GUIDELINES and QUALITY ASSURANCE during the appointment process

Effective and fair appointment processes play a key role in ensuring the continued success of our research and teaching. Therefore, we have carefully planned, participative processes between the faculties, Senate and the Rector's Office.

One of TU Wien's explicit aims is to broaden the international nature of the professorate and increase the proportion of women, where it is appropriate and necessary to do so. Another aim is to not unnecessarily prolong the duration of a process, to enable prompt appointment of potential applicants. Needless to say, the processes are handled with the utmost discretion and are treated confidentially.

The QUALITY of the appointment process is ensured in the following ways, as well as through the extensive expertise of the professorate at TU Wien and the academic employees:

Multi-person review is implemented to the fullest extent through the interplay and collaboration between members of the appointments committee (university professors, academic employees, students), the work of experts, input from the Dean and Dean of Studies, and the watchful eye of the representatives from the Working group on equal opportunities.

 

Bias is specifically addressed after viewing the applications on the basis of the statute "Bias - criteria for excluding bias, opens a file in a new window" (Additional explanations, opens a file in a new window of Criteria for excluding bias)
The faculties and the Senate will consider possible bias in advance of the inaugural sitting/convening of the appointments committee.

 

To better determine the expertise and level of experience an applicant possesses, comparative analyses of their publication record (bibliometric analyses, see "Measuring research, opens in new window" of the TU Wien Library) and of their teaching and research activities are employed.

 

At least one person on the appointment committee (from the group of university professors) must be from outside in order to bring in an outside perspective. Appraisals are generally prepared by external experts.

The Committee on Equal Treatment, opens an external URL in a new window is the board which is invited to all sittings of the appointments committees to provide support with monitoring appointment processes. It is granted special rights to carry out its duties which are regulated in the part of the Statute "Working Group on equal opportunities", opens an external URL in a new window (only in German).
Representatives of the Working Group on equal opportunities therefore participate in the sittings of the appointments committees in an advisory capacity, including all applicant lectures and interviews (up to two members may be sent) and have the right to view all documents in every case.

The Committee on Equal Treatmentis thus an important body for promoting fairness and transparency in the appointment process.

The appointment procedere is going to be evaluated on a regular basis.