Mentoring Program Academia
Through the Mentoring Program Academia, we aim to support postdocs at TUD in their personal and professional development and academic career planning. We offer opportunities for reflection, feedback, networking, and further qualification to successfully master the next step in a scientific career.
What does mentoring mean?
Mentoring is the targeted support of a person (the mentee) by an experienced specialist or manager (the mentor). In the university context, mentoring is not understood as a substitute for scientific supervision, but rather as a supplement.
The personal exchange takes place in a protected setting, without hierarchy or dependency. Other requirements for the mentoring relationship are a voluntary basis, open-mindedness, confidentiality, respect, agreed degree of availability and commitment.
What does the program include?
The core of the Mentoring-Program Academia is the one-to-one mentoring relationship between mentee and mentor (also referred to as a tandem). Mentors give their mentees insights into the structures, processes, and rules of the scientific system and provide access to important networks.
Mentees receive personal support with their career plans and constructive feedback. Mentors can promote their advisory expertise and leadership competence and gain important insights into the situation of young scientists.
During the twelve-month program cycle, there are three official meetings (kick-off event, mid-term review, and closing event) that give program participants the opportunity to get to know each other as a group and exchange ideas.
Furthermore, mentees can attend the Graduate Academy's/Postdoc Centers qualification program or the Charlotte Bühler Programme to improve their competencies in topics such as communication, publication, leadership, resilience, application training, time management, project management, and conflict management.
In addition, mentees benefit from a wide-ranging advisory service that supports them with topics such as orientation, decision making and competence development. These also include collegial consulting in peer groups and the opportunity to use the Postdoc Center’s coaching and advisory offers.
How does the matching work?
Mentees are responsible for finding suitable mentors themselves, based on their own individual expectations and objectives for the mentoring. In their application, mentees may suggest up to three potential candidates.
Upon admission to the program, the mentees or the Postdoc Center coordinator make the initial contact with the mentors. If the mentors agree to participate, the mentee and mentor enter into a mentoring agreement, and the cooperation can start.
Mentees and mentors agree on the topics of their meetings and arrange the organization of their mentoring relationship by themselves (e.g. number of meetings, thematic objectives). The Postdoc Center team will gladly support you if any questions arise.
Application
The next cycle runs from 15th October 2026 to 14th October 2027.
There are 12 places available. Admission to this program is based on a two-stage selection process, based on your submitted application documents and a personal interview.
Please note that a Postdoc Center membership is required for participation.
Necessary application documents are:
- Cover letter (including motivation for admission and desired goals), max. 1 to 2 pages
- Application form
- CV (including research focuses and publication list)
- If applicable, confirmation from the faculty about fulfilling the conditions of admission to the habilitation procedure
Please send your application via e-mail to:
We look forward to receiving your application!
© Jenny Neukirch
Qualification and Internationalisation
NameJenny Neukirch
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