More women promoted by Germany's universities, Ulrike Beisiegel.Janine Hummel says / G?ttingenUntil recently, scientists in Germany with a nearly impenetrable glass ceiling had to fight. But the number of professors at last start is to rise and in management positions is a tiny pinch now top University.
One of them is Ulrike by seal. On 10 April, the biochemist completed their first 100 days in Office as President of the University of G?ttingen - one of nine German universities to 'Elite'-status was awarded. Her career has research in metabolic diseases with positions in science policy, including a five year work as Ombudsman for the DFG, Germany's most important university funding agency combined.
By Mark talks about the challenges of the German academia to nature.
Why has Germany been badly, this compared to other European countries, the integration of women in science?
An obvious problem is that Germany offers too little in the way of child care support. But I see two other important factors: hierarchy and positive discrimination. The German system is extremely hierarchical and professors have a lot of makes. The professors are mostly men, and are looking for other men be their employees and successors. The men have excellent network systems and the unwritten rules of the academic game designed by them. It is no wonder then that men dominate scientific committees and to perpetuate continue even in science.
Also today still young women tell me, have them feel like outsiders.
Would a quota system for women in universities help?
I personally think that a quota can be important if you can achieve the goal of improving the involvement of women in high positions in other ways. But professors are usually on a quota, because they fear it could reduce their services - they could be dismissed as "Quota of women".
Science policy involved men often different feel. The President of the DFG, as also the male members of the Scientific Council [Germany's influential science advisory Council] argued for a quota as the only way to force the changes we need. But I think we in Germany without a quota will be successful.
I have been observed the situation for academics here for twenty years, and experienced the improvement was how painfully slow. But in the past the tendency has few years suddenly steepened. Even if it still is not reflected in the official statistics, it is very clear that more women be encouraged. All efforts we have made over the years, to get women in leading positions in science seem to now be fruits.
Were exactly these efforts what?
The efforts were wide and in many ways they were driven by the granting agencies. Great cooperation DFG grant request, for example, be required to describe the equality measures, the cooperation has. The universities began to realize that would be more women in top positions for the institutions.
The Government German excellence initiative [a multi billion euro competition between universities for "Elite" status, which was launched in 2005 in the life] was a real driver. International team of universities applications were surprised that so few women in top positions and asked that award-winning programmes contain elements to promote the improvement.
It is a chance for us to strengthen our research see and decide where we want to create a greater focus - and what infrastructure should support. It is also an opportunity to try to recreate that teaching and research should the chronic philosophy closely linked. Economy driven many of us have lose touch with these principles required.
They were DFG Ombudsman for many years. Come on gender issues here?
Yes, two gender issues were felt. First of all, women generally, they have a well-developed sense of fairness. A fair share of requests that we came in the Ombudsman to judgement on women whether certain topics or behaviors were ethically correct. Secondly, many young women strong enough to promote their rights feel not. They are rather how little worker bees are handled by their professors, as young men, and they would help come to us are looking for.
As Ombudsman, you were responsible for the promotion of good scientific practice and in cases of alleged abuse. What can be done to the temptation to cheat in the research, to reduce?
We need to take off the pressure. Scientists are expected to get floods the papers, grants, or promotion. That not always you give them time to do, thorough science, your data correctly replicate and perform the necessary quality control prior to the publication. It is not them enough time to give to think. In addition, most journals have not the time to impose good quality control.
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DFG-initiative to promote the quality rather than quantity-, which suggests that an individual grant application only five papers contains - is the right way to go. If you are thinking, have not even top scientists usually more than five really ground-breaking papers to their name. But in the clinical research you often are expected to more than five papers per year have. How could this be possible, if you have true quality control?
How do you feel after your first 100 days in Office?
Luck and privileged! I feel like a sponge, absorbing so many new and interesting information.
For the last six years, I have my life between science and Science Policy Division was. It was time to decide on one or the other. Once in a while, I miss my own science to do. But I'm glad my experience and expertise of science policy in good use as President of a large University taken. 100 Days on, I believe it was the right decision.
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