CU OPENS A NEW DOCTORAL SCHOOL
In this academic year, our university launches the 'Doctoral School' project which focuses on the training and development of PhD researchers.
The Doctoral School (DS) began its operation at a "live" meeting in the CU Science Park which attracted many participants. On Thursday 26 September the conference room was filled to capacity. Future young researchers were welcomed by Jozef Masarik, vice-rector of Comenius University for Science and Doctoral Studies. In his address he mentioned that the university obtained the HR Excellence in Research label, and adopted the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers. This shows that the university is committed to creating suitable working environment for all research staff, with particular focus on young people and international applicants. The Doctoral School aims to create a zone of comfort for young researchers, allowing them to fully develop their potential.
Space for versatile development
PhD researchers make up a significant part of our academic community, totalling 1,851 in the previous academic year. The Doctoral School will complement their study, which takes place at individual faculties. It is intended to provide a space for the development of skills that they all need regardless of their field of study. At the launch event, Doctoral School project manager Janka Kottulová presented the gamut of courses and training offered by the DS including, among others, academic writing, innovative pedagogical approaches, communication of research output, and project management. This semester, applicants can join courses like Information literacy and scientific publishing, University teaching, or Impact in research. Webinars for PhD researchers have been developed to cover topics like international mobility grant applications, and obtaining CU youth grants which are designed to support doctoral research. Courses are also available in English to cater to international PhD students.
Community of doctoral students
Another important goal of DS is to help build a community of doctoral students across faculties and sites. It strives to provide a space for meeting colleagues working at different workplaces. Knowing what research is being done elsewhere opens up the possibility for interdisciplinary collaborations. Information about the Doctoral School is available on the CU website and on the new PhD Platform. The researchers themselves will be able to contribute to the development and functioning of the DS by participating in the "Doctoral Council."
Regular meetings
Panellists Natália Stollárová (Faculty of Pharmacy), Maxim Duleba (Faculty of Philosophy), Silvester Krčméry (Faculty of Management) and Karin Černickaja (FSES) spoke about their experience with doctoral studies. They gave replies to questions from the audience regarding grants, mobility options, and work planning during studies. At the end of the event the PhD researchers engaged in networking around tables laden with refreshments and various tools to stimulate discussion. The next PhD Café that takes place at the beginning of November and will offer more opportunity for meeting, getting to know each other and contact-building.
Barbora Tancerová