PhD student representatives foster strong ties in the student community
Christian Lehmann from the Knoblich group and
Ralf Jansen from the Brennecke group
represented the PhD students at IMBA in 2023.
The IMBA student representatives gave us an insight into their experience at IMBA and how they have supported their peers in the last year.
Ralf Jansen: IMBA as a part of the Vienna BioCenter is a great place to do research and develop as a scientist, because we can access world-class research infrastructure and are constantly exposed to an amazing diversity of research directions across all institutes. This provides a uniquely fertile foundation to grow new, often interdisciplinary collaborations within the campus.
Marie-Christin Leitner: IMBA is a creative hub that fosters cutting edge research in a highly collaborative environment.
Christian Lehmann: IMBA provides an ideal environment for PhD students to do scientific research, offering access to high-end facilities and fostering collaborations within the campus. This opens unique opportunities for students to mature and pursue their passion.
Christian Lehmann: Pursuing a PhD can be a challenging, yet ultimately rewarding journey. My aim was to use my experience to help other PhD students and make their PhD adventure even more fulfilling.
Ralf Jansen: Doing your PhD in any high-level institution can be challenging because producing quality research requires a lot of dedication. I was interested in building on existing support systems and exploring new ones.
Marie-Christin Leitner: I think it’s important to listen to the experiences of PhD students. It’s essential to nurture a student community that supports each other and makes sure that concerns from PhD students are shared with management.
Christian Lehmann: We lead a successful yearly PhD student survey, in which 90-95% of students participate. This allows us to identify topics that are relevant to PhD students and tackle them before they can become an issue. The last example was mental health: we partnered with faculty and management to introduce positive change by giving PhD students more tools for managing stress.
Marie-Christin Leitner: We’ve set up office hours where students can drop by and share whatever’s on their mind. And we also use town hall-style meetings where anyone can come and discuss these topics collectively.
Ralf Jansen: We’ve identified that issues can stem from inefficient communication. The Vienna BioCenter Scientific Training Unit, which also organizes the Vienna BioCenter PhD Program, is developing leadership courses to address the topic of leadership in academia.
Christian Lehmann: We are also organizing debate courses that will help PhD students more effectively discuss their projects and concerns. These are essential skills that students will be able to apply in their professional future. Marie-
Christin Leitner: The PhD retreats, which are organized by us, have been a great resource to provide PhD students with experiences of what it’s like to present their research in flash talks or in a poster format, and are a great platform for networking and sharing their passion.