RWTH: Award for fair and transparent appointment negotiations
RWTH Aachen will carry the seal of approval of the German University Association (DHV) for fair and transparent appointment negotiations for another five years . In August 2013, it was the first university nationwide to be awarded the DHV seal of approval. After 2016, the re-audit process that was due five years ago was successfully passed through for the second time.
According to the DHV, RWTH will remain excellently positioned both in terms of the appointment process and in the appointment negotiations. One indicator of the RWTH’s appointment policy is the high success rate for appointments. In 83 percent of all cases, she won the first place on an appeal list and 81 percent of the negotiations were successful. The procedures have been further improved by setting up an appointment monitor and providing transparent information about the appointment of the professorship. Appointment negotiations took place in a good atmosphere for discussion, swiftly and appreciatively. The very good support for new appointments through target group-specific training and further education offers remains exemplary.
The DHV still sees opportunities for optimization in certain areas. The DHV proposes regular appointment negotiations with junior professors without a tenure track. In addition, he recommends defining an irreducible basic or minimum level of equipment in the course of appointment negotiations, as this could further increase the satisfaction of the newly appointed professors.
Strong confidence
“The DHV seal of approval strengthens trust in the professional process of appointment negotiations – both within RWTH and among applicants for a professorship,” explains the RWTH Aachen Chancellor Manfred Nettekoven. “Due to the regular re-audits, RWTH is continuously critically examining its appointment processes and adapts processes quickly and depending on the situation.”
The re-audit procedure is based on the first quality seal procedure, which is based on a questionnaire, and additional re-audit questions. The focus in the evaluation was placed on fairness, appreciation, transparency and reliability in the appointment and stay negotiations. Statements from the university were also included in the assessment. In addition, there were interviews with professors appointed to the respective university on their experiences in the appointment process and the practical knowledge of the DHV legal advisors. The DHV advises scientists in around 70 percent of all appointment and stay negotiations in Germany.
In addition to RWTH Aachen University, the University of Cologne, the Technical University of Kaiserslautern, the FernUniversität in Hagen, the University of Duisburg-Essen, the University of Bremen, the University of Siegen, the University of the Federal Armed Forces Munich, the Technical University of Munich, the University of Hanover, the University of Hohenheim, the University of Münster, the University of Bayreuth, the BTU Cottbus, the University of Wuppertal, the University of Mainz and the TU Chemnitz have been awarded the DHV seal of approval for transparent and fair appointment negotiations. In addition, the Faculty of Medicine at the Goethe University Frankfurt and the Frankfurt University Hospital have been awarded the DHV seal of approval for fair and transparent appointment procedures in university medicine.