The project "INGQueens"

Women engineers in transition: review, insight and outlook

On June 25, 2026, INGQueens will celebrate a very special anniversary: the 40th anniversary of the doctoral dissertation of Prof. Dr.-Ing. Ulrike Kuhlmann (University of Stuttgart, Institute for Design and Engineering). We are honoring this milestone as part of our event series “Women Engineers in Transition – Retrospect, Insight, and Outlook,” which once again spotlights outstanding female engineers and their professional journeys.

In 1995, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Ulrike Kuhlmann became the first woman in Germany to be appointed to a C4 professorship in structural steel engineering and had a lasting impact on her department. As a professor at the Institute of Design and Engineering at the University of Stuttgart, she developed, together with colleagues, the innovative teaching concept “Stuttgart’s Design-Oriented and Material-Agnostic Teaching,” for which she received the Federal Cross of Merit on Ribbon in 1999. Throughout her career, she served on numerous national and international committees and was honored with many awards. On June 25, 2026, learn more about Dr. Kuhlmann as well as the career paths of some of the faculty’s female doctoral students and postdocs.

In an open and inspiring atmosphere, a varied program awaits you, featuring exciting personal insights, discussions about the evolution of the engineering profession—then, now, and in the future—as well as plenty of opportunity for exchange. Whether you’re a (prospective) engineer, a former RUB student, or simply interested in networking: This event offers the ideal opportunity to make new connections and share experiences.

When and where at a glance:

June 25, 2026, 3:00–6:00 p.m.
Ruhr University Bochum
IC Building, Level 04,
in the Bentonite Laboratory (Room 520)
(Entrance via I-Nordstraße)

We look forward to receiving your registration by June 15, 2026.

A portrait of the female pioneers

Even after the launch event, you will continue to encounter portraits of the professors in various sections of the I series and in the administrative area.
Learn more about these successful female engineers, their careers before and after their work at RUB, and the remarkable milestones they have achieved in enriching civil and environmental engineering.

The exhibition is currently located in the southern area of ​​the IC building on Level 04.

The podcast

Look forward to exciting and particularly honest interviews with the six female professors of the faculty. In the INGQueens podcast, we show you whether and which personal or professional hurdles they have overcome on their career path and how their work has set an important course for the future of female engineers.