Starter package

Under this scheme, female newcomers will receive an extra starter package specifically tailored to them. For each new Fellow in this program, the TU/e Board will make an additional 100,000 euros available they can use for their own research line, along with a special mentoring program for this new intake.

A big step forward

“We attach great importance to equal respect and opportunities for women and men,” explains Rector Frank Baaijens of TU/e. “And it has long been known that a diverse workforce performs better. It leads to better strategies, more creative ideas and faster innovation. That’s why we’ve had measures in place for years to increase the low percentage of women among our academic staff, but we’re progressing too slowly. We’re aware that we are suffering from an implicit gender bias. We are now using the fact that plans to expand our academic staff considerably in the coming years can be used as a means to make a big step forward in one fell swoop.”

Minimum of five years

This week, the TU/e Board decides to start the Irène Curie Fellowship program on 1 July. This will run for at least five years. During that time, the university will have over 150 permanent vacancies to fill. Whether or not all of these will fall under the program is yet to be seen. However, for the first year and a half, it is set at 100 percent. After that, the program will be evaluated annually and the percentage will be adjusted if necessary.

50 percent of new assistant professors

Vacancies for which a good female candidate has not been found within six months will be reopened outside of the program. Nevertheless, it will remain the case that the application committee must nominate at least one female candidate and one male candidate. All in all, TU/e wants at least half of all newly-appointed assistant professors to be women. The minimum for associate professors and full professors will be 35 percent.

The measure has been checked against European legislation. It allows to target recruitment from among underrepresented groups.

Irène Curie

Irène Curie (1897-1956) won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1935 and was an active advocate for women’s rights in education and science. Irène Curie was the daughter of the equally famous scientist Marie Curie, the first female Nobel Prize winner. Baaijens: “Irène Curie is a symbol for the next generation of female academics that we want to attract.”

https://www.tue.nl/en/working-at-tue/scientific-staff/irene-curie-fellowship/