The current round started in October 2023! The application process is closed.

Doctoral candidates who are close to completing their doctorate and postdoctoral researchers who are still at an early stage often have not yet reached a definitive decision as to where their career path should lead or do not know exactly what steps are necessary to achieve their goal. By exchanging experiences with colleagues in a similar situation and with experienced people who have followed similar paths and hold attractive positions, questions about their own career orientation can be clarified particularly well.

The programme ‘Potentials. Career orientation and planning for female researchers’ is aimed in particular at highly qualified women* who want to successfully continue their career either in academia or in the non-academic field, but are still looking for the perspective that suits them. Participation in the mentoring programme can help with orientation. Female researchers* who were the first in their family to attend university are expressly invited to apply.

One-to-one mentoring partnerships last for twelve months and form the driving force of professional development at this stage. Mentoring partnerships must be carefully prepared and are orientated entirely to the needs of the mentee. For example, experiences gained by people who were the first in their family to attend university could be addressed, if desired. Therefore, the mentees themselves select the mentor who is suitable for them. They will be supported by the vice president and the coordinator during the process of contacting them.

The mentoring partnership is complemented by a supporting programme that allows the mentees to reflect on the individual mentoring partnership and personal development with their peers and a professional coach. The supporting programme includes a preparatory workshop, an interim workshop and a final workshop, as well as the opportunity to take part in individual coaching sessions with the trainer.

In addition, workshops, discussion evenings or lectures, which are organized according to the wishes of the mentees, offer the opportunity to acquire complementary interdisciplinary knowledge and to network with one another.

Both mentees and mentors receive a certificate at the end of the mentoring programme.

The programme coordinator will be happy to assist prospective mentors with questions and advice.

*This refers to all persons who identify as female researchers. This explicitly includes trans*, inter* and non-binary people who identify as female. Female researchers with a disability will be given priority in the application procedures. The term ‘mentor’ also refers to all people who want to take on this task, regardless of their gender identity.