Here, participants in the Voluntary Scientific Year (FWJ) report on their experiences in the Department of Psychological Methodology and Statistics at the University of Oldenburg.

Why did you decide to do a voluntary year in science?

Hanna:
During my final years at school, I’d always been interested in the natural sciences and could imagine going into science and/or research later on. When I was sitting my Abitur, however, I didn’t yet know exactly what I wanted to study and wanted to get a feel for science and research first. The FWJ presented the perfect opportunity to get to know science and research, as well as everyday university life.

Merlind:
My reasons are actually quite similar to Hanna’s. I’ve always been interested in psychology and could well imagine going into research later on. Here, I’ve found the perfect combination of both fields. I also knew that I didn’t want to start university straight after my Abitur, but I still wanted to make progress in my future career.

Where are you based and what are your areas of responsibility?

We’re working on three different studies and are responsible for different tasks depending on the study. The first study focuses on the rehabilitation processes of stroke patients following their stroke. Here, we’re responsible for contacting participants and sending out questionnaires. We were also given the opportunity to write a code that statistically analyses the patient data and presents it graphically.
The second study looks at how hearing aids influence speech processing in the brain. Our task here is to prepare study mobile phones for a phase of mobile, everyday data collection. We also help participants if they have any problems with the study mobile phones. We have recently started conducting cognitive tests with the participants here in the laboratory.
The third study focuses on improving genetic counselling and gaining a better understanding of patients’ experiences during genetic counselling. To this end, we assist with recruitment and introduce the study to new participants. Once they have agreed to take part, we send out questionnaires at specific intervals.
Outside of the studies, we help with various tasks that arise within the team, such as creating posters or leaflets, or conducting trial runs for future studies.

What has pleasantly surprised you?

Hanna:
I was surprised by how much fun I’ve had with programming. I took a year of Computing Science at school and didn’t really enjoy the programming aspect of it back then. I also like the fact that we’re involved in such a wide range of tasks and get to learn about so many different things.

Merlind:
I was surprised that we’re able to work so independently. I’d already been told during the interview that I could organise my work fairly freely and that, if I had any ideas, I was of course welcome to contribute them, but it still struck me as particularly positive. Above all, this is a big difference from school, where so much was dictated to us.
What I also really like is that we can attend lectures. These are supposed to focus on psychology, but if I fancy another lecture, I’m perfectly free to pop in and have a look. I think this makes everyday student life feel much more realistic and helps you picture what it’ll be like to study later on.

What do you think this year will bring for you?

The voluntary year has definitely helped us become more independent, whether it’s in running a household when you’re no longer living with your parents, or at work, where you have to learn and sort out lots of things on your own. We’ve also made progress in deciding what to study. It’s been a great help that during the voluntary year we get to find out about so many different degree programmes and can even attend lectures to get a taste of a particular subject.

What advice would you give to future volunteers?

We’d definitely advise you to do a FWJ in our working group! :-) Everyone here is really lovely; sometimes we even meet up outside of work to play games or do a Secret Santa around Christmas time. You can really tell that everyone here enjoys research, which is incredibly motivating. We’d also advise you not to be afraid to ask questions or express your wishes, as everyone is really helpful and will work with you to make the most of the year.