The VMI Summer Retreat is for all scientific staff of the ETH Computer Science department. This year, we’re going to the beautiful town of Interlaken, Switzerland. We’re looking forward to great scientific exchange, networking and socialising!
Sign up below and we’ll send you a reminder a couple of days before registration opens!
Date: September 10-13 and 15-18, 2022. This year’s retreat will be split up into two events. The retreat is fully supported by the department. No need to take vacation days to attend (but let your supervisor know that you will attend once we confirm your registration).
- If you joined ETH after or on June 15, 2021, (i.e., you are “new”) sign up here
- If you joined ETH before June 15, 2021, sign up here
Registration opens on June 15 at 13:37.
Location: Interlaken. Interlaken is nestled between two gorgeous lakes and lies at the foot of majestic mountains in the Bernese Oberland. It’s the perfect location for exploring the beautiful hiking trails of the Jungfrau region, the scenic lakeside towns of Thun and Spiez, as well as the wonderful valleys of Lauterbrunnen, Grindelwald and Kandersteg.
We’ll have plenty of fun activities to choose from, from hiking, kayaking and paragliding to visiting glaciers, castles and caves!
Interlaken is just a 2 hour train ride from Zürich. We’ll be staying at the Youth Hostel Interlaken in four-person ensuite bedrooms.
Cost: CHF 40. Except for this contribution, the retreat is sponsored by the department. Everything is included: transportation, activities, accommodation and food. Exceptions: alcoholic beverages as well as lunch and dinner on the last day.
Who can participate?
All members of the scientific staff of the D-INFK department (PhD students, postdocs, research assistants, oberassistents etc.). You do not need to be a VMI member.
There are 64 spots (32 per retreat).
Program
We will stay in Interlaken for four days. The goal is to get to know each other, to extend the scientific network within our department, and to have a great time!
We will have a scientific programme, social activities and leisure time.
The scientific programme will consist of presentations and discussions on a variety of technical and non-technical topics, eg. teaching, efficient time management, student supervision, research methodology, etc. We encourage interactive formats, such as discussions and round tables. We’ll also have ‘scientific speed dating’ in very small groups, where you can explain your research to just a few participants.
For the social activities, we’ll split up into groups so that everyone can do the things they enjoy, whether it be hiking, canyoning, relaxing by the lake, or playing board games in the hostel’s cosy common room. We have lots of ideas for fun activities, so rest assured you won’t be bored!
Photos from previous retreat
Check out the photos of the 2021 VMI summer retreat in Scuol and the 2019 VMI summer retreat in Interlaken, to see what we got up to in previous years!
Contact
This retreat is organised by Anu, Bogdan, Felix, Karel, Linard, and Matilda, your fellow PhD students and postdocs in the ETH computer science department. If you have questions, please contact us at vmi-contact@lists.inf.ethz.ch.
Bachalpsee: Wikimedia Commons, Whgler CC-BY-SA 3.0
Brienzersee: Wikimedia Commons, Martin Abegglen CC-BY-SA 2.0
Lauterbrunnen: Wikimedia Commons, Noel Reynolds CC-BY 2.0
Jungfraubahn: Wikimedia Commons, Joachim-KohlerHB CC-BY-SA 4.0