News Current news for Postdocs
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Inspired by the celebration of the Postdoc Appreciation Week in the USA and the UK, the PAW Germany coordination team invited researchers and research institutions, postdoc coordinators and research administrators all over Germany to join us in creating a special program, events and a social media campaign to honor the incredible work of postdocs! The initiative was well taken and our colleagues and postdoc networks all over the country quickly put together a great program with a wide range of topics – most of them online and open for attendees from any institution in Germany. In Heidelberg, the Heidelberg University Postdoc Network, in collaboration with the Graduate Academy and heiTRACKS, is also offering several events on September 21 and 23, for which registration opens on September 1:
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Germany’s largest independent research funding organisation offers funding opportunities for all career stages between doctorate and professorship. Join our online talk and get to know the DFG and its funding portfolio for postdocs. We offer an overview of all funding instruments for the time after your PhD as well as specific focus talks on the Walter Benjamin Programme, the Emmy Noether Programme and the Heisenberg Programme. We will also provide advice on how to prepare your proposal for the review process and answer your questions. PhD candidates and postdocs of all disciplines are welcome to join! The Webex link for each info talk will be published on this page shortly before the respective dates. No prior registration is required. Upcoming talks in the Prospects Series
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CareerPlus – heiTRACKS’ online series on professional development inside and outside academia is back in 2026 with three exciting impulses. Join us online to learn how to approach salary negotiations strategically, gain clarity on how the German academic system really works, and discover agile methods and mindsets that can make your work more efficient and adaptive. Each session offers practical insights, hands-on advice, and the chance to connect with experts on the topic. All events will be exclusively for postdocs and held in English. For more information and registration, please visit the CareerPlus website.
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Are you currently doing research in Germany and would like to get a postdoc position abroad or go on a sabbatical? The Feodor Lynen Research Fellowship will finance your research stay with members of the Humboldt Network abroad for a period of six to 24 months. And not just immediately after your PhD either, but also later in your career, up to 12 years after you complete your doctorate! Moreover, we may also offer substantial support for members of your family who accompany you. The meeting will be held in English. You do not need to register. | |||
The Protestant University of Applied Sciences Freiburg provides targeted career development support (leading to a professorship at a university of applied sciences) for doctoral candidates in the final stages of their studies as well as postdoctoral researchers at all career stages. To this end, a Winter School offers 4 (online) workshops in which 12 participants with backgrounds in the social sciences and humanities work together and receive both theoretical and practical guidance for their future academic careers. Registration for the winter school is open until July 3, 2026. Dates for the 2026/2027 winter semester
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The event will focus on the DFG’s individual funding programmes and provide practical advice on preparing an application. Alongside a presentation by Dr. Anna Böhme from the DFG, the programme will include perspectives from a member of a DFG review board and a successful applicant, followed by an extensive Q&A session. Participation is free of charge, and the event is open to doctoral and postdoctoral researchers from all universities and academic disciplines. It is particularly relevant for postdoctoral researchers, junior professors, and doctoral researchers in the final stages of their dissertation. The presentations will be held in English; questions and discussions are welcome in both English and German. | |||
The Hohenheim NextGen Scientists Symposium offers early-career researchers the opportunity to discuss their research ideas with experts from the University of Hohenheim and to get to know Hohenheim as a potential location for their future research and career. You can apply for the symposium through August 2, 2026. In addition, through this symposium, the University of Hohenheim invites outstanding early career researchers (up to four years after PhD completion) to discover the University of Hohenheim as a potential place to develop their next research steps and to advance their careers. Chaired by experts in the field, the event provides a forum for presenting current research ideas in the following areas and for exploring potential collaborations:
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The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation invites Germany-based early- and mid-career researchers from various disciplines to apply to participate in a symposium organised jointly with the British Academy on the broad theme of “Humans and nature: More resilient towards the future”. The symposium will take place from (Wednesday) 21 April 2027 to (Friday) 23 April 2027 in Bonn, Germany and aims to stimulate and establish international engagement and collaboration between early career researchers in Germany and the United Kingdom working in a broad range of disciplines. It is designed to encourage the exchange of ideas across both disciplinary and national boundaries by adopting a format that will allow for extensive discussion and debate, with considerable time set aside for this and other networking opportunities. Thematic focus: The relationship between humans and nature has always been contested. While some argue that humans stand above nature and are positioned to ‘manage’ it, others rather perceive humans as being part of nature and hence stress the need to co-exist, questioning excessive human interference into natural habitats. In times of polycrises and increasing systemic risks, the need to rethink this relationship appears more urgent than ever. Impacts of e.g., technological advancement, population growth, economies based on growth and consumption, constant loss of biodiversity, increasing hydro-climatic variabilities/extremes and ever-increasing demand for natural resources shape this human-nature relation. We can only understand what makes natural, social, political and economic systems more resilient by reconsidering human-nature relations in terms of balancing societal needs and ecological integrity in more sustainable ways. Such a critical rethinking exercise, necessary to find alternative pathways to a more resilient future, could span the whole cycle from philosophical, ethical and artistic considerations, to social, political, economic and geographical challenges, and to designing concrete policymaking solutions. Accordingly, participants from a large variety of disciplines could contribute, ensuring the symposium’s interdisciplinary and forward-looking character. The application deadline is 02.08.2026. | |||
