Key Qualification
Key Qualification
Here you can find the current annual program of the Viadrina Center for Graduate Studies (VCGS). Our workshops and events are led by highly qualified external trainers and are free of charge for you as Viadrina researchers.
The program offers target group specific formats for doctoral researchers (R1) and postdocs (R2/R3). The VCGS offers are open to all members and affiliates of the Viadrina.
Summer semester 2026
Target Audience: Doctoral and Postdoctoral Researchers (R1-R3)
Dates: Monday, April 27 - Wednesday, April 29, 2026, 9 am - 12 noon (each day) | Online
Instructor: Mark Edwards
Language: English
Content:
AI is transforming the way we all work. Used wisely it is a highly helpful time-saver, and it can make a powerful research assistant. However - it cannot do your thinking for you. This course examines how to develop powerful focus in your writing and how to incorporate AI into your writing process. You will receive a clear process to follow when approaching an important piece of writing. How to start, develop and express your ideas plus a checklist of conceptual and practical filters to apply to your work to edit and improve your earlier drafts - shaping your writing from 'good enough' to 'exactly fitted to its purpose'.
Subjects include:
- Why writing skills matter in the Age of AI
- The role of AI assistance - How much, how far, how to get the best from it
- Structuring your writing, selecting and controlling the appropriate tone
- Fitting your message to your target audience.
- Crystallising and articulating your thinking - improve your ability to summarise, critique and report on the writing and thinking of others
- How to judge output from AI and adjust verb use to better convey shades of meaning
- How to write better AI prompts
- Tips for writing productivity
- Clarity, brevity and style of English
- Words to avoid in your text
Primary target group: All interested parties
Date: Thursday, 21 May 2026 | 10:00 - 12:00 | Presence (TBD)
Instructor: Dr Jens Mittelbach (Director of the University Library)
Language: German
Course description:
Research and learning processes generate a constantly growing amount of information that needs to be structured, networked and made usable in the long term. Digital tools open up new possibilities for this, but often remain unconnected so that cognitive synergies remain unutilised.
Approaches such as Niklas Luhmann's card index illustrate the potential of systematic knowledge organisation. In the digital age and with the support of artificial intelligence, such structures can not only be reconstructed, but also dynamically expanded and intelligently linked.
The event introduces the concepts and technologies of digital knowledge management and shows how analogue and digital approaches can be combined and how AI-supported systems promote the development of a sustainable personal knowledge network.
Target group: PhD students and postdocs (R1-R3)
Date: Thursday, 28 May 2026 | 13:30-14:30 | Online
Presenters: Aleksandra Klecha, Sarah Krebs, Ana Retschman, Dr Björn Grötzner
Language: German
Content:
Mobility and experience abroad are of great importance for a successful career in science. Both during and after the PhD, there are sub-projects abroad, teaching or research stays, conference trips and many other international options. One of the most important questions when planning such stays is how to fund them.
In this Coffee Talk, the responsible contact persons at Viadrina (International Affairs, VCGS) will give you a brief overview of the most common funding opportunities for research mobility and answer your questions in a relaxed conversation.
Target Audience: Advanced Doctoral and Postdoctoral Researchers (R1-R3)
Dates: Tuesday, June 2, 2026, 9 am - 5 pm | Online
Instructor: Ms. Carrie Dohe, Ph.D.
Language: English
Content:
This one-day workshop equips participants with the skills to create engaging applications for academic positions and professional answers to interview questions. The hands-on sessions focus in particular on CVs, cover letters, and interview preparation. Participants will also learn about networking strategies to increase their chances of landing a desired job. Through targeted exercises and peer feedback, the workshop encourages participants to move beyond a graduate-student perspective and to position themselves confidently as independent scholars and future faculty members.
By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:
- Understand key differences between academic CVs and cover letters in Germany and in English-speaking contexts
- Identify best practices in structuring and presenting application materials, including cultural and linguistic conventions
- Critically revise and improve their own CVs and cover letters, ideally tailored to a specific job advertisement
- Apply effective networking strategies for the academic job market
- Prepare for academic interviews in both in-person and online formats
- Recognize and respond appropriately to illegal or inappropriate interview questions
- Write professional and effective follow-up and thank-you messages
Target Audience: Doctoral and Postdoctoral Researchers (R1-R3)
Date: Thursday, June 4, 2026 | 9 am 5pm | Online
Instructor: Friedrich Hasse
Language: English
Content:
Scientific work involves a significant amount of reading. What if you could increase your reading speed significantly while at the same time improving comprehension-and even boosting your motivation?
In this systematic, step-by-step training programme, you will work with practical exercises combined with well-balanced theoretical input. You will learn to overcome the three most common reading habits that limit efficiency and develop a more focused, flexible approach to reading.
Course objectives:
- Increased reading speed
- Improved text comprehension
- Flexible use of different reading techniques
- Better retention of information
- Enhanced concentration & motivation
- Specific strategies for working with academic and scientific texts
The course combines a high proportion of practical exercises and tests with clearly structured theoretical input. Be prepared for an intensive training experience that requires your willingness to question and adjust long-established reading habits.
A good to very good level of English reading proficiency is expected (approximately B2 level). Speaking skills are helpful, but not essential.
