Career advancement

One of the main responsibilities of the Culture and Equality unit is to develop and implement various measures in the field of the advancement of academic careers. Our services include workshops, programs and networking tailored to predoctoral and postdoctoral researchers and prospective university professors.

Predocs

doc:muv Mentoring program for early-stage researchers

The career development program doc:muv for female* prae-doc scientists of all disciplines and faculties of the University of Vienna starts in March 2025. The three-semester program combines mentoring, group coaching, and training and offers its participants the possibility to strategically plan their academic careers, to enter individual fostering relationships, and to establish (peer) networks across disciplines.
The innovative combination of mentoring, coaching and training supports young researchers in their pre-doc phase to face the varied requirements of a successful scientific career. 

/

  • Program details

    doc:muv is a three semester long program that centers on the career advancement formats "mentoring" and "coaching". In addition to those two formats, there are also trainings on other specific contents. The combination of these formats into an innovative whole should help female* academics in their pre-doc phase to face the varied requirements for a successful scientific career.

    A maximum of 24 participants can join the program. The participants will be separated into

    • two groups with 12 people each (Social Sciences & Humanities and Natural & Life Sciences) for the coaching and the trainings

    and

    • around 8 smaller groups with 3-4 people each for the mentoring.

     

    The program is open to all pre-docs who identify as female.

    Kick-Off

    The doc:muv kick-off will take place on November 28, 2024, thus before the actual start of the central program elements (mentoring, coaching, training) in March 2025. In this first meeting, participants will get to know their peers (mentees), program coordinators, and coaches. After a Who Is Who and a thematic introduction to the program, the mentees will work on a list of three potential mentors in their mentoring groups. The Culture and Equality unit will contact the mentors afterwards on the basis of this list.

    Mentoring

    The mentoring group consists of one mentor and 3-4 participants and is established according to fixed rules. The group is accompanied by professors (= mentors) of the University of Vienna in regular work meetings, answering questions regarding job, career, and routine. In addition, the peers provide each other with inputs and support.

    Coaching

    The 24 participants in the program will be divided into two equally sized coaching groups who will each be accompanied by an experience academia coach for the duration of the program. The coaching groups will, on the one hand, help prepare and accompany the mentoring relationships. On the other hand, they will work according to supervision principles to help participants formulate their career goals and work through current challenges (dealing with conflict, positioning oneself in academia, analysis of roles and expectations, work-life-balance, time management etc.).

    Training

    Once per semesters, a special two-day training with international trainers is offered on the central topics of self-presentation and empowerment, academic career-paths and application skills. The goal of the trainings is to strengthen core competencies.

Postdocs

postdoc:muv - Mentoring program for female postdoctoral researchers at the University of Vienna

The third round of the career development program postdoc:muv for the promotion of female postdoctoral researchers of all disciplines and faculties of the University of Vienna will start in March 2024. The program combines the three formats mentoring, group coaching, and training. The English-speaking program lasts three semesters and offers its participants the possibility to strategically plan their academic career, to enter individual fostering relationships, and to establish (peer) networks across disciplines.

postdoc:muv fosters an inclusive, supportive, and respectful environment, where participant’s experiences, identities, and backgrounds are acknowledged and cherished. For more details see the postdoc:muv mission statement.

/

  • Program details

    postdoc:muv is a three semester long program that centers on the career advancement formats "mentoring" and "coaching". In addition to those two formats, there are also trainings on other specific contents. The combination of these formats into an innovative whole should help female scientists in their post-doc phase to face the varied requirements fora successful scientific career.

    A maximum of 24 participants can join the program. The participants will be separated into

    • two groups with 12 people each (Humanities & Social Sciences and Natural & Life Sciences) for the coaching and
    • around 8 smaller groups with 3-4 people each for the mentoring.

     

    Kick-Off

    The postdoc:muv kick-off will take place on November 30, 2023, thus before the actual start of the central program elements (Mentoring, Coaching, Training) in March 2024. In this first meeting, participants will get to know their peers (mentees), program coordinators, and coaches. After a Who Is Who and a thematic introduction to the program, the mentees will work on a list of three potential mentors in their mentoring groups. The Culture and Equality unit will contact the mentors afterwards on the basis of this list.

