finding the right team and taking on a new role as a group leader.

In this talk, successful research group leaders will talk about their transition from being a postdoc to a research group leader, their respective groups, and funding programs. They will share their advice on what to keep in mind when you apply for research groups and how to get started as a research group leader. These first-hand insights will be useful for anyone taking the next steps on the career ladder.

Speakers (all Research Group Leaders at different stages and members of the Munich Postdoc Network (MPN)):

Prof. Dr. Nayla Fawzi is a professor at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and leads the Emmy Noether research group “Alienation between Population, Media and Politics? Media and Political Disenchantment from the Perspective of Public and Elites.” Her research focus on populism and media, media trust and adolescents’ digital media use.

Dr. Christina Holzapfel is TUM Junior Fellow and leads the BMBF Junior Research Group „Personalized Nutrition & eHealth“ at the Institute for Nutritional Medicine at TUM. Her background is in nutrition sciences and her research is focused on the prevention and treatment of overweight and obesity.

Dr. habil. Michael P. Menden is a Junior Group Leader at the Institute of Computational Biology (Helmholtz Zentrum München) since 2019, and is heading the Menden Lab, and is Head of the DZD Computational Biology Unit. He was awarded an ERC Starting Grant in 2020, and the Rising Star in Drug Discovery Award from the University of Cardiff in 2022. Previously, Dr. Menden worked as Senior Scientist in Oncology Bioinformatics, AstraZeneca, UK. He was a PhD student and postdoctoral fellow at EMBL-EBI, UK. In 2016, his PhD was awarded in Computational Biology by the University of Cambridge, UK. In 2017, Dr. Menden was appointed an Honorary Lecturer position at the University of Sheffield, UK. Since 2019, Dr. Menden also became a lecturer in the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU). He finished his habilitation at LMU, Faculty of Biology in Human Biology and Bioinformatics in 2022.

Please note: This talk is only offered in German, as this is the primary language of instruction at Universities of Applied Sciences. A native language level (C1-C2) is usually required for a professorship at these universities.

Beschreibung: Viele Postdocs fragen sich im Laufe ihrer wissenschaftlichen Karriere, ob das angestrebte Ziel einer Professur an einer Universität wirklich die einzige Option für sie darstellt. Oft entsteht bei Überlegungen zu weiteren Karrierewegen dann der Eindruck, es gäbe nur die Alternative, aus der Wissenschaft auszusteigen, um in der Industrie zu arbeiten. Dabei stellt eine Professur an einer Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften (HAW) eine andere Möglichkeit dar, weiterhin in der Wissenschaft zu lehren und zu forschen.

In diesem Vortrag werden alle grundlegenden Informationen zu den Erfordernissen einer HAW-Professur zusammengefasst und dargestellt, inwiefern sich dieses Anforderungsprofil von einer universitären Professur unterscheidet. Zudem geht es um den aktuellen Wandel der Hochschullandschaft und neuere Professurmodelle, die den Einstieg vor allem für Postdocs erleichtern können. Der Vortrag soll als komprimierte Einführung in das Berufsbild der HAW-Professur dienen und zugleich die Möglichkeit geben, individuelle Fragen zu stellen.

Sprecherin: Dr. Vera Kaulbarsch ist seit September 2021 an der TUM Graduate School für die Durchführung des BMBF-geförderten Projekts „Attract2HM“ verantwortlich. Ziel des Projekts ist es, über den Weg zu einer HAW-Professur zu informieren und mit gezielten Angeboten Promovierende und Postdocs zu unterstützen.

Description: How can you make your postdoc experience a success - even if you never obtain a permanent academic position afterwards?

Many postdoc researchers feel an enormous amount of stress and anxiety because they see being appointed as an (assistant/associate/full) professor as the ultimate goal of their postdoc years. But what if that was just one of many goals you could have? I suggest that widening your thinking about your postdoc ultimately leads to a much more enjoyable day-to-day experience of your academic life. 

