Information Science @ Uni Regensburg: 2026 Alumni Special (Part 2)

Dear all,

Can you believe it? We have just come back from Munich and here we go again ... announcing our next Meetup! Alumni Special (Part 2) is what we can offer. Both speakers had been announced previously, but it turned out that trying to squeeze FOUR top speakers into ONE Meetup is a bit of a problem. So let's welcome Selina and Max for Part 2 of our Alumni Special series.

See you next month (at least that is what we hope),
Udo, Gregor, David & Bernd

P.S.: Here is the line-up:

Speaker 1:
Max Schmidhuber (Data Scientist @ Bavarian State Tax Office / Bayerisches Landesamt für Steuern)

Title:
Permit A38, Please: Tales from Inside a German Government Agency

Abstract:
We all know the beast, and most of us dread it: bureaucracy. It is a jungle of forms, certificates, and red tape. But is this system a symptom of madness, or is it actually necessary for a diverse society to function?
This talk offers an inside look at a Bavarian government agency, shedding light on a daily life sandwiched between printed forms and coffee breaks.
I will argue that bureaucracy is actually—believe it or not—vital for democracy. More importantly, I will demonstrate how we, as information scientists, can help alleviate its most painful side effects.

Speaker 2:
Selina Meyer (Postdoctoral Researcher | Natural Language Understanding Lab @ UTN)

Title:
Doing a PhD (and beyond) - Turning Curiosity and Joy of Learning into a Career

Abstract:
If you enjoy learning, exploring new ideas and like being in university, you may have already thought about pursuing a career in academia. But the reality of academic work is more complex than simply “staying at university”. In this talk, I will share my journey through the academic jungle so far: what a typical day looks like, the research fields I’ve explored and come in contact with, and how these experiences reflect the diversity of information science and human-centered AI. I’ll also discuss the pros and cons of an academic career, including things I wish I had known earlier, and give some tips on what to pay attention to when applying for PhD positions, possible alternative funding paths, and the personal qualities that help you not just survive but thrive in academia.