From September 29 to October 1, 2025, the TRR225 held its 2nd Retreat 2025 at the Franken-Akademie on Schloss Schney. The event placed a special focus on the PhD candidates within the consortium, offering them the opportunity to reflect on their research progress, explore career paths, and strengthen their professional network.
The retreat began with the mentoring sessions, during which each PhD met with their individual mentoring committee to discuss their scientific progress and future goals.
The second day centered on career perspectives. Several guest speakers from academia and industry were invited to share insights into their professional journeys and to provide guidance on diverse career opportunities. Among the speakers were Dr. Uta Goebel (Editor, Wiley Journal), Dr. David Sonnleitner (Arthex Medical Products), Dr. Vanessa Trossmann (Academic Councillor, University of Bayreuth), Dr. Stefanie Schmidt (Bio-Techne, Wiesbaden), Dr. Manuel Nagel (Program Coordinator, Universitätsklinikum Würzburg), Dr. Dennis Doll (Software Engineer, Indoc) and Dr. Andreas Frank (Process Engineer, Bosch).
During the subsequent Science Speed Dating, PhD students had the chance to engage in personal discussions with the guest speakers and ask questions about their career decisions and motivations. The social event later that day offered further opportunities for networking, informal exchange with the guest speakers and within the TRR225.
The retreat concluded on the third day with a Career Orientation Workshop led by Dr. Alina Jahn from the Servicestelle Wissenschaftlicher Nachwuchs (WiN) at the University of Bayreuth.
Overall, the retreat provided an inspiring platform for scientific exchange, reflection, and career development – reinforcing the TRR225’s commitment to supporting and empowering its early career researchers.
