t.e.a.m. expats offers female doctoral and postdoctoral researchers from non-university research institutions in Leipzig an insight into the university and support in achieving their career goals. The female doctoral and postdoctoral researchers benefit from the proven programme elements of training, expertise and alliance discussions, and individual, professorial mentoring.

Programme

t.e.a.m. expats networks female doctoral and postdoctoral researchers from university and non-university research institutions. The programme line has been implemented as a pilot project in cooperation with the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) since 2017. Since 2020, there is another cooperation with the Leibniz Institute for Surface Engineering (IOM), and since 2021 also with the Max Planck Society (MPG).

Let us know if you would like to become part of t.e.a.m. expats and actively support female doctoral and postdoctoral researchers in Leipzig.

t.e.a.m. stands for training, expertise, alliances and mentoring. The programme offers women impulses and empowerment in personal and professional terms. Female doctoral and postdoctoral researchers are specifically prepared for career options in science and at the same time gain insights into science management. The cross-institutional network also promotes knowledge transfer and interdisciplinary cooperation.

Training

An essential component are the workshops tailored to the scientific field, which, in addition to leadership and scientific competence, also address personal career planning. The training courses, which usually last one day, are offered by proven experts. The selection of topics for the workshops is specially designed for the qualification levels of the participants and is adapted according to need.

Expertise

In order to make the institutional realities of the Leipzig University and the existing expertise accessible, the Expertise roundtable format was integrated as a programme component. Here, experts and executives from administration, science management, and research and teaching at the university are in discussion to provide specific insights into university operations and to give a face to relevant structural areas. In this way, the participants become better acquainted with the workings of the institutions that are most important for their academic careers.

Alliances

During the networking evenings, participants meet women who have also started their careers at our university. The female role models offer insight into their successful careers in business, culture and politics, thus broadening perspectives. In an informal atmosphere, participants share experiences with professionally experienced women with inspiring biographies.

Mentoring

The core of the programme consists of individual mentoring between a professor at the Leipzig University and a participant from non-university research institutions. The matching of the mentoring tandems takes place on the basis of personal selection interviews and profile sheets. In addition to the professional exchange, the general conditions of work in science and on the way to a professorship are addressed. The subsequent mentoring process is jointly designed by the participants on the basis of a target agreement, with the initiative being on the part of the mentees. The topics covered in regular meetings are diverse: from the informal rules of the game in academia to compatibility issues and the exchange of experiences about any career hurdles at various qualification levels.

Information for mentees

The t.e.a.m. expats programme is aimed exclusively at female doctoral and postdoctoral researchers from non-university research institutions in Leipzig. The call for applications and the selection of applicants are carried out by the non-university research institutions. The duration of the programme is one year. A participation fee is charged for participation in the programme.

t.e.a.m. expats links t.e.a.m. participants from the Leipzig University with female doctoral and postdoctoral researchers from non-university research institutions. A willingness to network with other t.e.a.m. programme lines as well as active participation in the program is required. To make this possible, appointments will be announced well in advance, if possible. The mentoring tandem also only offers added value if the participants deal intensively with their own situation and show initiative towards the mentor in arranging appointments and in preparing and following up the meetings. At the start of the programme, the mentees receive a briefing to help them shape the mentoring relationship and understand their roles within the programme. Throughout the programme, project management and coordination are available to provide support.

During face-to-face events, it is possible to make use of free childcare. In order to ensure that this can be organized, the program coordinator will ask about the need for childcare at an early stage of each event. In addition, other needs with regard to accessibility, such as assistance requirements or sign language interpretation, can be specified.

The program allowed me to think about aspects of my career I may not have been aware of before the program, through interactions with many different people (particularily the mentor, the workshop instructors and the other program participants)

t.e.a.m. alumna, cohort 2021

I benefited at least a little bit of every single event of the program! It helped gaining security & being more confident in my future career steps. Would I participate again? Yes, definitely! Fortualy, due to the alumni network, I'm still part of it

t.e.a.m.-Alumna, cohort 2022

Information for mentors

Mentoring is based on the sharing of experience. At t.e.a.m., female doctoral and postdoctoral researchers benefit from the advice and support of professorial managers. The latter, in turn, gain insights into the needs of young female scientists through mutual exchange. For the mentoring pool of the programme, we are continuously looking for professors of our university who want to engage themselves with their knowledge and experience for women of all scientific qualification levels.

Before the start of the programme, mentors receive a briefing on their role as mentors, if required. At the beginning of each mentoring session, the mentor and mentee then draw up a joint agreement on objectives, which serves as an orientation and control instrument. To establish a successful mentoring partnership for both sides, regular contact between mentor and mentee is recommended. At best, this can take place in the form of personal meetings or digitally and can be supplemented by e-mail exchanges. The intervals between meetings should not exceed three months and should be estimated at one to two hours per meeting.

The mentorship is based on the initiative of the mentee, who encourages regular meetings and prepares and follows up on the content. On the part of the mentor, the focus is on the willingness to take time for the mentee's concerns and to work out solutions in a discursive exchange. If you have any questions about mentoring, please contact the project coordinator at any time.

