From Well-being to Grant Writing: Spring Training Series for Postdocs Welcomed 263 Pa
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28 May 2026
The Charles University Postdoctoral Hub organized another series of workshops during the s
aimed at the professional and personal development of early-career researchers. The progra
topics relevant across disciplines – from mental health and well-being in academia through
research data management to grant proposal writing. The workshops took place both online a
Kampus Hybernská and the Central Library of Charles University and welcomed a total of 263
The series opened with the workshop Well-being for academics, which focused on the mental
well-being of postdoctoral researchers. Participants explored how to address topics such a
relationships, meaningfulness of work, and burnout prevention within the academic environm
also provided practical strategies for supporting psychological well-being in everyday aca
The workshop Introduction into Open Science & Publishing introduced the basic principles o
and open-access publishing. Participants learned about open-access publishing options, the
Commons licences, as well as topics such as preprints and open peer review. The course als
to increase the reusability and accessibility of research outputs.
The practically oriented workshop Science Communication: Practical Training helped partici
their research more effectively to different target audiences through hands-on exercises.
to present science clearly and attractively beyond the academic environment.
The topic of transferring research results into practice was addressed by the workshop Com
of Research Outputs and Intellectual Property. Participants gained an overview of intellec
protection, possibilities for commercializing research outputs, and strategies for the use
property rights.
Commercialization of Research Outputs and Intellectual Property Workshop
The workshop Research Data Management followed with a focus on FAIR principles and the pre
Management Plans. The session introduced practical approaches to managing, sharing, and st
data, as well as questions related to responsible data sharing in line with the principle
possible, as closed as necessary.”
The workshop Introduction to R once again attracted significant interest. Participants wer
the basics of working with the R programming language. Due to the high demand, we are plan
our R-focused course offering in the autumn series.
The spring series also included two new networking and discussion formats called Postdoc F
by Charles University and Czexpats in Science. This new format focuses on sharing experien
career development, peer mentoring, and opening discussions on topics connected to the eve
of postdocs. The first session, Strategic Career Thinking: Thinking About Your Career Befo
It, provided space for reflecting on career goals, strengths, and professional priorities.
forum, Postdocs Between Roles – Navigating Responsibility, Communication and Expectations,
specific position of postdoctoral researchers as scientists, mentors, and team members, op
on supervising students, communication with PIs, and managing different types of responsib
academia.
New Postdoc Forum format, organized by Charles University and Czexpats in Science
An important aspect of academic work was covered in the two-part workshop How to write a u
Becoming a peer reviewer for articles and proposals. Participants gained insight into the
process from the perspective of editors and experienced reviewers and practiced writing hi
constructive reviews for academic articles and grant proposals.
The workshop Interactive research ethics training: Dilemma games addressed the topic of ac
through an interactive method based on model situations developed by Erasmus University Ro
Participants discussed ethical dilemmas connected with everyday research practice and refl
decision-making in situations without clear-cut solutions.
Public engagement in research was explored in the workshop Citizen science. The course int
forms of citizen science projects and demonstrated how the public can be actively involved
process. It also included examples of good practice and discussions on the possibilities o
citizen science across disciplines.
Practical experience with grant proposal preparation was offered in the workshop Writing a
Proposal. Participants worked on their own project proposals, discussed their strengths an
received feedback from experienced grant experts and successful applicants.
The spring series concluded with the workshop Various Career Pathways of PhD holders, whic
broader perspective on career opportunities after completing doctoral studies. Discussions
academic and non-academic career paths, transferable skills gained during PhD studies, and
priorities when deciding on future professional direction.
Altogether, the spring training series offered twelve workshops and two Postdoc Forum sess
again confirming the growing interest of postdoctoral researchers in career development op
The series created space not only for the development of practical skills, but also for ne
sharing experiences among postdocs across faculties and disciplines. As part of the Postdo
programme 2026, we are already preparing both new and well-established workshops for the u
Obrázek s textem 
N.B. Funded by the European Union. Views and o
are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the Europe
European Research Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority
responsible for them.