At the Research Careers Campus, we have been exploring how researchers can experience the best possible conditions at work since we first started our activities in 2011. We're continously asking: What is the working life of a researcher like nowadays, how do scholars in different career stages experience this differently, and how can the academic environment be enjoyable and kind for everyone?
Johanna Stadlbauer, Head of the Research Careers Campus, does a lot of writing to that effect, to spark discussions and reflections among our community. You can now dive into our content archive and browse all the interviews and think-pieces she produced since 2023!
Here’s a timeline with short descriptions:
- July 2023: Summery suggestions to charge your research batteries: Suggests practices intended to make you feel good about yourself as a person, and as a researcher. The tips come from postdoctoral researchers themselves, from our favourite expert networks and books, and from occupational psychologists we have worked with in the past. Collected here: 20230721_HealthyWorking.pdf
- Dec 2023: Reflecting on Academic Kindness: Draws attention to six dimensions of kindness in everyday interactions in academia; our most widely visited blog post!
- July 2024: The Joys and Challenges of being a postdoctoral researcher: Interviews with twelve University of Graz postdocs, detailling career journeys that took them to Graz, what makes their research important and interesting, joys and challenges in their daily work, and what's next for each of them. Get to know postdoctoral researchers and their work joys!
- Nov 2024: (Research) leaders in sectors beyond academia: Interviews on leadership in different sectors, with Evelyn Walenta, Elli Scambor, Axel Struss, and Marie Therese Stampfl
- Dec 2024: How is collegiality practiced in academia? Featured are examples of the power of good relationships in academia, such as structured peer exchange networks, mentoring, sponsortship, lab handbooks, distributed leadership practices, including suggestions for those who aren't yet happily collaborating.
- April 2025 (ongoing!): Showcasing Collegiality & Good Leadership: Since April 2025, members of the University of Graz's research community present their activities for more collegiality and good leadership in the format of “Three Questions to”.
- April to June 2025: Interesting people at the University: Interviews with third-space professionals at University of Graz who hold research-adjacent roles, such as a technology transfer officer, experts in academic publishing, teaching design instructors, and more. Read here in posts #99, #108, #116 and upwards: RCC-Blog
- July 2025: Where are they now? Read about the journeys of those researchers who were with us at the start of the Postdoc Office: We've asked what happened to the people who helped us create and shape the PostDoc Office, which was established in 2022. Read: Where are they now?
- Nov 2025: Post-PhD Career Journeys: Interviews with people who moved their careers beyond academia after their PhD. They work in research-related leadership roles, in research positions outside the university, or in other really exciting jobs that suit a person with a research background, Read: the Interview with Margret Jäger, the Interview with Thomas Felfer , the Interview with Snezana Vuletic Solari.
- Dec 2025: Practices of appreciation in academia: A mid-winter reflection: draws attention to appreciative practices in our everyday academic work lives, such as appreciative feedback tools during team meetings, sharing one's work openly with the community, and more.
- July 2026: Happy hacks for your research life: A collection of 13 responses to the questions: What in your research life do you still need a „hack“ for? And what are your practices that keep you motivated and creative? Read: How to hack your research life
What would you like to see explored next?
(Text: 8.7.2026, Johanna Stadlbauer)