Dates

Below is the programme schedule for the 2021–2022 and 2021–2022 cohorts. Prior to each event, mentees will receive an invitation requesting registration for each programme item.

  • Kick off
    Launch event (digital)
    8 July 2021 | 6pm–7pm
  • Alliances Talk
    Personal development (digital)
    4 October 2021 |16.30pm–6pm
  • Workshop
    Location determination in science (digital)
    15 October 2021 | 10am–3pm
  • Expertise Talk
    Dual Career and Appointment Process (digital)
    11 November 2021 | 16.30pm–6pm
  • Workshop
    Media Training (digital)
    26 November 2021 |9am–4pm
  • Alliances Talk
    Academic Entrepreneurship - Scientist & Founder (digital)
    13 January 2022 |16.30pm–6pm
  • Workshop
    Basics of Teaching in higher education (digital)
    20 January 2022 | 9am–4pm
  • Workshop
    Micropolitical Competences (digital)
    27 January / 3 February 2022 | 9.30am–13.30pm
  • Expertise Talk
    Research funding (digital)
    17  March 2022 |16.30pm–6pm
  • Workshop
    Financial Empowerment: Strengthen your financial self-confidence (digital)
    24 March 2022 | 9:am–4pm
  • Workshop
    Online Appointment Training (digital)
    4 April 2022 | 9am–4pm
  • Workshop
    Self, time and task management (digital)
    21 April 2022 | 9am–5pm
  • Alliances Talk
    Leadership in media companies (digital) --> CANCELLED!
    12 May 2022 |16.30pm–6pm
  • Workshop
    Intellectual property, patents, trademarks and industrial property rights (digital)
    24 May 2022 |10am–1pm
  • Expertise Talk
    Academic stays abroad (digital)
    2 June 2022 |16.30pm–6pm
  • Closing
    Closing event
    28 June 2022 | 1pm–18:30pm
  • Kick-off
    Launch event "t.e.a.m. UP 2022" (Mediencampus Villla Ida)
    28 June 2022 | 1pm–6:30 pm
  • Workshop
    Personal position determination and career planning (in presence)
    8 September 2022 | 9am–1pm
  • Alliances Talk
    Between taking off and staying groundedseveral career priorities (digital)
    13 October 2022 | 4:30pm–6pm
  • Workshop
    Leadership competences (in presence)
    10 November 2022 | 10am–5pm
  • Lunch Talk
    Visiting the Leipzig University - looking beyond one's own horizon (digital)
    17 November 2022 | 12pm–1pm
  • Workshop
    Visibility and strategic networks (in presence)
    1 December 2022 |10am–5pm
  • Workshop
    Agile working in science (in presence)
    12 January 2023 | 9am–4pm
  • Alliances Talk
    Leadership in media companies (digital)
    19 January 2023 | 4:30pm–6pm
  • Expertise Talk
    Research data management (digital)
    9 March 2023 | 4:30pm–6pm
  • Workshop
    Online vocation training for a professorship (only for Postdocs) (digital)
    30/31 March 2023
  • Workshop
    How to be confident in performing and find ways to overcome stage fright (in presence)
    28 April 2023 | 10am–5pm
  • Alliances Talk
    The professorship at a University of Applied Sciences as a career option (digital)
    3 May 2023 | 16:30pm–6pm
  • Workshop
    Basics of Teaching in Higher Education (in presence)
    9 May 2023 | 9am–4pm
  • Expertise Talk
    Publishing with Open Access (digital)
    8 June 2023 | 4:30pm–6pm
  • Workshop
    Role identification and demarcation in the area of conflict between leading and being led - for female doctoral researchers (in presence)
    14 June 2023 | 9am–1pm
  • Closing
    Closing ceremony (Mediencampus Villla Ida)
    21 June 2023 | 12pm–7:30
  • Kiff off
    t.e.a.m. UP conference 2023 (Mediencampus Villa Ida)
    21 June 2023 |12pm–7:30pm
  • Input
    Mentee briefing (Strohsackpassage, 3. OG, Konferenzraum 3.49)
    25 July 2023 | 10am–12pm
  • Workshop
    Location determination in Science
    (Strohsackpassage, 3. OG, Konferenzraum 3.49)
    September 2023
  • Workshop
    Mutterschutz, Elternzeit, wissenschaftliche Karriere - rechtliche Grundlagen und Fallstricke (digital)
    20 October 2023 |9:30am–12:30pm
  • Alliances Talk
    Building bridges between university and non-university research institute (digital)
    26 October 2023 | 12pm–1:30pm
  • Workshop
    Rolemaking instead of Roletaking! Strengthening micro-political competences and self-confidently shaping everyday university life (digital)
    11 December 2023 |9am–5pm
  • Workshop
    Stress management, imposter syndrom (Strohsackpassage, 3. OG, Konferenzraum 3.49)
    6 February 2024 | 1pm–4:30pm
  • Workshop
    Leading competences (Strohsackpassage, 3. OG, Konferenzraum 3.49)
    5 March 2024 | 9am–5pm
  • Workshop
    Successfully building professional networks - networking and small talk as important tools for your career (Strohsackpassage, 3. OG, Konferenzraum 3.49)
    15 May 2024 | 9am–4pm