Wawrzinek Erfahrungsbericht
Jennifer Wawrzinek ist derzeit als Dozentin für Cultural Studies an unserem Institut tätig. Sie kommt eigentlich aus Australien und ist neben ihrer Lehrtätigkeit auch noch Autorin. Wir haben - zur Orientierung - den "Bericht" in verschiedene Stichpunkte untergliedert, die sich je einem anderen Aspekt widmen. Allgemein geht es darum einen Einblick in ihre bisherige berufliche Laufbahn zu erhalten. Falls ihr noch mehr über Jennifer Wawrzinek erfahren möchtet so schaut doch mal bei den Interviews der Dozenten und Dozentinnnen nach!
BASIC SKILLS:
I think you need to be both flexible and multi-skilled as well as develop
a specific and profound knowledge in a few designated fields of interest.
Of course, the first and most importantly is having an open mind and an
inquisitive nature and then developing these attributes into solid
research skills (which will vary depending on your chosen field of study
and/or research). This means developing conceptual and creative skills in
order to come up with original and thought-provoking research, as well as
developing systematic and methodical research skills in order to develop
these ideas into a realizable end product (an essay or a book). As a
teacher, these skills are also important, but so is, equally, the
development of good communication skills – being able to communicate your
ideas effectively and clearly to others in a manner which is inspiring.
And naturally this applies to both oral and written skills, being able to
write in a manner that is both creative and engaging but simultaneously
develops a clear and decisive argument.
CAREER:
No, I didn’t plan my career, nor did I expect to be working in a research
position and beginning an “Habilitation” in Berlin! I was living in Paris,
working on a research project which was funded by an Australian research
award, and expecting to take an employment offer from one of the French
universities in Paris, when I was offered a research position with the
English department at FU. I think it is important to have some goals which
drive you towards achieving something, but that these need to be flexible.
Sometimes life presents us with unexpected opportunities (such as a
research position at FU, Berlin) which may not have been part of an
original plan, and being too fixed to prior conceptions means missing out
on the possibility of something better than previously imagined. I would
never accept an “opportunity” if it didn’t seem interesting to me, or if I
didn’t think it would somehow make my life better, more interesting, more
enjoyable.
EXPERIENCES:
The university system is still, unfortunately, a male-dominated world (at
least from what I have seen from my experiences in Australia, France and
Germany) --- although it is true that affirmative action is going some way
to redress this. However, and more importantly, as a female academic, the
difficulty is perhaps one of taking up public space – of expressing an
opinion, developing research in a public arena and having the
self-confidence to put oneself forward. As a foreigner, I think it is more
difficult than this because academic pedagogical systems have developed
out of cultural values that are very country-specific and moving across
systems (from the Anglo-American to the German for example) is not such an
easy task, even in English departments. The most difficult adjustments for
me have been cultural ones, and the idea, as it seems, that the completion
of a doctorate carries less weight and less importance in the German
system than it does in the Anglo-American system. Whilst different
countries (especially in the EU) would like to encourage more movement
across international borders, the fact of the German Habilitation, or in
France the aggregation (which I have been told would be impossible for me,
as a foreigner to achieve), effectively makes such movement very
difficult. On the positive side, I have been lucky enough to find a
passage into the German system, and this is proving to be an enriching
experience because the very differences that frustrate me, are also the
differences which provide invaluable learning experiences both in my
research and my teaching --- so I cannot underestimate the importance of
struggling with cultural differences and readjusting to a new environment
in order to experience the benefits of difference.