People
Supporting young talent is an important concern of Forschungszentrum Jülich. Under the umbrella of juelich_horizons, a wide range of services are provided, from the Schools Laboratory to future-oriented training courses and career advancement for young scientists.
More than 4,300 schoolgirls and schoolboys between 9 and 19 years of age experimented in the JuLab Schools Laboratory in 2018. Since the JuLab was founded in 2005, around 54,000 boys and girls have experienced on the Jülich campus just how exciting research can be.
Around 330 trainees work at Jülich in up to 26 different professions. Six of the training vocations are to be combined with a course of study (“dual study programmes”). In the area of training, Forschungszentrum Jülich cooperates with 49 partner companies and
88 trainees from 15 professions successfully completed their training in 2018. Of these, 22 achieved the top grade, “sehr gut”. Four trainees of Forschungszentrum Jülich were awarded for their outstanding performance at the Chamber of Industry and Commerce’s honouring of the best in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. 100 trainees were newly hired.
In 2018, 459 internships including mandatory student internships, pupil internships and voluntary internships were carried out. In addition, 538 schoolgirls and schoolboys were introduced to professional fields.
New trainees in 2018
Occupations | of which in a dual study programme | |||
Laboratory technicians | 27 | 5 | ||
Electricians | 5 | - | ||
Metalworkers | 10 | - | ||
Office staff | 15 | - | ||
Math.-technical software developers | 28 | 28 | ||
Other | 15 | - | ||
Total | 100 | 33 |
A platform for doctoral researchers was established from November 2016 to December 2018 as part of Jülich’s Strategy Process. Since the beginning of 2019, JuDocs has been providing advice and support to more than 1,000 doctoral researchers and around 350 supervisors at Forschungszentrum Jülich. For example, JuDocs organises the “Transferable Skills Courses” which are obligatory for all doctoral researchers, such as “Scientific Writing” or “Good Scientific Practice”. The scientists involved in the JuDocs council monitor and support the progress of the doctoral thesis, and the partnerships with universities are also intensified and promoted. After completing the dissertation, anonymous feedback can be given via JuDocs – what went well, where is there need for improvement? JuDocs is intended to remain a living and learning system.
In 2018, 23 doctoral researchers from China came to Jülich via the China Scholarship Council Programme. Nine students were supported as part of the RISE programme of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), two others received a scholarship from the E.ON Scholarship Fund. In the Joint Scholarship Program of Forschungszentrum Jülich and Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia, two Master fellowships and two PhD fellowships were awarded to young Georgian scientists.
Since 1951, for one week every year, the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings have been bringing together around 30 Nobel Laureates with around 500 highly qualified students, doctoral candidates and postdoctoral researchers from up to 80 countries. Five successful applicants from the Jülich Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine – Dr. Arnim Gaebler, Laura Muzzarelli, Dr. Sina Radke, Dr. Sofie Valk and Lisa Wagels – could participate in 2018.
Since the summer of 2018, young scientists have been able to make use of the newly established Jülich Career Center, which emerged as a result of the strategy process. The Center provides postdocs and doctoral researchers in the final phase of their doctorate with comprehensive advice on career issues. Regular kick-off lectures on career topics and trainings for career planning are also organised.
What the Career Center offers:
The Career Center is a measure funded by the Helmholtz Association’s Initiative and Networking Fund. It is part of Forschungszentrum Jülich’s division of Personnel Development and Recruiting. The development of the Career Center is supported with up to € 150,000 per year, the funding period being five years with an interim evaluation after two and a half years.
Eight centres of the Helmholtz Association and the Chinese Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) have agreed on a joint funding programme for Chinese postdocs. The HGF-OCPC Programme aims to promote scientific cooperation of Helmholtz Centres with Chinese partner institutions.
The programme is scheduled for five years (2017–2021) and managed jointly with the Office of China Postdoc Council (OCPC). It provides the Helmholtz Centres with the opportunity to include a total of 50 Chinese postdocs in projects. 11 young scientists who were successful in the 2018 selection round are now conducting research at Forschungszentrum Jülich, three more postdocs came with scholarships from the China Scholarship Council.
Helmholtz Young Investigators Groups, Jülich Young Investigators Groups and externally funded young investigators groups 2014–2018