Coming from this perspective, I suggest a framework which focuses on three areas: projects, people and personality. By taking a conscious approach towards projects, people and your own personal development, you can uplevel your chances for a successful academic career. And even if you do not find a suitable position in academia, you can make your postdoc a success by becoming the kind of person who takes on a leading role in- or outside of academia. This way, you make your postdoc years valuable - no matter what the future has in store for you. 

In this TUM talk, I'll explain strategies connected to projects, people and personality and discuss how they can guide your day-to-day activities.

Speaker: Prof. Dr. Christine Lohmeier is a communication scholar and a certified coach. Christine offers personalized services for academics dealing with overwhelm and anxiety. Shealso supports her clients in reaching their next big goal.eing an active academic herself, Christine intimately knows the challenges many PhD students, postdocs and professors face.

She uses cutting-edge cognitive-based techniques and insights from developmental and positive psychology to teach her clients how to bring joy and fun into their day-to-day while pursuing their goals.

„I help my clients reflect, gain clarity and develop strategies to deal with challenges inside and outside of the academy.“

Description:  When people work together, conflicts arise again and again for various reasons. This talk gives you an insight to the theory of conflicts. You will also explore the particular potential for conflicts in higher education institutions.

The talk is meant to be an introduction to the field. However, it offers you the possibility to reflect on your own working environment and discover ways to deal with conflicts with the aim of strengthening cooperation.

Speaker: Dr. Claudia Nounla,  professional coach/supervisor (DGSv) and organisational consultant. She has been offering consultation, coaching and training for academic staff for almost two decades. Recurrent concerns of her clients are the development of their personal organisation as well as dealing with emerging conflicts.

The talk will be supported by conflict managers (Ombudspersonen) by members of the Munich Postdoc Network (MPN).

Description: Scientists usually focus very strongly on their research and concentrate on facts and figures. They often forget that besides professional know-how, the ability to present themselves and their research focus confidently is essential. Self-marketing is often smiled at with some shame and ignored. In this talk, you will learn how to market yourself as a postdoc in a way that suits you and your values. In addition to tips on how to appear and present yourself more confidently, we will explore strategies on how to better show yourself on social media platforms such as Research Gate, Twitter or LinkedIn. Along with this, we focus on science communication and how to express your research simply and clearly so that even non-scientists can understand. All this increases your professional visibility and reputation, even in the non-academic world.

Speaker: Dr. Adriane Schmidt is a certified communication trainer and business coach. She supports people in appearing more confidently while using their voice convincingly. She provides workshops for companies on the topics of argumentation strategies, self-marketing, quick-witted reactions to objections or personal attacks and dealing with power and status. She has been working in the field of strategic communication for 10 years. Most recently, she spent 5 years with Mediaplus Munich heading two teams in the areas of international research and product development. In her doctorate at the TU Dresden, Dr. Adriane Schmidt worked on communication strategies and the impact of messages.

Description: 

Exciting new findings are the core of every research and PhD. Often, however, these findings get published in papers and then researchers move on to the next inspiring hypothesis. But what about the impact of the research for our society? What if it could be more than a paper? What if it could actually change the world by becoming a successful company? What if your research could be the start of a new BioNTech?

This talk gives you an insight into the entrepreneurial possibilities as a scientist and an overview of existing support structures. It is designed for researchers who would like to learn more about what (career) perspectives are part of taking the entrepreneurial path and what types of skills are needed in the field of entrepreneurship.

