Anja Schulz studied Chemistry at Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany, where she also completed her doctorate in physical chemistry with a specialization in biosensing, optical spectroscopy and nanomaterials. Following a postdoctoral research stay at Dublin City University, Ireland, she transitioned into science management and third-party fundraising.

She held positions at the Technical University of Munich and, from 2014, at the Leibniz Institute of Photonic Technology in Jena, where she gained extensive experience in coordinating large collaborative R&D projects and supporting researchers in acquiring national and European public funding.

Since 2022, Anja Schulz has been working at ams OSRAM as Senior Project Manager in Global Public Funding, based in Jena. In this role, she is responsible for applications to public subsidy programs on national and EU level, and management of governmental grants. One of her main tasks is to drive and coordinate spillover activities within large-scale governmental programs, including the European Chips Act and Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI), which also includes management of stakeholders at European Universities and research organization, industry associations, and national authorities. Her work focuses on ensuring compliance, knowledge dissemination, and effective transfer of R&D results beyond funded core activities, thereby maximizing societal and industrial impact of publicly supported innovation projects.