TU Dortmund has further improved equality in science. After evaluating the interim reports concerning the realization of research-oriented equality standards, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) included the university in the top group at the end of June. From stage 3 in 2009, TU Dortmund got to stage 4. Among others, the convincing strategy, the innovative approaches and the implementation of the topic in first-line-management were spoken of in high terms.
TU Dortmund aims at equality for men and woman on each level of scientific career. TU Dortmund has about as much male as female students. But there are wide specialist differences in gender relations. And on the way up the scientific career ladder, the percentage of women is decreasing to about 20 percent of the professorships. The university targets to reach a percentage of at least 20 percent of female students in the faculties. At the same time the share of women is not supposed to decrease from level to level any more according to the cascade model: the share of graduates defines the goal for the share of female doctoral students, the share of female professors is not supposed to be lower than the share of female students doing their PhD.
To reach this goal TU Dortmund developed central as well as faculty-specific measures: by establishing a KiTa (daycare facility for children), for example, the university became more family-friendly and a children’s allowance for the scholarships of outstanding students was also introduced. Due to specific sensitization, meanwhile each faculty has at least one female professor or junior professor. The share of female research assistants could be increased to nearly 40 percent. Some faculties specifically try to acquaint female students with research by quotas for female student assistants whereas other faculties want to invite more female visiting professors. Some disciplines specifically take care of an equilibrated representation of men and women in information materials to equally interest female and male pupils for the study offers.
2008 the members of DFG decided to realize the research-oriented gender equality standards. Between 2008 and 2013 the universities provide three reports which are the basis for the evaluation of their progress in this process. In case of grant applications it will be entirely sufficient in future to indicate the evaluation instead of presenting the equality concept in detail. The interim report of TU Dortmund from February 2011 was supervised by the prorector research. Meanwhile the new prorector diversity management is responsible for this area – another apparent sign for the importance of equality at TU Dortmund.