Back to Science. A series of workshops on balancing work and personal life

If you are planning to return to academia or research from maternity or parental leave in the near future, we have prepared a series of workshops designed to make your return easier and give you greater confidence and peace of mind. Returning to work can be challenging: academia evolves rapidly, and project requirements, technologies, and publishing practices are constantly changing. At the same time, there is the care of children or other loved ones, the need to balance daily life with professional responsibilities, and often also doubts, stress, or anxiety about whether you are “prepared enough” for the return. These feelings are completely natural—and our upcoming series of workshops addresses precisely these concerns. We are preparing an online course for you in April called “Back to Science!”, which focuses on key changes in science, followed by a workshop on “Balancing Scientific Work and Family Life” and an “Academic English” course by the end of June. To make participation as easy as possible for you, we are offering some of the workshops online. For in-person meetings, we will arrange childcare if you are interested.

Back to Science!
April 10, 2026, 8:30 AM–12:30 PM, Online (participants will receive a link to the livestream after registering)

Course Description
This course is designed for researchers returning to academia after a career break who need to reorient themselves within the current research landscape. It focuses on key changes in science, including open science, the role of artificial intelligence, and shifts in the publication and grant systems in both the Czech and international contexts. The course also covers the basics of research data management and provides an overview of the support services offered by UP. The course is part of a framework designed to refresh key competencies, strengthen professional identity, and facilitate a confident return to research practice.

Contents

1. New trends in the research environment: Open science, research evaluation, infrastructure development, etc.
2. Open science and research data management in projects: Open access, research data sharing, open licenses, overview of basic requirements of Czech and European funding agencies, fundamentals of ethics and good scientific practice.
3. New technologies in research: Tools for information retrieval, literature management, and applications of AI.
4. Overview of infrastructure, services, and research support at UP.

Lecturer
Radomir Sztwiertnia, M.A., works as an information specialist and head of the Research Support and Information Literacy Department at the UP Library. He focuses on supporting the academic community in the areas of open access, research data management, and meeting project requirements. He leads courses and training sessions, contributes to the development of services and methodologies, and actively collaborates with professional communities at both the university and national levels.

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