Doctoral Program in Science & Art: 100% Graduation Rate
The third cohort of the doctoral programme at the inter-university Wissenschaft & Kunst (Arts and Academia) Centre has now successfully completed the programme: in June 2026, Ukrainian doctoral candidate Ielizaveta Oliinyk became the final member of the cohort to defend her dissertation successfully. This means that every member of the cohort has now graduated.
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Picture: On 11 March 2026, graduates of the interuniversity doctoral college Wissenschaft & Kunst met with those currently enrolled in the doctoral programme. The artist Ramiro Wong hosted an evening of cooking and dining, which provided the setting for a relaxed networking event.
LAcross all cohorts to date, the programme – which was established in 2010 and is funded by the Province of Salzburg, the University of Salzburg and Mozarteum University Salzburg – has consistently achieved a graduation rate well above the international average for comparable doctoral programmes. This success has reinforced the conviction of the programme leadership's team – Nicole Haitzinger, Anita Moser and Johanna Zorn – that their approach is the right one: key features include close collaboration amongst the students, ongoing and intensive support from the leadership team as well as from students' principal and secondary supervisors, comprehensive support throughout the duration of the doctoral programme, and a dedicated, individually tailored mentoring system.
“Our aim is to create a supportive and reliable environment for doctoral candidates working at the intersection of the arts and academia, and to provide the best possible conditions for their individual development. The diverse career paths pursued by our graduates demonstrate that this approach is successful.” said the management team.
The third cohort of graduates comprises a group who are forging successful careers in a number of fields -as postdoctoral researchers or directors of continuing education programmes, as curators or educators at established cultural institutions or as independent artists:
- Martina Fladerer is Senior Artist at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz, as well as a dramaturge and art educator at ARGEkultur in Salzburg
- Raphael Hiden works as an academic at the Institute of Sociology at the University of Graz
- Gwendolin Lehnerer serves as Co-Director of the Continuing Education Programme Curating in the Performing Arts and is also affiliated with the Documenta Institute.
- Ielizaveta Oliinyk is a freelance director in the field of documentary theatre, particularly in the context of Ukraine, and also develops and produces documentary film projects
- Ivana Pilić is a researcher in cultural studies and a curator for Discourse & Art at D—Arts – Project Office for Diversity
- Anna-Maria Stadler is an author, visual artist and lecturer and teaches at Mozarteum University Salzburg, the University of Arts Linz, and Salzburg University of Applied Sciences (MultiMediaArt). She is co-editor of archipel – Zeitschrift für Kunst, Theorie und Literatur, published by atelier /// and is a board member of the Gallery Fünfzigzwanzig.
This not only demonstrates the doctoral programme's lasting impact but also underscores its important role in supporting the next generation of researchers and artists. The programme is currently welcoming its fourth cohort: until autumn 2028, seven doctoral candidates will pursue their dissertation projects while employed on 50 per cent appointments.