The ERUA Young Researchers Days, held at Mykolas Romeris University (MRU) from September 29 to October 1, were part of MRU’s Science and Innovation Week, bringing together doctoral researchers from all ERUA partner universities. The three-day programme focused on skills important for researchers, including grant writing and funding strategies, scientific communication and dissemination, and academic writing.
One of the activities of the ERUA Young Researchers Days was a Writing Retreat, organised by the Institute of Educational Sciences and Social Work at the Faculty of Human and Social Studies at MRU. The event gave doctoral researchers from different ERUA universities an opportunity to dedicate focused time to academic writing, exchange experiences, and work in an international academic environment.
The Writing Retreat is part of the ERUA Interuniversity Educational Innovations (PIE) project, which aims to strengthen the academic writing skills of doctoral researchers and young researchers. The project is coordinated by Prof. Dr. Franziska Liebetanz, Head of the Center for Teaching and Learning at European University Viadrina. The MRU project coordinator is Prof. Dr. Jolanta Pivorienė. The project also involves Prof. Habil. Dr. Irena Vassileva from New Bulgarian University (NBU) and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Raminta Bardauskienė from MRU.
The Writing Retreat activities took place over two days of the ERUA Young Researchers Days. Participants worked on their own academic texts, while the sessions provided an opportunity to focus on the writing process, discuss challenges, and share practical approaches to academic work. The sessions were led by Prof. Habil. Dr. Irena Vassileva, Prof. Dr. Franziska Liebetanz, Prof. Dr. Jolanta Pivorienė and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Raminta Bardauskienė.
Other activities during the ERUA Young Researchers Days focused on grant writing and funding strategies and scientific communication and dissemination. The grant writing and funding strategies session was led by Prof. Dr. Birutė Mockevičienė, Professor of Management at Mykolas Romeris University, while the session on scientific communication and dissemination was led by Goda Raibytė-Aleksa, science communicator and journalist.
The programme concluded on October 1 with a Project Pitch Competition held as part of the STICS 2026 conference. Five projects developed during the first two days were presented to a three-member jury, which selected the winning project. The programme concluded with an award ceremony, where the jury announced the winning project.
Alongside the academic programme, international participants had an opportunity to experience Lithuanian culture during a traditional Lithuanian evening and explore Vilnius during a guided tour of the Old Town.
The ERUA Writing Retreat initiative will continue in the future, with the next project meeting planned to take place at NBU in spring 2027.
The ERUA Young Researchers Days at MRU provided doctoral researchers from different European universities with an opportunity not only to strengthen skills relevant to their research, but also to build new professional connections and explore opportunities for future international collaboration.