Target Audience: Postdocs (R2-R3)
Date: Thursday, June 11 | 1:30 pm - 5:30 pm | Online
Instructor: Dr Susanne Hollmann
Language: English
Content:
In this four-hour online seminar, delivered in English, participants will receive a concise and practical introduction to drafting successful research grant applications. The session will cover key formal and content-related requirements, as well as the perspectives of funding bodies and reviewers, with a focus on programmes run by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and Horizon Europe. A particular highlight is the contribution from an experienced reviewer, who will provide insights into the review process and answer participants' questions. Interactive elements and short bio-breaks ensure the webinar is varied and engaging.
Primary target group: PhD students and postdocs (R1-R3)
Date: Thursday, 18 June 2026 | 13:00 - 14:00 | Online
Speakers: Steffi Tetzlaff, Björn Grötzner
Language: German
Course description:
The German Academic Fixed-Term Contract Act (WissZeitVG) regulates the maximum fixed-term employment periods of researchers before and after their PhD. The law therefore has a very direct influence on career and life planning in academia. And while it is the subject of lively debate throughout Germany, specific questions often remain unanswered.
In this coffee talk, Steffi Tetzlaff (Human Resources Department) and Björn Grötzner (VCGS) will give you an overview of the provisions of the WissZeitVG, taking into account the service agreement on the design of employment contracts for academic staff at the Viadrina, and will be available to answer your questions in an open round. Please feel free to let us know your questions in advance via the registration form or by e-mail to vcgs@europa-uni.de.
Primary target group: All interested parties
Date: Thursday, 25 June 2026 | 10:00-12:00 | Presence (TBD)
Instructor: Dr Jens Mittelbach (Director of the University Library)
Language: German
Course description:
Structured notes are a key tool for reflective learning, creative work and sustainable knowledge management. Digital approaches open up new possibilities for capturing thoughts flexibly, linking them systematically and developing them continuously.
Obsidian is a powerful free software for note-taking and knowledge organisation based on simple Markdown files. It makes it possible to build personal knowledge networks, structure ideas dynamically and make your own thought process visible and comprehensible in the long term.
The workshop is aimed at people who have already gained experience with note-taking software and already have ideas about specific usage scenarios or workflows. The aim is to transfer these ideas to the Obsidian tool and other knowledge management instruments, such as literature management programmes, RSS feed readers, or e-ink tablets, and to explore the possibilities of linking and automation.
Primary target group: Master's students interested in doing a doctorate
Date: Wednesday, 1 July 2026 | 2 - 5 pm | Presence (TBD)
Presenter: Dr Björn Grötzner
Language: German
A PhD is essential for an academic career and is also an important qualification for many non-academic career paths. However, since a doctoral project takes several years, places high demands on doctoral reserachers, and involves important decisions for their own career, such a project needs to be approached with caution.
This workshop is aimed at doctoral candidates from all disciplines. It provides an insight into the most important requirements and challenges of a PhD and their importance for career development. It also presents essential funding options for doctoral projects, including the largest scholarship providers.
Primary target group: PhD researchers (R1)
Date: Monday, 6 July 2026 | 09:00-17:00 | Presence (TBD)
Instructor: Patricia Meyer
Language: German
Course description:
Many doctoral candidates find it difficult to organise their day in such a way that they get to the important things. On the other hand, there is time and deadline pressure. Distractions from the internet or unexpected events and disruptions make the work schedule obsolete. It is not uncommon for dissertations to be written while working; partners and possibly children require attention. Doing justice to everything sometimes seems impossible. What's more, although a PhD is immensely important, it is rarely urgent and therefore rarely has an (externally controlled) end date.
The workshop "Better instead of more: time and self-management in science" teaches the most effective methods and tools for time and self-management during the PhD, which help to distinguish the important from the unimportant, to organise work processes more effectively, and to better align goals with personal motivation, personal development goals and the limited resource of attention. There is also a focus on planning the PhD in different phases as well as healthy energy management in order to cope well with the demanding time of the PhD in terms of health.
Target groups
R1: Doctoral candidates (first stage researchers)
R2: Postdocs in the early phase after the PhD (Recognised Researcher)
R3: Advanced postdocs (established researchers) / tenure-track and junior professors before permanent employment
Staff: Employees in science-supporting areas
Participation
All Viadrina doctoral candidates and postdocs are eligible to participate, as are all postdocs from the state's four universities as part of the Postdoc Network Brandenburg (see below). Some appropriately labelled courses are also aimed at Master's students with an interest in doctoral studies or staff in science-supporting areas. Please refer to the detailed description of the course for the respective target group.
Proof of participationIf you would like a certificate of attendance, we will be happy to issue this on request.
The VCGS does not award ECTS credits or other academic achievements. Doctoral students on the International Doctoral Programme in Cultural Studies should contact the coordinator of the doctoral programme, Dr Henrik Bispinck, for recognition of VCGS continuing education courses.Childcare
Childcare can be organised on site for course participants. Please let us know your requirements when you register. Enrolled doctoral students can be reimbursed for the costs of childcare. Please contact the Commissioner for Families at Viadrina.
Higher education didactics
Academic staff and lecturers at Viadrina can take advantage of courses on university didactics. Further information can be found on the website of the Netzwerk Studienqualität Brandenburg.
Writing Centre
The Writing Centre of the European University Viadrina offers you a wide range of support services related to the key competence of writing, including those for doctoral candidates. You can find all offers on the Writing Centre website.
Postdoc Network Brandenburg
As part of the Postdoc Network Brandenburg, the further qualification programmes of the four Brandenburg universities are open to all postdoctoral researchers in the state.
Please find out more about the programmes on the following websites:
BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg
Film University Babelsberg
University of Potsdam