The Technical University of Munich is one of the most successful start-up universities in Europe. The team of TUMentrepreneurship offers founders the best support for starting technology companies. A key to our success is the development of an entrepreneurial mindset among our researchers and students.
We are constantly expanding our activities to promote start-ups. Together with our affiliated institute, the UnternehmerTUM GmbH, we offer a wide range of start-up consulting, research and qualification services as well as a strong network for founders. Our new entrepreneurial innovation centers, the TUM Venture Labs, drive technology-based spin-offs within their relevant deeptech domains – at the intersection of engineering, natural and life sciences, AI/IT and medicine. The joint initiative of TUM and UnternehmerTUM supports entrepreneurial talents in deeptech-based business translation from science. Offers at the TUM Venture Labs range from technical and social infrastructure to domain-specific entrepreneurship training and support through our top-class industry and investor networks.

Speaker: 
Julia Hinderink, TUMentrepreneurship, Project Manager Think.Make.Start
Margarete Weißmann, TUMentrepreneurship, Start-up Consultant
Tobias Ruzok,TUM Venture Labs, Strategic Projects
Dr. Florian Dötzer, TUM Venture Lab Aerospace, Managing Director

Scientist Role Models, who have started start their journey to become entrepreneurs and to found their own spin-off:
PD Dr. Jennifer Altomonte (Fusix Biotech)
PhD Steffen Garbe (Carbon Atlantis)
M.Sc. Patrick Consul (LEAM)

Description:  Academic life can be stressful, overwhelming and frustrating: lots to do, rejections, revisions, teaching, fixed-term contracts plus grant and job applications. Against the backdrop of cognitive and neuroscience research, we explore what causes these negative emotions. In a second step, we consider options for dealing with and handling negative emotions. Sounds touchy-feely – so why bother? Because the greater your capacity to handle negative emotion, the greater your levels of success – in academia and beyond.

Speaker: Prof. Dr. Christine Lohmeier is a communication scholar and a certified coach. Christine offers personalized services for academics dealing with overwhelm, anxiety and those wanting to let go of self-sabotage and build their confidence and inner strength.

Being an active academic herself, Christine intimately knows the challenges many PhD students, postdocs and professors face.

She uses cutting-edge cognitive-based techniques and insights from developmental and positive psychology to teach her clients how to bring joy and fun into their day-to-day while pursuing their goals.

„I help my clients reflect, gain clarity and develop strategies to deal with challenges inside and outside of the academy.“

Beschreibung: „Bin ich auf dem richtigen Weg?“ – Der Ausstieg aus der Wissenschaft als permanente Option

Wie kommt es, dass sich Postdocs für den Verbleib im oder den Ausstieg aus der Wissenschaft entscheiden? Postdocs befinden sich in der Phase zwischen Promotion und Professur in einem Orientierungsprozess, in dem sie ihren Weg, ausgelöst durch (kritische) Ereignisse, immer wieder infrage stellen. Was anstrengend klingt, Ressourcen bindet und raubt, ist gleichzeitig eine Strategie der Wissenschaftler:innen, die zunehmende Unsicherheit ihrer Karrieren selbst zu kontrollieren, statt sich ihren Wirkungen auszuliefern. Ausgehend von statistischen Kennzahlen zum Flaschenhals der Wissenschaftskarriere, wird es in diesem Vortrag darum gehen, ein Modell zum ereignisgestützten Orientierungsprozess vorzustellen, welches Erkenntnisse dazu liefert, durch welche kritischen Ereignisses es in der Postdoc-Phase zu Ausstiegsgedanken kommt. Der Vortrag wird aber auch Hilfestellung dabei bieten, welche (individuellen) Strategien und (externen) Angebote genutzt werden können, um Ausstiegsgedanken lösungsorientiert zu begegnen.

Sprecherin: Dr. Svea Korff ist Geschäftsführerin des Graduiertenzentrums der Universität Hildesheim und Beraterin für Wissenschaftler:innen in ihrer frühen Karrierephase. Sie unterstützt Wissenschaftler:innen beim Verbleib im oder beim Ausstieg aus der Wissenschaft. Sie ist seit 2015 Sprecherin des Forschungsclusters „Hochschule und Bildung“ und war Koordinatorin des DFG-geförderten wissenschaftlichen Netzwerks „Ausstieg aus der Wissenschaft“ (2018-2020).

