Networking Measures
A strong professional network can transform your postdoctoral experience, opening doors, creating opportunities, and shaping your future career. With initiatives designed specifically for postdocs, the Postdoc Academy offers targeted opportunities to meet colleagues from other institutions, explore interdisciplinary collaborations, and consider career paths beyond academia.
Open Call “Hit The Jackpot” 2025
Up to €10,000 – Get Involved and Hit the Jackpot 2025!
Ready to take your academic journey to the next level? Apply for the call Hit the Jackpot 2025 and receive up to €10,000 to build and strengthen regional, national, or international networks that directly support postdoc career development. Whether it's through conferences, workshops, research visits, or collaborative initiatives – your project should be clearly focused on building strategic networks that strengthen postdoctoral career. We support activities that help you connect, collaborate, and grow within the academic and research landscape.
Join forces with like-minded scholars in Berlin or around the globe and contribute to a dynamic, connected research community.
Apply for Seed Funding by October 10, 2025 by sending your applications
Questions? Join our online Info Sessions:
- September 2 at 9:30 AM
- September 19 at 9:30 AM
Registration is not required.
Join via Webex: nadia.zysman@fu-berlin.webex.com
Further information is available in the two PDFs attached below.
Credits: Simon Brunel - Limo for Research
The Hit the Jackpot funding program of the Postdoc Academy of the Berlin University Alliance supports postdoc-driven networking projects with up to €10,000. It empowers early-career researchers to realize innovative ideas that advance their careers through interdisciplinary, interinstitutional, or international collaboration.
Projects can range from workshops and conferences to retreats or digital platforms – as long as they create meaningful connections and foster sustainable professional networks. Each proposal must be submitted by at least two postdocs from different BUA institutions and should clearly demonstrate its contribution to career development.
Hit The Jackpot Call 2024
In 2024, the call invited early-career researchers from Freie Universität, Humboldt-Universität, TU Berlin and Charité to transform bold ideas into career-building collaborations. Proposals could target regional, national or, for the first time, international partnerships that bridged disciplines and sectors. The funding covered material costs and supported formats from themed workshops to digital platforms, with networking and career development at the center. Submissions were assessed for ambition, feasibility, reach and long-term impact.
The Hit the Jackpot Awards on 13 February 2025 at Humboldt Graduate School united past and present winners for an afternoon of showcases and peer learning. The 2024 laureates outlined their projects and early achievements.
Dr. Jelena Brasanac, Charité, and Dr. Torben Ott, HU
The retreat fosters exchange between postdocs and early-career principal investigators. Workshops on grant writing, leadership, and application strategies, as well as mentoring pairs, support career development and create a sustainable networking platform.
Dr. Rouven Symank, FU, and Dr. Alexandra Paulin, HU
The think tank connects researchers, museum professionals, and policy experts from Berlin and Paris to deepen the dialogue on cultural restitution. A hybrid workshop and a series of policy papers provide long-term momentum and enhance international visibility.
Dr. Shadi Bagherzadeh Azbari, Charité, und Dr. Yu-Fang Yang, FU
EmoLeaders empowers postdocs through training in emotional intelligence, resilience, and intercultural leadership. Workshops, a digital peer-support network, and multilingual resources promote an inclusive and global research community.
Upcoming EmoLeaders Events
Emoleaders: Exploring Leadership Through Emotional Intelligence
Funded by the Berlin University Alliance (BUA) | Hit the Jackpot Initiative
We’re pleased to invite you to the next two events in the EmoLeaders workshop series after the Berlin summer break. These sessions bring together early-career researchers, leaders, and professionals to reflect on how emotion, identity, and institutional culture shape the realities of academic leadership.
Mailing list / registration: https://forms.gle/t2KGa36mWUwd4KM76
Workshop #3 – Emotions Under Pressure: Leading When It’s Not Easy
Date: 25 September 2025 | Time: 18:00–20:00 | Venue: Charité Campus Mitte, Berlin
What happens when leadership becomes difficult- emotionally, interpersonally, or structurally? This session explores how to lead through uncertainty, conflict, and emotional strain.
Speakers:
- Dr. Shadi Bagherzadeh Azbari (Charité)
- Peggy Kaas (PSKAAS Academy)
- Dr. Prateep Beed (MIND Foundation)
- Dr. Yu-Fang Yang (Freie Universität Berlin)
The event includes an open Q&A and time to connect over snacks and drinks.
