1. kick-off retreat: The first-year fellows are invited to a kick-off retreat for team building and topic identification. There, the fellows are introduced to the programme under the guidance of a team coach.
2. definition of the annual theme: The annual theme frames the activities of the First-year Fellows in terms of content and is presented to the public in a suitable form at the end of the project phase (one year). It is developed by the group and implemented with the approval of the Vice President for Research. In the annual theme, the First-year Fellows focus on an overarching framework for their individual research topics.
3. promotion of scientific discourse: An organised scientific discourse gives the First-year Fellows the opportunity to present and further develop their own research work. The focus here is on interdisciplinary and communicative skills, for which purpose interdisciplinary colloquia, method workshops, tandem presentations and debates are organised.
4. training for interdisciplinary skills, such as
5. networking opportunities: Meetings, visits and excursions for exchange with business, politics, media as well as cultural programme and trips abroad to, for example, neighbouring universities in Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland etc. open up further academic contacts.
6. annual scientific conference (in the second year of the programme) and joint preparation of a suitable publication
7. feedback discussions
Participants in the PYREC Excellence Programme are managed as Fellows; even after completion of the programme, Advanced Fellows continue to have the opportunity to take advantage of the funding provided by the PYREC Excellence Programme and to cooperate with the next cohort of First Fellows in the organisation of the programme.
In cooperation with the Graduate Centre, First-year Fellows and Advanced Fellows are encouraged to actively shape the programme and its further development and to initiate and consolidate collaboration with current and new cooperation partners.
The First-year Fellows and Advanced Fellows are specifically involved in budget management, programme design and organisation and are responsible for organising the events in the first year of the programme. They are supported by the Graduate Centre.
PYREC Advanced Fellows are responsible for organising the annual scientific conference (e.g. with accompanying workshops) to present the work on their chosen annual topic and prepare a suitable publication. They also act as mentors for the subsequent First-Year Fellows, for example by providing advice on event organisation or participating in the events as speakers or moderators.
The PYREC Fellows of each year correspond to a group of researchers who hold several offices to organise the annual programme:
1. spokesperson and vice-spokesperson of the fellows
2. treasurer
3. leadership for the organisation of the various events within the programme year.
The First-year Fellows form a Graduate Advisory Board to advise the Vice President for Research on programme matters. The elected spokespersons serve as central contact persons for the Vice President for Research as well as for the Graduate Centre.
First-year Fellows enjoy special funding for conference participation, programme action formats and excursions.
After successful completion of the first year of the programme, Advanced Fellows are granted a one-off travel allowance of up to 2,000 euros.
