Ready, study, go!
Start your studies top informed.
Study your dream!
All information about studying.
Stay in touch!
Stay connected with the university.
Study with Purpose!
Discover our study programmes.
Advance with Purpose!
Lifelong learning and thinking ahead.
Research with Purpose!
Research from idea to application.
Better together!
As a university we create new opportunities.
Daniel Winkler, contact person in difficult life situations: calm, clear, and solution-oriented.
What I studied:
💼My job: Social worker initial consultation at the Magistrate of Graz – Social Welfare Office, Graz.
How to reach me: LinkedIn
Me in three emojis: ⛰️ 🪵 🍫
In my free time: I enjoy being outdoors, hiking, working with wood, or volunteering – for example with the fire department or the hiking club.
The coolest internship was: My short-term internship in the palliative care unit at LKH Hochsteiermark as well as with the Mobile Children’s Team in Leoben was both challenging and enriching. It was the first time I had intensive contact with seriously ill people and their relatives. It gave me deeper empathy and new perspectives.
When I was little, I wanted to be Chef, today I am Social Worker. In between, I worked as a civil engineering technician
If I hadn’t studied Social Work, I would probably have become an elementary school teacher.
My favorite spot on campus: Most of the lectures took place there, including my master’s thesis presentation, marking the end of five years at FH JOANNEUM.
Tell us what your job is, without telling us what your job is: “I am often the first person to listen when things are really difficult.”
If my studies were an animal, it would be: Alpaca – gentle, empathetic, adaptable, and resilient. They are herd animals with a strong sense of community. Stubborn, but with heart.
What you definitely learn in my study programme: How to approach people in difficult life situations with empathy, expertise, and legal confidence – individually, solution-oriented, and with an awareness of societal contexts.
The best course was: The preparations for the bachelor’s and master’s thesis. I worked independently, received continuous feedback from colleagues and instructors, and learned a lot about myself and my working methods.
Fun fact from my studies? Useless knowledge? Social Work students at FH JOANNEUM first learn not ‘help,’ but ‘deadline.’ Closely followed by: ‘I need another coffee.
Approaches people openly, but also takes good care of yourself. Both are necessary in this profession.
I advise people in acute situations – especially when it comes to securing their livelihood. I also provide support over the phone and conduct conversations to ease their burden. I am often the first point of contact for people in difficult situations. I found out about the job on the City of Graz website and applied in the traditional way.
During my studies, I learned empathy, self-reflection and patience – skills that are fundamental to my work. What I particularly like about my job is the variety of encounters, the personal contact and the feeling of being able to really help people. On the other hand, situations in which structural hurdles make it difficult to provide quick help are challenging.
The job requires good communication skills, the ability to de-escalate situations, self-organisation and inner calm – and a dose of humour rounds it all off. Every successful consultation is a highlight for me, especially when I feel that a conversation has had real added value for the people I am advising.
I ‘m looking forward to many more encounters, to sending clients away with a good feeling, and to a humorous, collegial atmosphere within the team. In the long term, I can well imagine passing on my knowledge and practical experience as a teacher.
Between autumn 2021 and summer 2023, I was able to balance my job and studies well – thanks to good planning, clear priorities and a supportive social environment. During my master’s degree, I mainly worked part-time, around 20 hours per week. Towards the end of my studies, I switched to an almost full-time position, as I had already completed my master’s thesis by that point. Combining my studies and my job was challenging, but also very enriching – in my opinion, theory and practice complement each other perfectly. Sometimes you just have to seize opportunities, and today I am glad that I have been working at the social welfare office since May 2023.
