Postdoc Pitch Day

Postdoc Pitch Day is an internal event developed by the Grant Management and Communications teams. It is directed towards all postdocs at ISAS. The starting shot for Postdoc Pitch Day was fired in October 2021 at the ISAS Campus location.

The response of the participants after the first Postdoc Pitch Day was so positive, that the event is now established at the institute and is held regularly. “The goal is to provide postdocs with a casual but confidential forum to use as a career development tool for presenting initial research ideas and receiving feedback from experienced researchers,” explains Dr Maria Gies, Grant Management team leader. Postdoc Pitch Day aims to motivate postdocs to develop their own research ideas in a way that ideally leads to support measures, third-party funding applications or further career development activities (such as interdisciplinary collaboration projects with internal or external partners or patent applications).

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Dr Maria Gies heads the Grant Management team at ISAS.

Grant Management Team

Dr Maria Gies T: +49 (0)231 1392-1084 E: maria.gies@isas.de

Communications Team

Sara Rebein T: +49 (0)231 1392-234 E: sara.rebein@isas.de

The goal is to provide a casual but confidential forum for postdocs to use as a career development tool.

INTRODUCTION

1 to 2 minutes – Postdocs introduce themselves and tell the audience why they are attending the event. Is it about financial support for a stay abroad? Or about overseeing a collaborative project? Or do they hope to attract funding to further their research career?

PITCH

5 minutes – Participants can present their research ideas by drawing on a flip-board, bringing an object, telling a story, singing a song, or showing pictures. Almost anything is allowed! The only exception: Postdocs will have to do without a PowerPoint presentation. The important thing is not to go into too much scientific detail. This is because not all the mentors – senior scientists at ISAS – conduct research in the same field, nor are the representatives of potential funding sources always experts.

FEEDBACK

15 minutes – Mentors take time away from the audience to discuss the pitch and the round table. Afterwards, one of the mentors announces the collective feedback. This is always accompanied by tips on how to proceed. In addition to this verbal feedback, participants will receive written feedback after the event and, if they want, a video of their pitch. At the end of each pitch, two to three mentors agree to be available to each postdoc for further questions and support.

ROUND TABLE

25 minutes – After the pitch, the mentors ask their questions. Postdocs can also take the opportunity to ask questions.