Mentoring-program for female scientists in DFG-funded projects
Table of contents
The mentoring program is offered by the Center of Continuing Education (ZfW) at TU Dresden to support the personal development and professional careers of young female scientists from DFG-funded projects at TU Dresden. Funding is provided from the equal opportunities funds of these projects. The mentoring program is intended as a supplement to the services offered by the Graduate Academy.
Aims of the program
The aim of the program is to improve the career opportunities of young female scientists by expanding personal networks and providing suggestions for conscious career planning.
Young female scientists...
- reflect on and train their skills and competencies with a focus on an academic career.
- receive support in establishing and expanding their own academic network.
- gain insights into scientific structures, processes and specialist cultures.
- are supported in their career through the personal exchange of experience and knowledge with a female scientist (mentor).
Contents of the program
The program lasts a total of 10 months and essentially comprises
Accompanied by the program coordinator, the program starts with contacting a potential mentor. The female scientist (mentee) suggests potential mentors. These can be employed at TU Dresden or another university or non-university research institution. The mentor must be at least a post-doctoral student or professor. If the desired mentor agrees, the mentee and mentor form what is known as a tandem. The program coordinator is available to answer questions throughout the entire period. However, the mentee and mentor are responsible for jointly defining the number, form, location and content of the regular meetings to ensure that the relationship is tailored to the individual needs and goals of the female scientist.
Active networking among the female scientists and beyond is another important part of the program. In addition to an official kick-off and closing event, additional network meetings and lunch talks are planned, which offer the opportunity to exchange experiences and make new contacts. Through the tandem relationship with a mentor, the mentoring program enables integration into the science community as well as stronger networking both within and outside of one's own university. In addition, further training courses organized by the ZfW offer the opportunity to exchange experiences with scientists from other departments at TU Dresden.
The female scientists can take advantage of coaching for their personal career and career development. This is done in cooperation with and as a supplement to the services offered by the ZfW. One coaching session per female scientist is planned with approx. 2-3 sessions of 90 minutes each.
Possible topics:
- Self-marketing
- Decision-making
- Developing your own leadership skills
- Time management
Information for mentors
The program supports so-called one-to-one mentoring, i.e. the collaboration of one mentee with one mentor. Such a mentoring relationship not only offers benefits to the mentees, but also gives the mentors a unique opportunity to strengthen and further develop their leadership skills. Through their involvement, mentors also expand their expertise in consulting and take on additional responsibility. In addition, they gain an even deeper insight into the living and working environments of early-career researchers and into specific fields of research. They are also actively involved in the promotion of early-career researchers.
Contact
Do you have questions about the mentoring-program? I look forward to hearing from you.

Sarah Fritzsch
Continuing Education for Staff of TU Dresden
Send encrypted email via the SecureMail portal (for TUD external users only).
Center for Continuing Education
Center for Continuing Education
Visiting address:
Fritz-Foerster-Bau, room 144 Mommsenstr. 6
01069 Dresden
Supporting research areas