Description: When selecting staff, we want to hire only the best, but we´re hampered by our own biases in this process. How can we de-bias our workplace?
Hiring staff is one of the most crucial processes in scientists´ careers, yet we´re often remarkably 'un-scientific' when it comes to conducting them. Often, first impressions and other superficialities take over our minds as we try to select the best candidates for a position. We end up hiring clones of ourselves.

In this talk, we´ll look at the many pitfalls we´re facing when hiring staff, most of which have to do with confirmation biases: we´re prone to try to confirm our initial snap judgments formed during the superficial first impression. How can we devise a process that will focus our minds on relevant information, how can we look behind facades and how can we critically question our own judgments?

This talk is not only relevant for hiring managers. Biases screw up a whole number of work processes, just think of the interpretation of data ("Oh dear, how I´d love to see a peak here...")! We take the hiring process as a case study, but many of the take-homes can be applied to other work settings as well.

Speaker: Dr. Philipp Gramlich has studied and researched chemistry (>2800 citations, Google Scholar 2021) at five universities in Germany, Australia and Scotland. He gained experience in industry, first at baseclick, a biotechnology start-up and later at Eurofins Genomics as Teamleader R&D, QC and Analytics, being responsible for up to 22 staff. Since 2016, he is fully focusing on his work as co-founder of NaturalScience.Careers. He specialises in seminars and talks about career development, leadership and presentation skills. Since 2016, he regularly writes career columns for “Nachrichten aus der Chemie”.

Description: Most pre-docs and postdocs at German universities are working in limited-term employment contracts according to the Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz (WissZeitVG). The WissZeitVG limits the overall duration of employment in limited-term contracts at German universities or research institutes for qualification purposes to 12 years (15 years in the field of medicine). In certain cases, for example for childcare, the WissZeitVG allows extensions of the maximum period of employment. It also contains special clauses for limited term employment in third-party funded projects.  This TUM Postdoc101 talk aims to equip participants with the necessary basic knowledge of WissZeitVG that is essential for the planning of a career in science.

Speaker: Dr. Vanessa Adam is a lawyer and consultant at Deutscher Hochschulverband, Bonn. Her professional focus is employment law, university law and civil servant law. She offers legal consultations on these topics, support in appointment negotiations for professorships as well as general career advice in the academic field to members of Deutscher Hochschulverband.

Description: As a postdoc, you are usually involved in supervising students and doctoral researchers in one or the other way. Most researchers are thrown into this very important task without formal training. While most researchers gain hands-on experience, we would like to discuss what makes a good supervisor as part of this Munich Postdoc101 talk. We have invited various experts to share their expertise and tips with you.

Speakers: Prof. Dr. Felix Brandt, Supervisory Award Winner 2021, Decision Sciences & Systems (DSS), Department of Computer Science, School of Computation, Information, and Technology, TUM

Dr. Chien-Yun Lee, Young Investigator Group Leader/TUM Junior Fellow, Chair of Proteomics and Bioanalytics, TUM School of Life Sciences

Cooperation Partner: TUM Graduate School

Description: Getting your work on social media may be easy - but making it popular is more challenging. This workshop takes you through the main social media channels and looks at how to create share-worthy content messages. Discover how to use social media to foster meaningful interactions and share your work with as many people as possible. Form tweets to live streams this interactive session is packed with ideas of how to maximise your use of social media as a researcher. 

Objectives:

After the talk, you should be able to:

• Raise your profile with social media
• Know how to plan effective content to minimize the time requirement  
• Understand the use of social media as a research and networking tool
• Increase your following and interactions by creating sharable content
• Create platform specific content for Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube
• Know how to make online events accessible, safe and ethical

Speaker: Dr. Jamie Gallagher is an award-winning freelance communicator and engagement professional with ten years’ experience in the delivery and evaluation of quality engagement projects. During the pandemic Jamie has delivered training to over 3,000 researchers and online events to over 10,000 people. With a specialisation in evaluation Jamie also provides consultancy services to charities and universities helping them to demonstrate their impact and understand their audiences and stakeholders.

