The first researchers of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Cofund-funded post-doctoral programme SYS-LIFE have started their work at the University of Turku. The Faculty of Medicine organised an orientation day for the researchers to introduce themselves and learn about the services available for a research career on Tuesday, 1 October.
For the SYS-LIFE researchers, the orientation day started with a breakfast event where they presented their research topics and got to know each other and the programme staff.
The researchers were welcomed by Markus Juonala, Vice Dean and Professor of Internal Medicine, who leads the programme. He was joined by other staff who introduced themselves to the researchers.
In their own presentations, the researchers talked about their backgrounds, their research interests and how they had heard about the SYS-LIFE programme. Most of the researchers said that they had heard about the project through personal contacts - for example, they had been contacted by the principal investigators of the projects.
Some researchers also emphasised the quality of the research infrastructures at the University and in Finland as well as the cohorts available for research projects.
The orientation day continued in the Tauno Nurmela lecture hall with broader presentations on research careers and career planning. The programme included presentations on the ResearchComp tool and the Personal Development and Career Planning plan, as well as presentations from different units. In addition, Lotta Metsärinne from the University's Career Services encouraged researchers to plan their careers by making informed choices.
The day ended with a tour of the campus, including Aurum, the PET Centre, Medisina, Dentalia and BioCity buildings.
