The Visiting Female Professor Programme

The Visiting Female Professor Programme takes into account the peculiarities of appointments at a technical university. In order to make the academic career path for women coming from the industrial sector more transparent and increase the visibility of excellent female scientists, the visiting professor attains insights into the everyday life of a professor over a period of two semesters. In terms of content, a visiting professorship should be compatible with a research area within the Departments of Materials and Earth Sciences, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Information Technology and/or Computer Science. The programme is intended for excellent talents in their fields with a doctorate who come from research and development-related departments in industrial enterprises and who could perspectively be considered for filling a professorship. They are given the opportunity to gain experience within the areas of research and teaching at a university and raise their profile in view of a professorship. The objective is to provide an innovative impulse regarding recruiting and appointing women from the industrial sector in academics and to stimulate a change in thinking. The Visiting Professor Programme unites various approaches to a modernisation of the appointments culture and reinforces equal opportunity. It is a pilot project for testing innovative standards and approaches: • Open-topic job postings for international and interdisciplinary openness • Deliberate and active addressing of candidates through female professors • Transparency within the appointment procedures through public processes and time lines • Potential as a significant criterion in the selection procedure • Option of a part-time or full-time visiting professorship • Making TU Darmstadt visible as an attractive employer through accompanied on-boarding • Emphasising the advantages provided by the location in the Rhine-Main area and the universities within the region