The Mental Health working group (WG) is the working group in the European Council of Doctoral Candidates and Junior Researcher (Eurodoc) that focuses on the psycho-social conditions of doctoral candidates and early career researchers (ECRs).

The work of the WG is led by the two co-coordinators, Sara Wilhammar and Aleksandra Lewandowska. Sara is a postdoc at Lund University (Sweden) and Aleksandra is a doctoral candidate at University of Bialystok (Poland).

Within the WG, we actively discuss the main mental health issues for ECRs, relate our observations to available studies, conduct surveys among ECRs, and try to understand the underlying causes.

The mental health WG is dedicated to crafting empowering workshops aimed at supporting doctoral candidates and early career researchers (ECRs) across Europe. Our mission is to facilitate actionable solutions for addressing the mental health challenges faced by ECRs. Through engaging workshops, we not only explore the nuances of mental health issues but also leverage research insights to devise effective strategies. 

Our objectives encompass fostering awareness, advocating for policy changes, promoting comprehensive data collection, pinpointing stressors and risk factors, and proposing practical interventions and best practices. If you're passionate about actively participating in mental health initiatives tailored for doctoral candidates and ECRs, consider joining the WG on mental health to contribute to meaningful progress.

How to sign up for the WG mailing lists

Each working group has an email list. Here, the working groups can keep in touch between meetings, such as calling for meetings and sharing information of interest to its members.

Eurodoc has 6 working groups that are open for all Early career researchers and doctoral candidates affiliated with one or more of the members (national associations) of Eurodoc to join. In some cases, it is even possible for others to join these working groups.

If you wish to be added to the new email lists for any working groups, please sign up through this link.