Core Values and Help

Core Values and Guiding Principles

In accordance with the Mission Statement of TU Dresden, the master’s program "Computational Modeling and Simulation" stands for and maintains the following values and guiding principles.

Hand in hand © PantherMedia / william87

The M.Sc. program “Computational Modeling and Simulation” embodies an interdisciplinary, cooperative, and inclusive spirit, built on the foundation of diversity. Its members and students value and foster diversity of nationalities, social backgrounds, geographic origins, ethnicities, scientific disciplines, gender, sexual orientation, age, beliefs, values, lifestyles, physical ability, opinions, perspectives, and thoughts. We strongly believe that diversity is a prerequisite for creativity in research and teaching, and we recognize its importance. We vouch for a family-friendly atmosphere of fairness, equality, and mutual respect in a diverse group of people.

The M.Sc. program “Computational Modeling and Simulation” is a community of teachers, researchers, and students who are aware of their scientific, acedemic, and societal responsibilities. All persons involved in the program are characterized by the combination of professional expertise, integrity, inventive curiosity, creativity, and motivation to perform to the best of their abilities in a fair and open fashion.

  • We work together to create and maintain and atmosphere of mutual respect and support
  • We respect each other’s culture, feelings, and opinions.
  • We foster and value diversity and equal opportunity, in particular with respect to gender, nationality, and ethnicity.
  • We are friendly, welcoming, and supportive.
  • We respect and acknowledge the intellectual property and work of others.
  • We always perform fairly and honestly, according to the rules, both in exams and in general.
  • We adhere to the Guidelines to Safeguard Good Scientific Practice and work to contribute actively to good scientific practice and to avoiding scientific misconduct.
  • We look for ways to remove or reduce hurdles and obstacles for people with disabilities or illness, people with children, and people from under-represented groups. 
  • We live, work, and act according to the principles of collegiality, helpfulness, loyalty, integrity, considerateness, honesty, and responsibility.
  • We aim to do good and do well.

United against Harassment, Bullying, Discrimination

We follow the guidelines of TU Dresden to avoid and fight against harassment, bullying, and discrimination of any sort, including sexual (collectively referred to as ‘incidents’ below). We jointly act to prevent, report, and prosecute incidents and agree on the following:

  • All allegations and reports of incidents reported to the Ombudsperson (see below) are handled in a way to maintain complete confidentiality and anonymity of the person reporting.
  • No action whatsoever is taken unless approved and explicitly agreed to by the victim. In other words, reporting an incident does not trigger a chain of events over which the victim has no control. Further steps are taken only with the agreement of and in consultation with the victim.
  • Each incident is handled on a case-by-case basis with emotional sensitivity, and the subsequent actions are considered carefully, with fairness and in consultation with the victim. 

  • Undue, inappropriate, or unsolicited sexual, emotional, or physical contact is unacceptable and may constitute an incident.

  • All professors in the program, particularly your mentor, are available and committed to provide advice or support for further reporting of the incident on request of the victim, in particular your mentor.
  • We encourage anyone who feels they may have been a victim of an incident (even if they are unsure if the experience qualifies as an incident) to report the incident to someone whom they feel comfortable approaching (whoever it may be). Only by doing so we can ensure that every person is treated with dignity and respect.
  • Confirmed incidents are taken seriously and are handed over to the police or legal authorities for prosecution in cases where this is indicated or desired by the victim.

Safeguarding Good Scientific Practice

  • Science is based on honesty and trust. Scientists must be truthful and honest in their research and follow generally accepted research practices. Misuse, manipulation, falsification, and partial reporting of data to influence the outcome of a work are  prohibited and may constitute a criminal offense.

  • All cases of scientific misconduct will be investigated and prosecuted both disciplinarily and - if applicable - legally. Confirmed scientific misconduct can lead to disciplinary measures ranging from exmatriculation to fines to criminal punishment.

  • Science is a collective effort of a community. Research methods and findings must be accurately and extensively documented so that others can reproduce them.
  • Acknowledging other researchers’ work and ideas is essential to create an environment where ideas can be freely exchanged fostering open discussions. Plagiarism, even self-plagiarism, is unacceptable and will be prosecuted.
  • Scientists must be open to discussions and criticism about their work. Researchers should maintain an objective opinion of their research and question assumptions.
  • Senior scientists have an obligation of mentoring younger scientists and helping them in their career.
  • Data fabrication, forging and manipulation are prohibited and will be prosecuted.
  • Researchers must support the validation of their research by others and have to respond when others fail to reproduce or understand their results.
  • Legislative and regulatory rules must be followed.
  • All students and scientists have an obligation to report suspected misconduct.

Contacts for Help and Reporting

Helpline Dresden

The Helpline Dresden is an emergency phone number that can be called 24/7 in English and German in any urgent or dangerous situation, and at certain times in Arabic as well (see below). It does not replace the general emergency system nor the work of the police, but it aims to ensure that people receive help even if they lack German language skills. We help in a variety of situations. No matter if you locked yourself out in the middle of the night, need to call an ambulance, or want to report an incident of racism, we will be there for you!

The Helpline Dresden also provides a general information service for immigrants living in Dresden that helps to solve everyday life problems such as administrative issues or due to language barriers. We can assist you in finding support or more specific counselling services for your individual problem. In order to relieve our volunteers during the night, this service is available during the day. 

You can call the Helpline in case of an emergency at any time – just dial 0351 – 850 75 222.

The Helpline Dresden...

… translates your request to the police from English to German

… is available 24/7 

… is confidential and anonymous on request

… puts you in touch with other counselling services in Dresden

… listens to you and offers support

… monitors and documents incidents of racism and discrimination

Helpline Dresden is also available in Arabic within certain time frames:

Arabic emergency and counselling service: Wednesday & Friday 6pm-9pm, Saturday & Sunday 3pm-9pm | Arabic nocturnal emergency phone: Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday 9pm-9am

The Helpline Dresden is a project by RAA Sachsen e.V. (www.raa-sachsen.de), sponsored within the funding guidelines for integrative measures by the Saxonian State Ministry for Equality and Integration (German: Sächsisches Staatsministerium für Gleichstellung und Integration) in cooperation with scientific institutions in Dresden (3 MPIs, 2 Leibniz Institutes, HZDR). The Helpline was launched in February 2017 and has been available 24/7 ever since. The Helpline Dresden team consists of two employees and roughly 20 volunteers, who have been trained for this type of work in a 2-day seminar. 

For more information about the Helpline Dresden please contact us at  or visit our webpage https://raa-sachsen.de/helpline-dresden

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Sylvia Wünsch
Last modified: Sep 05, 2024