Description: Actually, the matter is clear: research is for innovation and progress, and since these imply thinking and acting in a completely new way, there is a need for creative power in scientific work. Now disappointments can occur: The creative force shatters in the hierarchical administrative structures. Or exactly these structures, or the security methods provide, prevent to take the step into free, open thinking to lift projects and disciplines to a new level of quality and knowledge - and maybe even: joy, or purpose.

This talk takes a look at examples of good creative practices in science and wants to give inspiration for creative thinking between outcome orientation and intellectual pleasure.

Topics:

• Creativity techniques to overcome mental barriers
• Creativity techniques for innovation
• Creativity techniques to endure unbeloved duties
• Limits of creativity in Academia

Speaker: PD Dr. Mareike Menne received her PHD and habilitation in Early Modern History from Paderborn University. After her post-doctoral fellowship in the DFG-GK Archives - Power - Knowledge at Bielefeld University, she was in academic management at Stuttgart University. In 2013, she founded her consultancy on academic career planning, professionalization of academic self-governance and leadership, and resilience.

Description: An appropriate integration of gender aspects is key to successful grant applications, not only on a European Level. Other major funding bodies such as the DFG have also made it an explicit point of consideration in the project. However, it is the European Commission that makes gender aspects an explicit evaluation criterium with respect to scientific excellence. Their constructive integration into the research design delivers a higher quality of the research itself as well as a higher relevance of the research results. Therefore, I will introduce the different facets of gender aspects in grant proposals and present in an interactive discussion interactions from various disciplines. Following this, we will dive into some hands-on instructions on how to identify

• how the formulation of the research questions is influenced by the gender of the proposal writer,
• which aspects of sex, gender and diversity are part of the research “object”,
• how the proposed research methodology allows the research to uncover and/or integrate sex, gender, and diversity aspects,
• how the research results themselves reflect sex, gender, and diversity, and
• how these aspects are considered in the dissemination of the research results.
• You will also get a collection of helpful links for diving into further details.

Speaker: After obtaining her PhD in Astrophysics, Dr. Sabine Preusse decided to quit academia in 2006 and to move on to the project management of European Funded Research projects in the Steinbeis-Europa-Zentrum. Besides writing grant proposals and being a project manager in the field of production technologies, she further trained herself as a business economist (IWW) and a professional business trainer. With this, she founded her own company RaumZeit e.K. Coaching Training Beratung in 2011 and is now (also as a professional business coach) supporting researchers at all levels and from all disciplines in grant proposal writing, the implementation of research projects, dissemination and exploitation of project results, and Open Educational Resources.

Since 2011, Sabine Preusse has given more than 150 two-day workshops on grant proposal writing and more than 80 coaching sessions with respect to grant proposal writing, design of research projects and career for young researchers, postdocs and professors.

Beschreibung: „Bin ich auf dem richtigen Weg?“ – Der Ausstieg aus der Wissenschaft als permanente Option

Wie kommt es, dass sich Postdocs für den Verbleib im oder den Ausstieg aus der Wissenschaft entscheiden? Postdocs befinden sich in der Phase zwischen Promotion und Professur in einem Orientierungsprozess, in dem sie ihren Weg, ausgelöst durch (kritische) Ereignisse, immer wieder infrage stellen. Was anstrengend klingt, Ressourcen bindet und raubt, ist gleichzeitig eine Strategie der Wissenschaftler:innen, die zunehmende Unsicherheit ihrer Karrieren selbst zu kontrollieren, statt sich ihren Wirkungen auszuliefern. Ausgehend von statistischen Kennzahlen zum Flaschenhals der Wissenschaftskarriere, wird es in diesem Vortrag darum gehen, ein Modell zum ereignisgestützten Orientierungsprozess vorzustellen, welches Erkenntnisse dazu liefert, durch welche kritischen Ereignisses es in der Postdoc-Phase zu Ausstiegsgedanken kommt. Der Vortrag wird aber auch Hilfestellung dabei bieten, welche (individuellen) Strategien und (externen) Angebote genutzt werden können, um Ausstiegsgedanken lösungsorientiert zu begegnen.