Workshop #4 – From ECRs to Professors: Women and Gender-Diverse Voices in Academic Leadership
Date: 21 October 2025 | Time: 18:00–20:00 | Venue: Charité Campus Mitte, Berlin
What does it really take to move from early-career researcher to leadership, especially when your background, language, or identity doesn’t fit the mold? This session brings together three scholars to discuss the quiet realities behind academic career paths:
- Dr. Marina Pigaleva (Freie Universität Berlin): How students imagine leadership
- Dr. Claudia Seldin (TU Berlin): Rebuilding support systems as a migrant academic
- Dr. Nina Tolksdorf (Freie Universität Berlin): Why representation doesn’t always mean recognition
Together, they’ll open an honest conversation about gender, voice, power, and what still needs to change. The event includes an open Q&A and time to connect over snacks and drinks.
More details coming soon. Sign up for our mailing list: https://forms.gle/t2KGa36mWUwd4KM76
Follow us on LinkedIn to stay updated: https://www.linkedin.com/company/106511119
Hit The Jackpot Call 2023
Hit the Jackpot 2023 marked the debut of the event. The call welcomed diverse formats, from interdisciplinary workshops and podcasts to informal common rooms and lunch-and-learn groups, with career development as the central focus. Applications were evaluated for reach, feasibility, impact and innovation.
Dr. Rico Neumann, TU, and Dr. Lena Masch, FU
The project equips postdocs with skills in professional science communication - from developing their own websites and social media strategies to inclusive science outreach.
A podcast that explores sustainable chemistry and its societal relevance in an interdisciplinary context.
Dr. Katarina Riesner, Charité, and Dr. Jorge Torres Gómez, TU
A platform that connects life sciences and engineering to foster joint publications, workshops, and funding proposals.
Dr. Daniela Krüger, Charité, and Dr. Nina Margies, HU
A training program that empowers female postdocs by building skills in media engagement, public science communication, and increasing their visibility.
Dr. Riccardo Pennetta, HU, and Dr. Katayoun Gharagozloo-Hubmann, FU
Citywide, multidisciplinary discussion evenings in Berlin focusing on topics such as science, mental health, and diversity.
Networking Events
A strong professional network can transform your postdoctoral experience, opening doors, creating opportunities, and shaping your future career. With initiatives designed specifically for postdocs, the BUA offers targeted opportunities to meet colleagues from other institutions, explore interdisciplinary collaborations, and consider career paths beyond academia.
From high-profile annual events like Hit the Jackpot and the Staff Training Week, the BUA offers diverse ways to build meaningful connections. Each encounter not only expands your professional circle but also sparks fresh ideas, initiates innovative projects, and lays the foundation for lasting partnerships. Below, you'll find an overview of key formats and practical tips to help you maximize these networking opportunities.
Looking Back at Past Events
2025
From 23–27 June 2025, Freie Universität Berlin hosted the 13th International Staff Training Week, themed “Empowering Postdoc Support: Innovative Strategies and Global Collaboration”. After a leadership welcome, a campus scavenger hunt and summer reception set an informal tone. Over the next days, participants shared best practices on digital research tools, mentorship, and support for scholars at risk in sessions with partners from Europe, Africa, and Asia. A dedicated career day highlighted paths beyond academia and ended with a joint summer party and campus run. Throughout the program, participants exchanged expertise, built new networks, and gained practical inspiration for strengthening postdoc support at their home institutions.
2024
On 8 July 2024, the BUA Postdoc Academy gathered more than 80 postdoctoral researchers at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities for a full-day focus on global collaboration. Keynote speaker Christian Kobsda (Max Planck Society) outlined trends in international research partnerships, while Dr Lara Abel (University of Cambridge) shared lessons from joint projects. Trainer Dr. Jo Havemann then led a three-part workshop on building cross-border networks, refining project ideas, and pitching for funding. Mid-day, the academy unveiled its Hit the Jackpot 2024 call, inviting participants to turn their concepts into funded collaborations.
2023
On 28 November 2023, the DIY Hands-On Experience gave BUA postdocs a crash course in turning research into real-world impact. At the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, trainer Amanda Wichert guided peer-coaching and design-thinking sprints that aligned personal goals with market-oriented project ideas. The afternoon highlight, the TU Berlin “Serious Transfer Game”, put participants face-to face with technology-transfer dilemmas from IP to start-ups, demystifying innovation in a risk-free setting.
2023
On 19 June 2023, the BUA Postdoc Academy convened postdoctoral researchers from Freie Universität, Humboldt-Universität, Technische Universität Berlin, and Charité for a day of focused networking at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities. The event paired guided networking rounds with expert-led coaching and design-thinking workshops, giving participants concrete tools to build robust, cross-disciplinary connections. Throughout the sessions, postdocs exchanged ideas, identified collaboration opportunities, and drafted project concepts, potentially laying the groundwork for applications to the “Hit the Jackpot” funding call.
Credits: Simon Brunel - Limo for Research
Contact
Dr. Zysman, Nadia - program manager
Freie Universität Berlin
T: +49 30 838-55626
E: postdocs@berlin-university-alliance.de