The ground floor in the west wing of university building A07 still resembles a building site: busy tradespeople are walking along the corridor, it's a bit dusty and there is clearly construction, renovation and repair work going on. But a new staircase leads to the extended and already completed part of the building, where the Department of Psychology - separated by a door - shares some offices with Division 3. In the psychology area, two long corridors lead off five rooms each, including offices for staff, seminar and meeting rooms. The corridors and rooms are bright, friendly and designed according to the latest standards. The size of the rooms varies; there are smaller offices of 16 square metres and larger rooms of 35 square metres. A kitchenette, storage and technical room complete the psychologists' new workspace. "A seating area at the end of the corridor will complement the room allocation. Then we will have an additional meeting place for exchanging ideas," explains the Director of the Department of Psychology, Prof Dr Andrea Hildebrandt.
Hildebrandt and her colleagues have been working in the new premises since mid-October 2022 and have been enjoying the new space every day since then. Dr Martin Bleichner, Head of the Emmy Noether Group NELI ("Neurophysiology of Everyday Life"), previously shared rooms with Prof Dr Stefan Debener from the Neuropsychology Department and now has two new offices here. "We now have optimal working conditions - the rooms are very well lit and have a quiet atmosphere," says Bleichner. During the renovation period, he was less successful working in the building. The disruption caused by the construction work was sometimes so great that Martin Bleichner and his team had to work from home. Other colleagues, on the other hand, didn't know any different. During the interview rounds for the Junior Professorship of Outpatient Assessment in Psychology, the then applicant Dr Mandy Roheger and Director Andrea Hildebrandt remember with a smile how they literally had to shout at each other during the interview. Mandy Roheger, who has been a junior professor in the Department of Psychology since August 2022, currently occupies three rooms on the new floor. "During the job interview, I could immediately see what was developing here. That motivated me even more to contribute to these growing structures," recalls the 29-year-old. Today, she manages practical projects in psychology in a seminar room and appreciates the new premises for their modern technical equipment. In addition to Mandy Roheger and Martin Bleichner, other scientists from the Departments of Biological Psychology and Neuropsychology as well as the Neuromodulation Research Training Group have also moved into the new offices.
Not all areas of teaching, learning and research were affected by the construction work. The EEG labs and sound booths, for example, are embedded in a separate foundation and remained virtually unaffected by the remodelling work. This is not unimportant, as the remaining work on the ground floor of the A07 building will continue until early 2023. "We are happy to accept the conversion process. The great result in the extended part of the building is a great benefit for us all," summarises Andrea Hildebrandt. The Department of Psychology currently has 130 enrolled students - and the number is rising. There are no plans to add another storey for additional space, but it may be an option for the east wing at some point.