Over the last 40 years, the FWF's Erwin Schrödinger Program has given young researchers the opportunity to spend time at internationally renowned research institutions. For many young researchers, the program is a launching pad for their academic careers. At the Think Beyond Summit, numerous Schrödinger alums got together to discuss mobility in cutting-edge research.
The 40th birthday of the Erwin Schrödinger program inspired the FWF to invite alums of the program, whose careers have taken many to the top of their research field, but also to successful positions in business and industry, to get together to exchange experiences and to network. The evening focused on the importance of international mobility for academic careers and the opportunities and challenges it brings.
FWF President Christof Gattringer, FWF Vice-President Ursula Jakubek, and Barbara Zimmermann, head of the FWF’s Career Development Department, kicked off the event by presenting some key statistics to illustrate the program’s positive effects: According to an impact evaluation report, 60% of former Schrödinger fellows are appointed full professors in the course of their career. The citation rates of academic papers are also very impressive: When comparing funding programs based on the number of citations of papers published in the respective programs per million euros of funding, Schrödinger fellows are particularly successful, even ahead of the FWF Wittgenstein Award or the particularly competitive FWF START Awards. This is not surprising, as the fellowship gives these people the opportunity to work and publish with the world's leading researchers in their field.
Mobility funding as a launching pad into cutting-edge research and beyond
In her statement, FWF Vice-President Ursula Jakubek also emphasized the importance of mobility funding for career development in and beyond the field of top-level research. A considerable number of former Schrödinger fellows have taken up key positions in business and other areas, including, for example, R&D management positions in large companies or as leading physicians in the healthcare sector.
Evaluations emphasize the Schrödinger program’s impact
At the anniversary celebration, Barbara Zimmermann, who is responsible for career funding with her team at the FWF, looked back on the program’s milestones since its establishment in 1985 and talked about its positive evaluations in 2006 and 2014. Both evaluations attest to the program's high impact on career development and encouraged the FWF to continue the program. Over time, the FWF expanded the program’s funding to include a return phase to support researchers after they come back to Austria.
Top destinations USA and Germany
The most popular destinations over the last 40 years include the USA and Germany, but more exotic countries such as Papua New Guinea can also be found on the Schrödinger country list. FWF President Christof Gattringer, a Schrödinger Fellow himself in the late 1990s, began by looking back on his time at the University of British Columbia in Canada and once again emphasized the importance of international mobility and cooperation for Austria as a research location.
The autobiographical series “On the Road” features Schrödinger fellows writing about their impressions and experiences abroad. Read more on the FWF’s science magazine scilog.
How do you look back on your experience abroad today? What opportunities opened up for you and what challenges have you overcome? How important is having an international network in cutting-edge research? Former Schrödinger fellows, who now work in a wide variety of fields, took the stage to answer these and other questions. Information systems scientist Birgit Hofreiter from TU Wien, microbiologist and FWF Wittgenstein Award winner Renée Schroeder, behavioral researcher Kurt Kotrschal, political scientist Alice Vadrot from the University of Vienna, and pediatrician Ruth Ladenstein from St. Anna Children's Cancer Research Institute recalled their “Schrödinger time” with anecdotes and stories at the 40th anniversary celebration.
Recommended reading: How do researchers look back on their experiences abroad?
On the FWF's website and social media channels, 15 researchers, including economist Ernst Fehr and Rector Veronika Sexl, speak on behalf of the thousands of alums about their Schrödinger experience and their advice for young colleagues. Click here to read their statements.
