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08.03.2013

Research into Gender-Related Issues in Education and Research

Highly qualified women from abroad want to continue to be employed at a high level in Germany. But all too often, the reality looks different - this according to a study conducted by the HU Berlin, the TU Hamburg-Harburg and RWTH Aachen as part of a research project funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) together with the European Social Fund (ESF). The study shows that highly qualified women who have immigrated to Germany with foreign degrees or certificates experience difficulties entering the job market; moving to Germany often means a career break or even employment far below their level of qualification.
The Study "Job Market Integration of Highly Qualified Immigrant Women - Career Paths in Natural Sciences and Technology" is available here (in German only).

The Federal Government has set a goal of giving all people in the country more opportunities for work, prosperity and participation. For this, Germany needs a new culture of innovation. The talents of everyone can only truly flourish in an innovative society. Funding is to be provided into research for this purpose.

Women at the Top

The number of women in academia as well as in leadership positions does not yet match the number of well qualified women. It is necessary to develop new instruments for action in order to gain insight into the causes of this situation. The following thematic fields are to be more closely examined in interdisciplinary research approaches:

Processes in Career Orientation

Since career development in industry as well as in science and research depends on the choice of training or discipline of study, it is necessary to gain new insight into the processes involved in choosing a career as well as to develop new paths in vocational guidance.

Organizational Structure and Career Paths in Academia and Industry

Even in fields with high numbers of women, it is rare for women to advance to the upper positions of an organization - or an academic institution. For this reason, the factors that prevent career development with equal opportunities need to be examined - also within non-traditional employment models - in order to develop new means of action. Organizational structure and culture must especially be considered.

Gender-Specific Issues in Current Research Fields

Gender-specific issues are to be appropriately considered in various fields of research, particularly in MINT disciplines. Integrating gender aspects will raise the innovative strength of research and initiate a rethinking.


Around 70 projects are currently funded. A list of these projects is available here. Conferences are held regularly to encourage networking between projects and the communication of findings.

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