Joining the team

We are currently a team of ~15 people from all over the world, working together with students on our various research questions. We believe that combining not only expertise from various fields but also different (research) cultures is a prerequisite for doing excellent science that has long-term impact. Therefore, we are always looking for people who can not only fill in gaps in our expertise but also bring in new perspectives based on their background.

If you want to join the team, there are several points that are important:

• You should be passionate about science linked to the ecology, natural history, chemistry, behaviour, functions, physiology etc. of insects and/or their interactions with plants.
   
• You should respect academic and democratic values as well as the freedom of science.
   
• You should be willing and able to work and think independently. Since we work as peers, it is crucial to self-manage and also express needs and constructive feedback. Additionally, we often meet and help each other to tackle obstacles in our work. Therefore, your creativity and the ability to think beyond the box or bubble are crucial.
   
• We only want informed people to apply to us. Therefore, in your initial communication with our group, please add in the subject line what animal you can see at the PII webpage “about the group”. When there, also check out our projects to see what we are working on.
   
• You should bring great team spirit. We work constantly together on different topics in different combinations. We frequently communicate, exchange and discuss various topics, and we respect everyone’s background and perspective. This is something we value a lot, and we want to learn from each other. Since we are based in Germany, knowing German helps. However, we primarily speak English in PII. Being fluent in English is thus clearly a necessity.

What happens when you apply with us? 

After receiving your application, Prof Sara D. Leonhardt will screen the applications for scientific fit and formal requirements.

If these are met, we will likely invite you to an informal interview to get to know you better. If you move forward to an interview, you will receive the date and time as well as further information. Most often these interviews are online and not only with Prof. Sara D. Leonhardt, but with the whole team. This is because we want to be as objective as possible and decide together who joins the team. 

As part of the informal interview, we usually ask you to give a 15 minute PowerPoint presentation to present yourself, your previous work but also possible research questions and ideas which fit to PII. Expect questions from all of us! Afterwards you will have time to ask questions and talk to the team (also without the chair). So if you have questions regarding the group, life in Freising and so on, you will have the opportunity to ask them all.