How to get into the (non-academic) German job market!
Part 1 (in-person) on October 9 and 10, 2025: How to get into the (non-academic) German job market!
For (post-)doctoral researchers with an international background, it can be a real challenge to get into the non-academic German job market following an academic position. The entry routes into jobs are not always transparent, candidates are often not well-informed about what to expect in the application process and not everyone can offer German language skills. Where and how you can look for a job outside classic academia depends on your qualifications and skills set, on your individual life situation as well as on knowing about possible entry paths and strategies, the (unwritten) rules of the game and other parameters. This workshop offers assistance with this – tailored specifically for the needs of international scholars – and will encourage participants not just to prepare for this transition in a focused way but to create an action plan which they can start to implement.Participants will gain the confidence to get started and concretize their next steps!
In the online workshop, international (post-)doctoral scholars planning to enter the nonacademic job market not only learn key strategies for entering the job market, whether it be in business, society, culture or the public sector, but are actually encouraged and empowered to put these into practice. Exercises to solicite feedback from people in your inner circle serve to guide you in identifying new fields of interest. You will get advice on how to identify useful contacts to reach out to and will be given the confidence to approach them, learning how to gather information, identify suitable jobs and build your professional network. You will recognise your key competencies relevant for the non-academic job market and practice articulating and evidencing these briefly and succinctly, ready for networking chats or interviews. We will also focus on what makes a good application, drawing on genuine examples from Philippa Cook’s consulting practice and you can get feedback on your own applications, learning to avoid some typical pitfalls when coming.
Methods
- Preparatory tasks for job search
- Inputs from trainer (e.g. for conducting network discussions, strategies for finding a job)
- Partner and group work
- Role play on job-applications
- Feedback from trainer and peers
- Soliciting Structured feedback with questionnaire
- Competencies analysis with the UniWiND toolkit
Information about combining Part 1 (in-person) and Part 2 (online):
Please note! The in-person and the online workshop have to be booked separately. The online workshop is an “advanced” course, i.e. participation in the online workshop requires prior attendance at the in-person workshop. This can be in October 2025 or participants who previously took the in-person workshop in e.g. 2023 or 2024 can also book the online workshop.
Lecturers
Dr. Philippa Cook
Dr. Philippa Cook works as a trainer with a focus on international PhD-candidates and PhDholders. She has an international background herself – born and raised in England – and worked in research and teaching in German academia for many years before she became a trainer and coach. For this workshop she has conducted numerous interviews with international PhD-holders who have successfully entered the German job-market and draws on these real-life experiences to inform and to empower the participants. All workshops are conducted with sensitivity to issues of inclusion and diversity.
Date
Fri, Dec 5, 2025 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Language
Target Group
Costs
| PhD UP | 25 € |
| Postdoc UP/PNB* | 37.5 € |
| Partner institutions | 140 € |
| Extern | 170 € |