Sprecherin: Dr. Svea Korff ist Geschäftsführerin des Graduiertenzentrums der Universität Hildesheim und Beraterin für Wissenschaftler:innen in ihrer frühen Karrierephase. Sie unterstützt Wissenschaftler:innen beim Verbleib im oder beim Ausstieg aus der Wissenschaft. Sie ist seit 2015 Sprecherin des Forschungsclusters „Hochschule und Bildung“ und war Koordinatorin des DFG-geförderten wissenschaftlichen Netzwerks „Ausstieg aus der Wissenschaft“ (2018-2020).

Description: The German higher education and research system is both complex and fascinating. The federal and state governments work together in funding it – and sometimes they work against each other. Universities, research institutions, policy makers, researchers: What is their role, what are their goals, and how do they pursue them? This talk is intended to provide a first overview and enable participants to reflect on some fundamental questions regarding German research policy.

Speaker: Dr. Jan-Martin Wiarda is a freelance science and education journalist and well-known for his Blog www.jmwiarda.de. He was editor at the weekly newspaper "DIE ZEIT" for many years and then worked as head of the Communication and Media Department of the Helmholtz Association. Dr. Wiarda studied political science, economics, sociology and journalism in Germany and the US.

Please note that this talk will be held exceptionally on a Thursday together with an event for new professors at TUM.

Description: The DFG is a highly attractive source of funding across all different scientific disciplines in Germany. This TUM Postdoc101 talk provides an introduction to the funding universe and the mission of this funder. The participants receive information on the basic structure for DFG proposals and specific requirements including publication and data management strategies or implementing principles of Open Science. Participants will also get useful insights into the evaluation process and the behavior of reviewers to optimize the proposal text design.

Speakers: Dr. Susanne Hollmann graduated in Chemistry/Biochemistry and did her PhD in the field of synthetic biology. She founded the Berlin-based company SB Science Management UG in 2014 together with Dr. Babette Regierer, and has been consulting academic institutions for over 20 years. As a professional proposal writer and project manager, she actively participated in the design and writing of more than 200 project proposals for national and international funding programs acquiring 120 Mio € for her customers by now. Dr. Hollmann is evaluator for European Commission and national funders and has a special interest in data management and standardization as well as impact assessment and Responsible Research and Innovation.

Dr. Babette Regierer graduated in Biology and Theology and did her PhD in the field of plant molecular biology. Since 2000, Dr. Regierer is working as scientific manager and professional grant writer with a special interest in innovation management and impact pathways. Dr. Regierer is co-founder of SB Science Management UG together with Dr. Susanne Hollmann providing consultancy services in proposal writing and training for researchers and companies. So far, her consultancy resulted in 120 Mio € funding for her customers.

Description: The speaker explores the reasoning behind peer review processes and, by retracing its history, aims to make the current status, procedures and dilemmas of peer review comprehensible. By discussing its inherent trade-offs, deliberating critical arguments which highlight the problems of peer review and presenting current approaches for finding solutions for these problems, the speaker invites the audience to reflect on how to determining the value of scientific insight.

Speaker: Dr. Oliver Grewe organizes and manages peer review processes in research funding, science evaluation and the selection of highly gifted researchers as a program manager of the Volkswagen Foundation, one of Germanies biggest private research funders. He started his career in science management at the German Academic Scholarship Foundation (Studienstiftung) and the Scientific Commission of Lower Saxony (Wissenschaftliche Kommission Niedersachsen). Since 2015 he additionally supports academics as a trainer and coach.

