Careers outside academia

13:00 Welcome + introduction of the invited speakers by Isabell Otto, Vice Rector for Diversity and Academic Staff Development (Data Theater)

13:10 Career Perspectives for Postdocs outside of Academia by Melanie Moosbuchner, Academic Staff Development (Data Theater)

13:30 Career options outside academia: presentation and Q+A session with individual speakers from various sectors (in parallel sessions)

• Private industry: Lisa-Marie Walther, KPMG Munich (13:30, ZT1202)
  
• Editing: Sarah Koch, Springer (13:30, ZT1204)
• Science management: Daniel Piechowski, MPI-AB + Alex Wild, CASCB (13:30, ZT1201)
• Machine Learning: Conor Heins, Verse (14:10, ZT1202)
• Start up: Jens Koblitz, Small Tracking Solutions STS (14:10, ZT1204)
• Community & event management: Nihan Toprakkiran + Alex Wild, CASCB (14:10, ZT1201)
• Data Analyst: Felix Oberhauser, RISC Software GmbH (14:50, ZT1202)
• NGO: Lisa Gill, Landesbund für Vogel- und Naturschutz LBV (14:50, ZT1204)
• Research data + infrastructure management: Lena Dreher, CASCB + Mathias Günther, CASCB (14:50, ZT1201)

15:30 Panel discussion with invited speakers (Data Theater)

16:30 Exchange and networking get-together (Foyer ZT12)

Bio of the invited speakers

Dr. Lisa Gill is a research associate at LBV (Bavarian Society for the Protection of Birds and Nature). She studied Biology at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and the University of Glasgow. She earned her Ph.D. at the University of Konstanz and the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen (now the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence). From 2008 to 2016, she held various positions at the institute – starting as a graduate student and field assistant, later as a doctoral candidate and postdoctoral researcher. From 2017 to 2020, she worked as a postdoc at the Center for Advanced Science and Research (CAESAR) in Bonn. Since 2016, she has served as a reviewer for several scientific journals. Beginning in 2020, she worked as a freelance science consultant. In 2021 and 2022, she was project lead of the citizen science and arts project Dawn Chorus at BIOTOPIA – Naturkundemuseum Bayern (now Naturkundemuseum Bayern). Since 2022, after taking up a position at LBV, she has continued to play an active role in the Dawn Chorus project while also leading and contributing to several other initiatives within the organization.

As a researcher in behavioural ecology, her main interests lie in animal vocal communication and various effects of human influence. To study birds in as much detail as possible without disturbing them in their natural context, she often pioneers new approaches to recording and analysis. In recent years, science communication and public participation have also become central aspects of her work.

Dr. Conor Heins is currently a Research Engineer Lead at VERSES AI, a US-based artificial intelligence start-up. Conor received a Bachelors degree in Neuroscience from Swarthmore College in the US and a MSc. in Neuroscience from the University of Goettingen (Max Planck Research School for Neurosciences). Conor did his PhD from 2019-2024 in Biology in the group of Iain Couzin at the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior. His work and research interests over the years have moved between several disciplines, starting with animal models to study the neural basis of substance abuse and addiction, then building computational models of human eye movements, focusing on collective animal behavior in his PhD, and now recently working on probabilistic machine learning at VERSES.

Dr. Sarah Koch studied biology at the University of Konstanz, where she also earned her Ph.D. in neurobiology. Following a brief postdoctoral fellowship at the Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l’Insecte (CNRS) in France, she joined Springer Nature in Heidelberg as an intern. She advanced from associate editor to publishing editor and now serves as senior publishing editor for Life Sciences. In her role, she develops books on specialized scientific topics, education, and nonfiction, always seeking out fresh ideas. She is passionate about creating impactful books and embraces innovation in publishing, always driven by the belief that knowledge can change the world.

Dr. Felix Oberhauser studied psychology and biology in Austria, specializing in collective systems (especially brains and ants) and earning his PhD in Behavioural Ecology – focussing on ants – from the University of Regensburg. His Postdoc at the CASCB further explored collective behaviour in locusts and ants, continuing his passion for understanding interconnected systems and mastering new methods.

Yet, a growing desire to translate academic insights into real-world applications – and to find a more stable, long-term home – led him to pursue opportunities beyond academia. Today, as a Senior Data Scientist at RISC Software GmbH – a research institute and company – he bridges the gap between research and practical problem-solving. While his current work involves fewer biology-specific topics, the core of his role – identifying challenges, designing solutions, and communicating results – remains strikingly similar to his academic work.