Articles and experience reports for researchers
General conditions of the German higher education system
The general conditions of the German higher education system are such that about four postdocs with habilitation facing one elected faculty member (Consortium for National Report on Junior scholars, 2017, Summary on page 17). This means that you must be realistic about your career chances and also use the postdoc phase to prepare possible career pathways that lead to industry, governmental organizations, associations, service providers or directly into your own spin-off. Consider early on which path suits you and how it can be implemented.
All of these career paths which get further orientation here at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf are supported by the Junior Scientist and International Researcher Center (JUNO) with a broad transferable skills training programme and networking events.
Below you will find a helpful compilation of articles and testimonials to support your postdoc.
Postdocs
- Research your career options well before graduation
- What is a postdoc?
- The autopilot postdoc
- The postdoc search timeline
- How do I choose a principal investigator for my next postdoc?
- Recognition: Build a reputation
- Nature Careers - Webcast: How to plan your career
- How to succed as a scientist: From Postdoc to Scientist
- How to find, read and organize papers
- How to find your place in science through an industry postdoc
YouTube Video – My 10 best tipps for postdocs by Matthias Rillig, professor of ecology at Freie Universität Berlin
Book recommendation:
- What every postdoc needs to know, Liz Elvidge (Imperial College London, UK), Carol Spencely (University of Surrey, UK) and Emma Williams (EJW Solutions Ltd, UK, https://doi.org/10.1142/q0070
- The Professor is In. The essential guide to turning your Ph.D. into a job by Kelsky, Karen, 2015. ISBN: 9780553419436 . The book can be borrowed from the HHU library.
- Charting a Course For a successful research career, Free download
Research group leaders and junior professors
- How we landed job interviews for professorships straight out of our PhD programmes
- Aiming for a professorship in Germany
- Management 101 for scientists - three rules for managing a successful team
- Interview skills and tips for jobseekers: A roundup
- How to deal with grant rejection
- How to Ace the Virtual Interview
- What makes us tick: lab leaders describe their research philosophies
- Management. When Jobs go wrong
Having to dismiss lab members is not easy, but there are ways to make the process less painful for all involved. - Why I teach my students about scientific failure
- How lab leaders can support students’ non-academic career plans
- Lab meetings shouldn’t feel intimidating. Here’s how I’ve changed mine
- A lab leader’s guide to hiring a postdoc
Books
- At the Helm: Leading Your Laboratory (English Edition), Kathy Barker, 2010, Cold Spring Harbor Lab. Press
- Lab Dynamics: Management and Leadership Skills for Scientists, 2018, Cold Spring Harbor Lab. Press
Academic life in general
Mental Health
Work Life Balance
- Work-life balance: Lab life with kids
- Six ways to juggle science and childcare from home
- Science-ing from home
Academic Sucess
- Commentary on Highly Successful Female Educational Psychologists: Equity and Intersectionality in Success Definitions
- Buch: Inspirational Women in Academia: Supporting Careers and Improving Minority Representation
Research funding
- Early-career funding: Big introductions
- It takes time and a team to win grants
- How to bounce back from grant rejection
- It’s not you, it’s me: Learning from a grant rejection
Peer review
- How not to respond to reviewers: Eight simple tips
- Peer review: Close inspection
- Webcast: How to do a great peer review
Working outside of academia
- What do researchers do next when leaving academia?
- ‘Hard’ skills from our PhDs remain relevant beyond academia
- Industrial postdocs: a bridge between two worlds
- Informational interviews
- Interview skills and tips for jobseekers: A roundup
- 5 career lessons smart people tend to forget
- Eight career tips from Nobel Laureates