Dieser Vortrag wird in deutscher Sprache gehalten.

Beschreibung: In der Wissensvermittlung bewirken humorvolle Situationen oder Personen eine als sehr angenehm empfundene Lernreizintensivierung und damit eine erhöhte Aufmerksamkeit gegenüber Lehrenden, aber auch gegenüber den vermittelten Sachverhalten. Studien zeigen, dass eine solche Atmosphäre die Erinnerung an den Lehrstoff, die Konzentration, die Motivation und Kreativität steigert. In dieser aktivierenden, mit Erlebnissen und Emotionen angereicherten Lernumgebung macht Wissenstransfer Freude, den Lernenden genauso wie den Lehrenden.
Da Humor als Werkzeug aber nur dann funktioniert, wenn er authentisch ist, geht es in diesem Workshop vor allem darum, Einsatzmöglichkeiten und auch die Grenzen des Humors aufzuzeigen.

Sprecher: Prof. Dr. Suda, ist Inhaber des Lehrstuhls für Wald- und Umweltpolitik an der TUM School of Management. Der Forstpolitikwissenschaftler erhielt bereits mehrere Auszeichnungen für gute Lehre und setzt seit vielen Jahren Humor bewusst in der Lehre und in Vorträgen ein.
MA Simon Klingel ist wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter am Lehrstuhl für Wald- und Umweltpolitik an der TUM School of Management.

Description: The German research and innovation system provides excellent financing and plenty of research opportunities at the postdoctoral stage. However, most academic postions at universities are fixed-term. Permanent positions, in particular for professorships, are highly competitive. So, what are your options? And what is expected of you in your further career development? Taking an international perspective, the talk addresses the particularities of German academia and its career system from doctorate to professorship, focusing on the different pathways and development stages to build your academic portfolio and become eligible for tenure. 

Speaker: Dr. Thomas Koch is a research management consultant and certified business trainer and coach. He provides hands-on workshops and individual guidance for researchers to realise their research ideas and career objectives. He also supports higher education institutions and research consortia in implementing strategic initiatives and preparing grant proposals. Holding a PhD in physical chemistry from the UK, he builds on 10 years of international experience as a researcher and 12 years of professional experience as a research manager and senior administrator at universities in Bochum (RUB) and Munich (LMU).

Description: Exploitation describes the strategy how scientific results can be used for further research activities or for commercial or also non-commercial purposes. Exploitation has become an important aspect in many funding programs, especially in Horizon Europe, and funders expect that researchers play an active role in ensuring that their scientific results are taken up by interested parties and used to create an impact for science, economy and society. Today, exploitation is not limited to commercial use, but could also focus on social innovation or support decision makers in their policy development. Besides securing intellectual property via measures like patenting to commercialise research results, crowdfunding has recently gained attention as an additional route not only for commercialisation, but is increasingly used to also promote social innovation concepts. This TUM Postdoc101 talk will provide information about principles and strategies for the exploitation of research outcomes to achieve an impact.

Speaker: Dr. Susanne Hollmann graduated in Chemistry/Biochemistry and did her PhD in the field of synthetic biology. She founded the Berlin-based company SB Science Management UG in 2014 together with Dr. Babette Regierer, and has been consulting academic institutions for over 20 years. As a professional proposal writer and project manager, she actively participated in the design and writing of more than 200 project proposals for national and international funding programs acquiring 120 Mio € for her customers by now. Dr. Hollmann is evaluator for European Commission and national funders and has a special interest in data management and standardization as well as impact assessment and Responsible Research and Innovation.

Dr. Babette Regierer graduated in Biology and Theology and did her PhD in the field of plant molecular biology. Since 2000, Dr. Regierer is working as scientific manager and professional grant writer with a special interest in innovation management and impact pathways. Dr. Regierer is co-founder of SB Science Management UG together with Dr. Susanne Hollmann providing consultancy services in proposal writing and training for researchers and companies. So far, her consultancy resulted in 120 Mio € funding for her customers.

