Comprehensive talent management is an essential part of the Helmholtz culture. We offer all of our staff a variety of opportunities to develop their talents. In addition, we support young scientists and are actively involved in teaching children and young people about science.

The direct route to a doctorate

The Helmholtz Graduate Schools and Helmholtz Research Schools support young scientists as soon as they graduate and offer a structured way to attain a doctorate, with binding supervision parameters and an individually designed qualification programme. Helmholtz Juniors is a doctoral students' initiative within the Helmholtz Association that aims to establish strong networking links between doctoral students and to continue to improve training for doctoral students by creating constructive initiatives.
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The future looks bright: Helmholtz Young Investigators Groups

The Helmholtz Young Investigators Groups help to develop independence in young scientists at an early stage and to offer them reliable career opportunities. The support is aimed at researchers who attained their doctoral degree between two and six years ago, not counting time spent on parental leave. Young scientists are selected over the course of a multi-stage process and initially spend five years researching at a Helmholtz Centre, where they set up their own working group and advance their research. The heads of the Young Investigators Groups also work closely with the universities, where they may be appointed as junior professors.
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Helmholtz Management Academy

At the Helmholtz Management Academy we provide practical leadership training to outstanding young scientists and the next generation of managers from the fields of administration and infrastructure. In addition, a specially developed mentoring programme promotes the development of a management network within the Helmholtz Association.
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Helmholtz School Labs: experiencing research first hand

In cooperation with the Helmholtz Research Centres we have established a network of school laboratories, which are used intensively by school classes and in teacher training. Our aim is to stimulate interest in science and technology from an early age, and the laboratories allow children and teenagers to conduct experiments and gain an insight into research. Teachers can learn about new ideas and share their experiences. Each year, over 50,000 pupils visit the Helmholtz School Labs, which have been set up in 24 locations to date. The variety of topics and methods is as large as the range of the main research areas of the individual Helmholtz Centres.
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Tiny Tots Science Corner

The Tiny Tots Science Corner initiative, which allows pre-school children to experience nature and technology and improves early learning, has developed extremely quickly. More than 180 local networks ensure that pre-school teachers have easy access to the training courses developed by the Tiny Tots Science Corner. To achieve this goal, the networks offer workshops with trainers and provide a wide range of educational material. Participating day-care centres gain the Tiny Tots Science Corner label. Around 16,000 day-care centres in Germany are already active in the programme. The nationwide initiative is funded by the Helmholtz Association, management consultants McKinsey & Company, Siemens, the Dietmar Hopp Foundation and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.
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