Concept note template
When I start working on a proposal, I start from a concept note. Over the years, I've settled on the template that I will show here. The overview table is a tip I got from our office of external funding.…
My love for .txt files
In a world full of sophisticated productivity apps, elaborate note-taking systems, and increasingly complex digital workflows, one of my favorite tools remains remarkably simple: the humble text file. No fancy interface, no synchronization dashboards, no tags or plugins; just plain…
PhD Talk for AcademicTransfer – How to stand out when applying for a research position
This post is part of the series PhD Talk for AcademicTransfer: posts written for the Dutch academic career network AcademicTransfer, your go-to resource for all research positions in the Netherlands. These posts are sponsored by AcademicTransfer, and tailored to those…
Stop treating your inbox like a filing cabinet
Email management habits can become surprisingly inefficient. Two common patterns stand out in particular: people who keep everything in their inbox, and people who carefully move every message into elaborate folder systems. Both approaches feel organized in the moment, but…
PhD Defenses around the world: two defenses in Sweden
Over the years, I have written quite a bit about PhD defenses around the world (and even published some research on the topic, and a book). The final step of the doctoral journey is very different depending on the country…
Think day on data management
As I've been working on my think days, I've made it a habit to share the generalized prompts here for anyone who may want to go through this exercise. I design the prompts together with ChatGPT and tailor them then…
From Researcher to Vice Dean: Reflections on a New Role
I’ve always seen myself as a researcher. My academic journey has been driven by curiosity, data, writing, and mentoring students. University administration? That felt like something for “other people”: the kind of work that happened behind the scenes while I…
Making Figures for Proposals: My Current Strategies
Over the past few years, I’ve been actively working on diversifying my funding sources, which means I've been writing a lot of proposals. And while I’ve gotten better at structuring my ideas and tailoring my writing to different calls, there’s…
Think day on social safety in academia
As I've been sharing the generalized templates of my think days, today I want to share one today on an important topic, which is social safety. Think Day — Social Safety & Ethics in Academic Work (1.5 hours) Purpose This…
Skills I am developing in my new role
I was recently appointed as vice dean for research at my institution, and I am learning as much as I learned in the first months of my PhD. Stepping into this position has made me realize just how much there…