High academic quality, unique networking opportunities, and the building of confidence: Smaller scale DDEA courses lead to big advantages for early-career researchers within the field of classical endocrinology.

We have asked clinical professor Marianne Skovsager Andersen what she hopes the Danish Diabetes and Endocrine Academy (DDEA) can bring to the field of classical endocrinology. Marianne Andersen is a clinical professor, chief physician and head of research for the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal area at the Department of Endocrinology at Odense University Hospital. Marianne Andersen was also part of the organising committee behind the first DDEA PhD course ‘Bridging Endocrinology with Metabolism’ in March.

Below are Marianne Andersen’s thoughts on what she thinks the DDEA can contribute with to the field of classical endocrinology.

The DDEA setup heightens the educational quality

The DDEA can elevate the field of classical endocrinology. I believe it can contribute to recruiting early-career researchers, something that is currently challenging.

To organise a PhD course on your own is a huge task. The DDEA set-up and support enable organisers such as myself to focus on the academic and networking part of a programme. This heightens the quality of a course immensely.

Unique networking opportunities

Not only does it raise the academic quality, the way the programme is organised also allows for unique networking opportunities. International conferences and symposia are usually big events with many participants.

The smaller scale and more informal set-up of the DDEA courses in combination with a programme including both academic and social features provide early-career researchers with the opportunity to talk with experts they highly admire.

They can talk and ask questions on the seat next to them on the train or during dinner and have a much more equal discussion than is often possible. They also get the opportunity to go with their PI, meet peers and network with research groups from other countries.

Early-career researchers become part of the scientific debate

The smaller scale of the DDEA courses also means that early-career researchers find it easier to ask questions. In this process, many realise that the things they find difficult when reading articles, for example, are in fact things we do not yet know, even on an international level. In the DDEA setup, the early-career researchers also get to present their own research. This builds their confidence.

Early-career researchers find out that they have something to contribute with to the scientific debate and allows them to feel part of an international research community.

Overall, this gives early-career researchers a higher degree of involvement and sense of affiliation that you do not find most other places.