Exchange, Inspi­ra­tion, and Team Spirit

From October 8–10, 2025, this year’s Young Researcher Days of the Hector Fellow Academy took place in Karlsruhe. The annual event brings together young scien­tists from across Germany to network, share experi­ences, and gain new perspec­tives for their scien­tific careers. This year, the Academy members at the Karlsruhe Insti­tute of Technol­ogy (KIT) hosted the event.

The first day began at Campus North with a welcome address and three inspir­ing keynote talks focus­ing on differ­ent career paths in science. Hector Fellow Prof. Dr. Stefanie Dehnen, Hector RCD Awardee Dr. Jingyuan Xu, and Hector RCD Awardee TT-Prof. Dr. Philip Willke shared insights into their profes­sional journeys – from leading indepen­dent research groups to inter­na­tional postdoc­toral experi­ences and inter­dis­ci­pli­nary projects. After­wards, partic­i­pants enjoyed lab tours at the Insti­tute of Microstruc­ture Technol­ogy (IMT) and the Insti­tute of Nanotech­nol­ogy (INT), gaining fasci­nat­ing insights into current research conducted by Jingyuan Xu, Stefanie Dehnen, and Hector Fellow Martin Wegener. The day concluded with a joint dinner at the Botan­i­cal Garden Karlsruhe, provid­ing an excel­lent oppor­tu­nity for infor­mal exchange and network­ing among the young researchers.

On the second day, the partic­i­pants contin­ued their program at Campus South. Follow­ing a keynote by Hector Fellow Prof. Wolfgang Werns­dor­fer, a renowned expert in exper­i­men­tal physics focus­ing on nanotech­nol­ogy and quantum physics, the group visited the labora­to­ries of Philip Willke, Wolfgang Werns­dor­fer, and Hector Fellow Franz Nestmann. In the after­noon, the young researchers Felix Dörr and Henrik Habeck spoke about their diverse part-time and volun­teer experi­ences, includ­ing an IT start-up project and human­i­tar­ian aid in the field of water supply in West Africa and Vietnam. A special highlight of the day was the 25th anniver­sary celebra­tion of the Inter­na­tional Depart­ment (ID) at KIT, in which the Young Researchers also took part.

The final day focused on team spirit and collab­o­ra­tion. During a visit to a climb­ing park near Karlsruhe, partic­i­pants strength­ened trust and teamwork – a perfect conclu­sion to three days full of exchange, inspi­ra­tion, and new connections.

A heart­felt thank you goes to every­one who contributed to making the Young Researcher Days 2025 such a success­ful and memorable event.

The Young Researcher Days of the Hector Fellow Academy take place annually and serve to welcome new doctoral researchers to the Academy while promot­ing exchange and network­ing among PhD students. Each year, the Hector Fellow Academy awards several fully funded PhD positions with Hector Fellows or Hector RCD Awardees.