While some things expected for 2024 (e.g. the revamp of the WissZVG) didn’t happen, we nevertheless are looking back on an eventful year:

• The MLU released new statutes on the principles for safeguarding good scientific practice on January 16th 2024.
• In 16 workshops (counting only those we organised ourselves) 196 doctoral candidates participated and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive with an approval rate of slightly over 95%.
• The doctoral regulations of the Faculty of Medicine has been updated.
• For the first time ever we were able to orchestrate an award ceremony for the doctoral candidates receiving a scholarship from the Saxony-Anhalt state graduate fund, which was a great success overall. On that note: the self-representational network of these scholarship receivers started an own blog this year, so be sure to check them out!
• The Mental Health Awareness Days 2024 aimed on how to cope with demanding or stressful situations during your research. Ideally, the presented topics helped you to smoothen stressful situations and even prevent too heavy mental load.
• Doctoral researchers from graduate schools in the field of Natural Sciences and Agricultural and Food Economics have had the opportunity to get into contact and network during the fourth Get-Together of the Research School Network Halle. The focus has been on Generative AI for Science: Boosting Efficiency, Effectivness and Creativity.
• We expanded our set of guides by creating and publishing the „Writing an exposé“ entry, which has been well received and visited pretty frequently ever since. 
• The doctoral representation has been (re-)elected for a new term of two years. Be sure to contact them when you need them and consider supporting them or becoming a part of them next term.
• Looking at the graduate programs, the ETN Numerical Modelling of Highly Flexible Structures was successfully completed this year, congratulations to everyone there! On the one hand, the Research Training Group Communication and Dynamics of Plant Cell Compartments succesfully started into the second funding period. On the other hand, the research teams at the Just Transition Center and those at the IRTG-Proteoforum just started working in their many respective fields – we wish them the best of luck and continued success! Peeking at 2025, the research training group Politics of Enlightment was funded in 2024 and will start its research next year at the IZEA – of course we also wish them the best possible start!

Also, looking forward, we gladly hereby point you at the first workshops already open for registration!

Most importantly though, we want to thank everyone involved for a successful and fulfilling year 2024!