Description: The talk will give a brief overview of the career paths to a professorship in Germany, covering legal requirements for the selection procedure as well. It also addresses how to approach the search for relevant job advertisements, how to prepare the written application documents and how to make a good impression during the further steps of the selection procedure. Finally, the workshop will provide an outlook on negotiations on a professorship in Germany.

Speaker: Katharina Lemke is an in-house lawyer and consultant at the Deutscher Hochschulverband (DHV), Bonn, where she gives legal advice to members of DHV. Her areas of expertise are university law, public service law including public service pension law and employment law. Beyond that, she supports members of DHV with planning their career in academia and acts as a referee for seminars and workshops.

Description: Application and selection processes for professorships in Germany are not only often lengthy and complex, but also differ across institutions and states. While the Postdoc101 Talk “How to become a Professor” on February 9, 2022 provides insights into the legal requirements and application & selection procedures in general, this panel discussion gives participants the opportunity to learn from professors who successfully applied for positions during the last years. We invited panellists from various institutions and fields to talk about their personal experience with application and recruitment processes at different institutions and their motivation to be professor. Topics such as changing institutions for a professorship, joint appointments with non-university research institutions and differences between Germany and the UK will be addressed.

Being a professor also means assuming a new role with leadership and administrative tasks in addition to conducting research & teaching. We will discuss with the panellists how they experienced their initial period as a professor, how they prepared for this role and what advice they may want to share with researchers who are planning to apply for professorships.

Panelists:
Prof. Dr. Caroline Gutjahr joined TUM as a Tenure Track Assistant Professor for Plant Genetics at the TUM School of Life Sciences in 2017. She previously led an Emmy Noether Research Group at LMU Munich. In 2021, she completed the Tenure Track Phase and was promoted Associate Professor.
Prof. Dr. Julia Affolderbach joined the University of Trier as Assistant Professor in 2020 and heads the Chair for Sustainable Regional and Urban Development. She previously had senior lecturer and various other position at the University of Hull.
Prof. Dr. Julia Schnabel is Professor for Computational Imaging and AI in Medicine at TUM (TUM Liesel Beckmann Distinguished Professorship) jointly with the Helmholtz Zentrum Munich (Helmholtz Distinguished Professorship). She previously headed the Chair in Computational Imaging at the School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences at King's College London.
Prof. Dr. Pramod Bhatotia heads the Chair of Decentralized Systems Engineering at the Department of Informatics at TUM. Before joining TUM in 2020, he was Professor at the University of Edinburgh and Technical Director at Huawei.

Description: The Embassy of Good Science is a recently established pan-European platform to support researchers in acting with integrity and according to pertinent ethical standards. In our presentation we will give an overview of the structure and functionalities of the platform and outline how it can support researchers, especially postdocs. We will use ENERI (European Network of Research Ethics and Research Integrity) as an example to show how the Embassy can help researchers navigate the sometimes complex research integrity and research ethics landscape and thus support them in conducting good science.

Speakers: Dr Lisa Tambornino works in the areas of research ethics and research integrity for EUREC - the European Network of Research Ethics Committees. She is involved in many different EU projects on research ethics, ethics of emerging technologies and ethics of participation. Lisa studied philosophy, psychology and law at the University of Bonn and has a substantial background in ethics, especially bioethics and medical ethics. She has more than ten years of experience in working in interdisciplinary fields – in research, writing/editorial, project management and teaching.

Tom Lindemann works for EUREC where he is involved in several projects on research integrity and research ethics. He has helped developing, organizing and implementing educational and awareness actions to promote research integrity and written on ethical and legal aspects of data protection governance in ICT research. Moreover, he has expertise and experience in stakeholder engagement, project management and grant writing. Before joining EUREC Office, he worked at Saarland University.