Women can use the boxes for sanitary products
The Faculty of Arts at Masaryk University has recently installed dispensers for sanitary products in the ladies’ toilets.
HR Award – Our award defence is coming up
Preparations for the defence of the HR Excellence in Research Award (HR Award) are already in full swing at our faculty. The faculty has been a proud holder of the award for more than five years. Since winning it, it has implemented numerous measures to improve the working environment, support research, ensure transparent HR processes, and promote the career development of researchers.
How is HR Excellence in Research defended?
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By 11 June 2026
Preparation and submission of documents to the European Commission
- Report on the implementation of the Action Plan
- Improved Action Plan (i.e., it is necessary to identify needs and plan measures)
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Late 2026 / early 2027
A visit by European Commission evaluators to the faculty
- Full-day programme
- Presentation on the implementation of HRS4R at the faculty
- Discussions between the evaluators
- and the faculty management and implementation team
- and representatives of early-career researchers
- and representatives of experienced researchers
- Final evaluation – oral feedback from the evaluators
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Within one month of your in-person visit
Consensus report
- Outcome of the defence of the award
How was the new Action Plan drawn up?
An important part of the preparations involved the faculty’s academic and research community. We were interested in staff members’ views on how the faculty is implementing the principles of the European Charter for Researchers and how we can continue to improve. We gathered this information using the following tools and meetings:
- A questionnaire survey of academic and research staff.
- Individual consultations with those responsible for key areas.
- Discussions with staff and PhD students:
- Pillar 1 – Ethics, integrity, gender and open science (HRA working group discussion) January 14 2026
- Pillar 2 – Evaluation, recruitment and career progression of researchers (HRA working group discussion) February 6 2026
- Pillar 3 – Working conditions and procedures (HRA working group discussion) January 23 2026
- Pillar 4 – Careers in research and talent development (HRA working group discussion) February 13 2026
- The European Charter for Researchers – experiences and suggestions (discussion with staff in English) February 11 2026
- The European Charter for Researchers – experiences and suggestions (discussion with PhD students) February 26 2026
What are the results, and what lies ahead?
The findings from the questionnaire, discussions, and expert consultations with relevant individuals were used to prepare the Improved HR Award Action Plan (new actions no. 36-60). The plan addresses the areas identified where we see scope for further improvement and sets out specific steps for the coming period.
We would like to thank all our colleagues who actively participated in the preparations and thus helped evaluate five years of joint work to develop a professional, ethical, and transparent environment at our faculty. Keep an eye out for updates on further developments regarding the HR Award, and please do not hesitate to get involved in our activities!
