Moving to Sweden and working at another university can be exciting but also challenging at first. How do all the practicalities work? And how do you find people in the same situation as you? These are two of the questions many newly arrived post-docs wonder about. The network can therefore be of great help - both personally and professionally.
Maria Brollo is the organiser of the network. Maria came to Sweden in 2021 from Brazil and is a Postdoc at the Department of Physics, in Eva Olsson's group.
“When you arrive in Sweden as a post-doc from another country, there is not so much information and community to find. The network is therefore meant to inform you about everything you need to know about Sweden, Chalmers and everything else you need to know when you arrive as a Postdoc. For many people, moving to a new country is complicated in the beginning, such as how to rent a flat or open a bank account. Therefore, it is important to have a network to get to know others in the same situation and help each other.”
The idea was born out of a self-perceived need
When Maria herself came to Sweden, she felt lonely and lost. Since she regards herself as an extrovert person, she felt a need to meet people in a similar situation and to find a community at Chalmers.
"Normally we come to Sweden without knowing anyone, without family and friends who can help. It is therefore difficult to understand how everything works”, Maria explains.
Maria is the initiator of the network and organizes the network together with her colleagues Alok Ranjan and Carlos Benitez. Currently, there are about 60 members in the network and so far, they had two meetings since its launch in 2022.
A personal and professional support
“The people that can participate in our network are postdocs related to nanoscience. Our goal is to have four meetings per year where we meet, talk about our experiences, and help each other. Our aim is to have two informal and two more formal per year.”
“Mainly, there is a purpose on a personal level to meet and exchange experiences. It is also useful in a professional context as it can lead to research collaborations in the future. Therefore, we need more people to get involved to make the network as good as possible”, Maria concludes.
Are you interested in joining the postdoc network? Contact Maria to sign up for the mailing list to receive information about upcoming meetings.