    Mentoring

    The mentoring group consists of one mentor and 3-4 participants and is established according to fixed rules. The group is accompanied by professors (= mentors) of the University of Vienna in regular work meetings answering questions regarding job, career, and routine. In addition, the peers provide each other with impulses and support.

    Coaching

    The 24 participants in the program will be divided into two equally sized coaching groups who will each be accompanied by an experience Academia Coach for the duration of the program. The coaching groups will, on the one hand, help prepare and accompany the mentoring relationships. On the other hand, they will work according to supervision principles to help participants formulate their career goals and work through current challenges (dealing with conflict, positioning oneself in academia, analysis of roles and expectations, work-life-balance, time management etc.).

    Training

    Once per semesters, a special two day training with international trainers is offered on the central topics of presentation, negotiation, and leadership. The goal of the trainings is to strengthen core competencies.

Franziska Seidl Funding Program

On behalf of the Rectorate, the Culture and Equality unit offers three fixed-term positions (6 months each) for female postdoctoral researchers every six months as part of a new program for the advancement of women. The positions will especially be awarded in those faculties/centers of the University of Vienna where women are significantly underrepresented. The program supports female scientists at the University of Vienna in completing research projects, finalizing / revising / resubmitting research proposals and/or completing publications.

Habilitation training for female academics

Habilitation is a postdoctoral qualification in several countries and by its peculiarity requires much knowledge and understanding of the academic world and its rituals. In general, women have less access to male-dominated networks and informal information. Hence, this one-day-workshop is targeted towards female postdoctoral candidates working on a specific habilitation project and female postdocs who aspire to or are at the beginning of a habilitation. The workshop is designed with the aim to provide them with concise information about the process and regulation of habilitation and to support them in planning their steps towards a successful habilitation.

Thematic focus:
Significance of the habilitation for an academic career; the process of habilitation: prerequisites, requirements and types of habilitation; the unwritten rules of habilitation; time management during habilitation.

 

You are invited to participate in one of these workshops. 

Please specify in your applicaton for which training/date you apply (if more than one date are possible and make sense at this stage of your career please state so in your application) and if German and/or English is acceptable as training language for you (the training language will be decided upon the preferences of the applicants). The more options (dates, languages) you accept, the easier it will be to offer you a place in one of the workshops.

To apply for the training, please send your CV in tabular form and a short abstract about your habilitation project to the following e-mail address: equality@univie.ac.at.

Prospective professors

Appointment training for prospective professors

This offer is an important measure to increase the career opportunities of female academics at the University of Vienna and thus to promote gender equality. By taking part they acquire extensive formal and informal knowledge about the professors’ appointment process and are prepared for their national or international applications. The workshop is targeted towards female academics of the University of Vienna holding a habilitation or equivalent qualification who are currently applicants in national or international appointment procedures or who are planning to apply for a professorship within the next few years.

Thematic focus:
Legal framework; coaching of soft skills; unwritten rules of the appointment process; talking with the appointment committee; strategies for salary negotiations.

  • Next training: 24 + 25 September 2025 (online)
  • Course language: English or German
  • Trainer: Ute Riedler
  • Program

The training is a two-day training and we invite you to apply.

Please specify in your applicaton if German and/or English are acceptable as training languages for you (the training language will be decided upon the preferences of the applicants) and also which of the dates are suitable for you (or both?).

To apply for the training, please send your CV in tabular form and a one page motivation letter to the following e-mail address: equality@univie.ac.at.

 

 

Networking

Networking lunch for female academics

Based on the experience that good networks are of key importance for an academic career, the Culture and Equality unit has been organising networking events for current and previous participants of its programs. Each networking lunch is designed to provide a space for input and in-depth dialogue on a selected topic as well as time for networking, reunion and informal exchange.

  • Previous networking events:
    "Self-Leadership - Connecting to the Source" with Anette Hammerschmidt.
    "Networking made easy?" with Deborah Ruggieri.
    “Does a successful academic career go together with family life and private interests?”
    with Prof. Andrea Olschewski, Moderation: Ute Riedler.
    "Salary negotiations for women" with Ute Riedler