“Spotlight on...” Swantje Schirmer

What do you like most about your current job?

I work in a highly international environment with colleagues at seven other European Universities, in the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Italy, Poland and Switzerland. To me, the exchange across countries is highly inspiring but is also the source of exciting challenges in my current job. As I coordinate the piloting of a new quality management system on the Alliance level, that is, across countries, I not only have to deal with seven different academic systems and relatedly different legislation. I also need to mediate between diverse work cultures that do not always fall easily into place. At the same time, I also enjoy working in an environment where we exchange and collaborate with policymakers at the national and the European level in further developing the European Higher Education Area. In this context, many reform initiatives and new approaches are currently under discussion in the European Union. In this context, European University Alliances are seen as a lab for experimentation and innovation. Hence, we are constantly involved and are pushing the boundaries in Quality Management in Higher Education.

What obstacles or stumbling blocks did you face during the PhD and how did you overcome them?

I think I struggled most with the ‘loneliness’ that came with writing a PhD, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Even if you are part of a bigger research project, the dissertation remains your baby that you need to nurture on your own. To me, our group ScrumAdemia, where we made use of the agile project management tool Scrum to work on our thesis, was a huge help in that. The supportive and trustful environment that we were able to build really changed this experience for me and I am very grateful for everything I learnt from my peers.

Which moment during your doctoral studies was the most memorable?

There is not one moment that comes to my mind, I think. So many things were memorable in different ways. In terms of content, I think my field research was really inspiring since I got to exchange with so many different influential people. But I also remember that I really enjoyed the final phase of the writing process – it was really rewarding and satisfying to see it all come together in the end.

What advice would you give our current doctoral researchers for the transitions phase after the PhD?

Talk to people who have been there! I remember trying to talk to any person whose job I found fascinating and considered as one that I might be interested in. Plus, I was lucky to be part of the GIGA’s mentoring programme for female doctoral researchers. Thanks to this programme, I got the chance to reflect on my plans and my options with successful women who already have broad experiences in different fields. Over the course of my last year at the GIGA, I was able to assess in which positions and environments my interests and my skills and capacities would match. In a way, this also served as a very useful reality check concerning the ideas and expectations I had concerning different working environments.