Just in time for the 25th anniversary of the first female professor at the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the INGQueens project is being launched. It aims to increase the visibility of female scientists, strengthen women's networks and create new female role models.

The year 2025 is a special year - Ruhr-Universität Bochum is celebrating its 60th anniversary. In April 2000, 25 years ago, Stefanie Reese became the first female professor in the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering. She was the first woman in Germany to be awarded a professorship in mechanics. Today she is Rector of the University of Siegen.

(Prospective) female engineers often lack female role models and mentors in their field who can inspire, guide and support them in their professional development. This is where the faculty's mentoring program “Breaking the glass ceiling - early installation of professional networks for female engineers” comes in, which was launched in 2022. The INGQueens project has now been initiated from this network.

INGQueens aims to increase the visibility of female scientists at the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, provide inspiration for career paths in engineering and promote direct exchange. The INGQueens team invites all faculty members and alumni to the event “Women Engineers in Transition - Review, Insight and Outlook” on June 26, 2025 in the Bentonite Laboratory of the Chair of Tunnelling, Pipeline Construction and Construction Management. Visitors can also look forward to an exhibition on current and former female professors and their career stages and successes.

In the INGQueens podcast, the six female professors provide further personal insights and reveal whether and to what extent they were exposed to gender stereotypes and encountered surprising supporters along the way.