Industrial Mentorship Programme

WHAT COMES AFTER THE PHD?

Once the PhD is completed, many PhD students face an important decision of where to go next: stay in academia or start a career in industry and society? Even for an academic path, job experience outside of academia is indispensable, especially for a professorship at a University of Applied Sciences.

But how to make this transition successful? What skills to acquire and expand? How to build a suitable network?

FIND GUIDANCE AND SUPPORT

The Industrial Mentorship Program supports PhD students of the Trier University of Applied Sciences and our international partner universities on their way to find suitable career paths outside of academia. The goal is to prepare excellent young researchers for a successful career in various industry and society sectors, to support them in forming important networks, and to strengthen their profiles for the international job market.

Three program components

Pair up

PhD students pair up with experienced leaders from different fields according to Trier UAS‘s research areas: Life Sciences, Sustainability, Digitalization. The national and international experts have successfully mastered the transition from academia to industry and are ready to share their experiences with their mentees. In regular meetings, the pairs discuss structures, strategies, and processes that will help the PhD students shape their transition into the job market.

Additional self-directed peer group meetings foster an atmosphere of trust and encourage exchange on career-related issues among the PhD students, such as the development of a career strategy or feedback on application documents or social media profiles.

Build connections

Joint digital events with mentees and mentors as well as interesting speakers will frame the program and provide excellent opportunities to build strong and sustainable networks.

Expand your skills

The program starts with a virtual kickoff event where participants get to know each other and establish their roles as mentees and mentors. Throughout the program, the mentees will participate in at least two out of four digital workshops that are implemented in cooperation with the Career Service. The workshops on topics such as assessment center training or CV counselling will allow the PhD students to expand their skills in relevant areas.

These three components provide the mentees with strategic input for their individual career planning and the opportunity to substantiate their career goals outside of academia. With the Industrial Mentorship Programme, the mentees get to increase their employability on the international job market and expand their individual, interdisciplinary, and international career network. The mentors, in turn, get to engage with young academics, play an important part in their career paths, and expand their counselling skills.

More infos on how to apply soon!