Heidelberg Research Service – Information and Advice on Horizon Europe 2025 | Anytime | Under Horizon Europe, the EU's current framework programme for research and innovation (2021-2027), a large part of the funding budget is distributed by means of top-down calls for research proposals on specific subjects and aimed at international consortia of Principal Investigators (PIs) from different European universities and research organisations. These calls are predefined in work programmes for the various parts of Horizon Europe published every one or two years. Current drafts of these work programmes are available from the Heidelberg Research Service. If you are interested in these calls and would like to coordinate or participate in a consortium applying for them, we kindly invite you to get in touch with the EU Team of the Heidelberg Research Service. In individual consultations, we can share the details of the EU drafts with you and advise you regarding the next steps. If you are interested, then please contact Dr. Moritz Vogel or Dr. Xenja Herren: moritz.vogel@zuv.uni-heidelberg.de | |
The leadership coaching offers you temporary support in consciously and professionally shaping your leadership role as a junior group leader at Heidelberg University. The offer is ongoing and can be taken up at any time. If you have any further questions, please contact Ms. Susanne Scheer: susanne.scheer@zuv.uni-heidelberg.de | |||
The PROM Programme is a short-term academic exchange designed to support doctoral students in expanding their knowledge and skills. The programme enables PhD students to take part in various short-term educational activities, including courses, workshops, professional internships, study visits, conferences, and summer or winter schools organized by the Jagiellonian University. The PROM Programme covers travel expenses, living costs, and, if applicable, conference fees or participation costs for summer and winter schools. To apply, candidates must independently identify a Jagiellonian University academic staff member willing to host and supervise the visit. | |||
The Scientific Software Center (SSC) of Heidelberg University offers a variety of courses connected to scientific software development. If you want to learn git, how to test your software and about best practices in Python, then joing the half-day courses or block courses of the software center. They offer:
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Would you like to learn how to get the best possible protection for the intellectual property originating from your research results? Then you are welcome to visit the next open IP & Transfer consultation hour of ScienceValue Heidelberg GmbH (SVH) at INF Campus Heidelberg to receive advice on all questions related to the exploitation of your intellectual property! If you have any questions, for example about scheduling an individual appointment, you can contact their team by sending an email to sciencevalue.heidelberg@med.uni-heidelberg.de | |||
The best prevention against depression, anxiety and mental stress is contact with other people. Therefore, the basic idea of prEVENTion is to prevent mental stress through joint positive activities. prEVENTion is an association in which students regularly organize and hold various activities (e.g. handicrafts, cooking, reading, sports) without any obligation. Especially people who have experienced depression or who come from a family in which one or both parents were ill with depression should feel addressed, since there is an increased risk of illness here. Furthermore the offer is directed at people who do not (or no longer) have sufficient access to their social network (e.g. due to relocation, separation, change of life situation), or who are currently going through a difficult phase in life. | |||
What is eDOCation all about? eDOCation is the first online platform where young scientists ("eDOCs") offer continuing education for companies. I launched the initiative together with my former doctoral colleague Tobias Hornig (now a data scientist at Siemens). The platform contributes to the transfer of knowledge from universities to business practice and to improving the financial situation and future prospects of doctoral students, postdocs and junior professors. Market research conducted by us has shown that our eDOCs could earn a high three-digit € amount for a two-hour research workshop in companies. At the same time, eDOCation offers companies and their employees the opportunity to benefit from state-of-the-art science in the sense of lifelong learning and to gain access to the country's brightest minds as mentors in the "war for talent". The company is currently being promoted by the Stifterverband as one of the "30 best ideas for the education, science and innovation system of tomorrow" as part of the WIRKUNG HOCH 100 initiative. More information about eDOCation is available at http://www.edocation.org and in the attached presentation. You want to get to know us? The eDOCation Powerbank regularly offers free and non-binding workshops that can support you in research & teaching as well as personal growth. The following events are planned for the semester break (including links to Eventbrite).
please send your application to edoc@edocation.org More information, such as selection criteria or forms of continuing education, can be found here. You can view the profiles of our current eDOCs here. How else can you support us? If you find the idea of eDOCation exciting, we would be happy if you would personally recommend it to friends and acquaintances in academia and industry. You can also help us to expand our network and keep up to date with the latest news by following us on LinkedIn. | |||
Career Coaching for Postdocs – Ongoing Services Postdocs (2-4 years after completing their doctorate) now have the opportunity for individual Career Coaching. In confidential one-on-one meetings with a university internal coach, the own career path can be consciously reflected upon and actively shaped. |