Career and Leadership Development
The Vienna BioCenter Leadership Programs
At the Vienna BioCenter, including the GMI, the Vienna BioCenter Leadership Program sharpens leadership skills and fosters collaboration among leaders from various departments of the institutes on campus. Through practical modules and a peer-mentoring network, the program empowers participants to guide their teams effectively toward innovative discoveries. A condensed version of this program is offered in the Vienna BioCenter PhD and Postdoc Leadership Training Course.
The Vienna BioCenter Leadership Program, started in 2023, is designed to empower individuals across different professional backgrounds in academia. It is coordinated by the Vienna BioCenter Training Unit and open to members of the GMI, IMBA, IMP, and VBCF. The program is implemented over the course of one year with trainings, combined with complementary peer group meet-ups. This training strengthens colleagues with staff responsibility within research, administration, and other leadership roles, ultimately shaping the work culture of the entire campus community.
Unique and highly innovative
Leadership training in academic life sciences is often treated as an afterthought, despite its critical role in advancing research and creating productive, inspiring work environments. The Vienna BioCenter Leadership Program is an unparalleled initiative in the academic life science scene, designed to address this gap through a research-driven approach. Unlike generic leadership programs, this initiative is tailored specifically to the needs of professionals navigating academia and ensures that participants not only gain strategic and interpersonal skills but also learn how to apply them effectively in a research environment.
This program is an experience-based format that engages participants in real-world situations. By fostering self-reflection, open dialogue, and knowledge exchange, it empowers individuals to improve their leadership skills.
Developed by experts from within academia
A key feature of the Vienna BioCenter Leadership Program is its collaborative development with expert trainers who are deeply embedded in academia themselves. These experts have firsthand experience in the challenges and dynamics of scientific leadership. Their expertise ensures that the program remains highly applicable and aligned with the specific demands of the life sciences sector.
Participants benefit from a curriculum designed to address common leadership challenges in academia, such as leading diverse teams, managing interdisciplinary projects, and driving innovation. Participants form groups that meet up during and beyond their cohort’s one-year training, enhancing the synergy between academic leadership theory and lasting hands-on experience.
Connecting leaders across disciplines and institutions
The Vienna BioCenter Leadership Program creates connections. It is not limited to one discipline or professional role; instead, it brings together individuals from different leadership backgrounds, including research group leaders, administrative service heads, and other colleagues in roles with staff responsibilities.
The program is a collaborative effort between the GMI, IMBA, IMP, and VBCF—leading institutes at the core of the Vienna BioCenter. This multi-institutional approach encourages cross-disciplinary networking. Participants gain a broader perspective on leadership, learning from one another’s experiences, challenges, and successes.
Impact on work culture beyond the campus
More than a one-off training, the Vienna BioCenter Leadership Program is making positive contributions to the work culture across the entire campus. An informed leadership culture leads to better mentoring, improved decision-making, and a research environment where scientific breakthroughs flourish.
Campus Chat Series
The Campus Chat Series offers career-focused discussions for PhD students and postdocs, providing guidance on postdoctoral lab placements, establishing independent labs, crafting competitive CVs, and transitioning from academia to industry.
Student and Postdoc Initiatives
Through peer-driven interinstitutional activities, researchers discover how their expertise can be applied in diverse professional contexts – while emphasizing career development, networking, scientific exploration, and knowledge-sharing. The Vienna BioCenter PhD Symposium, Vienna BioCenter Postdoc Retreat, Postdoc Networking Day (POND), and Vienna Biocenter PhD Program Retreat are organized by early career researchers from the VBC. A subset of events organized by PhD students and Postdocs aim at connecting researchers from other institutes in Vienna and its surroundings such as CeMM and ISTA.
Vienna International Postdoctoral (VIP2) Fellowship Program
The GMI is a member of the Vienna International Postdoctoral (VIP2) Fellowship Program. Lasting five years, VIP2 offers 3-year postdoctoral fellowships to support research projects that may lead to distinct research lines. The fellowship funds 50% of personnel costs and includes exposure to a variety of sectors, as well as a two-mentor scheme.
The PhD-PD Mentoring Program
The PhD-Postdoc Mentoring Scheme offers an additional layer of mentoring by connecting students with postdoc mentors from other research groups.
GMI Postdoc Mentoring Day
New in 2024: The GMI Postdoc Mentoring Day emphasizes the importance of building a narrative from previous work as part of an event designed to sharpen career goals, publication strategies and fellowship applications, and to shed light on forming one’s own independent research group.
Education and Training
The “Prime Your PhD” and “How do you do it?” Series
Two courses introduce new students to experimental research. While "Prime Your PhD" opens up the campus’s various research areas, the ”How do you do it?" series explores detailed methodologies like protein quality control, AI applications with ChatGPT, and creating DNA nanostructures.
Core Facilities Training
Complementing educational seminars, training in the use of core facilities is a key aspect of the research environment. These facilities, equipped with advanced technologies such as cryogenic electron microscopy, next generation sequencing, high-throughput digital phenotyping, and bioinformatics, are staffed by experts who provide researchers with practical training.
Wednesday Seminars
Researchers gather for Wednesday Seminars to discover the most recent findings in the life sciences, with talks from an international roster of lecturers.
University Teaching Training in Molecular Biology
The campus, in partnership with the University of Vienna Center for Molecular Biology, has established a teaching training pathway for PhD students and postdoctoral researchers with the potential of becoming the primary lecturer for courses they design. Registration began this year, and the inaugural cohort will assume course assistant responsibilities in 2025.
Specialized Courses
An additional catalogue of high-demand courses features expert trainers offering specialized training on topics such as generative AI for scientists, entrepreneurship and innovation, climate science, transparent publishing, and open-science.