Welcome to our Information Page!
Interested parties can find information here on the representation of academic staff on Bauhaus-Universität Weimar committees, current working groups, and on projects of the non-professorial teaching and research staff, as well as links to further information.
We appreciate your interest and are available as contact persons for all questions concerning Bauhaus-Universität Weimar’s academic staff.
What does »Non-professorial Academics« – in German: »Mittelbau« – mean?
At the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, we refer to the scientific employees as »non-professorial academics« – a designation that includes research, teaching, and artistic staff members. In German, the term generally used is the more compact »Mittelbau« or »akademischer Mittelbau«, which refers to the central role and position of such employees.
»Mittelbau« is not officially defined anywhere. Still, it originates from German university history, where scientific employees have always occupied the position between students and professors. The term also reflects the hierarchical structure of the German university, which can undoubtedly be called into question.
However, since we know no other comparably common term, we also refer to ourselves as »akademischer Mittelbau« in direct communication. In official contexts, we usually speak of »scientific employees«. We would be pleased to receive suggestions for alternative designations from you.
Our Representatives on Bauhaus-Universität Weimar Committees and Working Groups
Senate
The Senate is a university parliament of sorts. The Senate makes decisions that affect the entire university. This includes the examination and confirmation of appeals, the evaluation and conclusion of financial plans and the development of policies and guiding principles.
The non-professorial teaching staff has four seats in the Senate. According to the Thuringian Higher Education Act (ThürHG), the Senate votes in a variety of different constellations. For example, decisions that directly affect teaching are made in the »Senate with professorial majority«. Other decisions are made in the »Senate with equal representation«. This is based on a handout from the Thuringian Ministry of Science, Economy and Society (TMWWG).
Each of the four faculties elects representatives to the Senate. The scientific employees and artistic staff members of the university who cannot be allocated to a specific faculty (such as the members of the library staff) exercise their right to vote via the Faculty of Art and Design.
In the legislative term of October 2022 to September 2025, we are represented in the Senate by
Dr. Nicole Baron (Fakulty of Architecture and Urbanism)
nicole.baron[at]uni-weimar.de
Dr. Silke Beinersdorf (Fakulty of Civil Engineering)
silke.beinersdorf[at]uni-weimar.de
PD Dr. Andreas Jakoby (Fakulty of Media)
andreas.jakoby[at]uni-weimar.de
Dr. Katrin Richter (Fakulty of Art and Design/Service staff)
katrin.richter[at]uni-weimar.de
Former Senators:
Simon Frisch (200?-2019)
Michaela Honauer (2022)
Ulrike Kuch (2017-2022)
Nathalie Lang (2019-2022)
Dr. Karl-Heinz Müller
Detlef Rütz (1996-2019)
Alexander Schwinghammer (2016-2019)
Bernhard Stratmann (2007-2008, 2011-2017)
Faculty Boards
The Faculty Boards make decisions that affect the faculty to which they belong. The work of the Faculty Boards can include the conceptualisation of new degree programmes, the discussion of the establishment of professorships or the creation of permanent positions.
Two scientific employees represent the non-professorial teaching staff on each Faculty Board, and each Faculty Board also features a professorial majority.
The Faculty Boards are elected to terms that are the same as with the Senate, that is, three-year terms.
During the legislative term of October 2022 to September 2025, we are represented on Faculty Boards by
Fakulty of Architecture and Urbanism
Kirsten Angermann
kirsten.angermann[at]uni-weimar.de
Julius Tischler
julius.tischler[at]uni-weimar.de
Fakulty of Civil Engineering
Dr. Ralf Englert
ralf.englert[at]uni-weimar.de
Alexander Flohr
alexander.flohr@uni-weimar.de
Fakulty of Art and Design
Pio Rahner
pio.rahner[at]uni-weimar.de
Lea Maria Wittich
lea.wittich[at]uni-weimar.de
Fakulty of Media
PD Dr. Andreas Jakoby
andreas.jakoby[at]uni-weimar.de
Dr. Ekkehard Coenen
ekkehard.coenen[at]uni-weimar.de
Committees and other Bodies
Committees and other Bodies
On behalf of the Senate, three committees prepare Senate decisions, discuss university-wide projects and guidelines and award funding for research and art/design (Committee on Research and Projects). These committees are:
Dr. Luise Nerlich (Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism)
Dr. Katrin Richter (Fakultät of Art and Design/ Service staff)
Dr. Silke Beinersdorf (Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering)
Till Hoffmann (Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism)
Dr. Volkmar Zabel (Fakulty of Civil Engineering)
Dr. Simon Frisch (Fakulty of Media)
Furthermore, there are other bodies, in which non-professorial academics are represented. These are currently:
Christina Kleffel (University Library)
Christiane Lewe (Fakulty of Media – as Substitute)
University Library Advisory Board
Kirsten Angermann (Fakulty of Architecture and Urbanis)
Charlotte Bolwin (Fakulty of Media)
Mathias Artus (Fakulty of Civil Engineering)
The Staff Council, which »represents the rights of the civil servants, student employees and other employees, with the exception of the professors and junior professors (Hochschullehrer), at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar«, acts as the overall representation of the employees (excluding professors and junior professors) (website of the staff council ).
And What Else is There?
The Doctoral Council ProDoc
The Doctoral Council represents the interests of doctoral students on various committees at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar.
More information on who, how, what and where can be found here.
»Prospects for Non-professorial Academics« Working Group
The Bauhaus-Universität Weimar Prospects for non-professorial academics working group at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar aims to create the best conditions for teaching and research, for good cooperation and sustainable training of employees at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar in collaboration with other actors at the university. We are in close contact with the non-professorial academic representatives in the Senate and Faculty Boards.
Since October 2021, we have developed a position paper that describes the situation of scientific employees and artistic staff members and identifies areas for action based on surveys of colleagues from all faculties, our own experience and reference papers, as well as in exchange with those responsible at the university (Bauhaus Research School, Equal Opportunity Office, Staff Council). Since the spring of 2022, we have been broadening our focus, contextualising our work within the nationwide efforts to improve prospects for non-professorial academics. We are doing so by cooperating with policymakers in the state government, the Education and Science Union (GEW) and the Network for Good Work in Science (NGAWiss), as well as by monitoring the discourse on the Amendment of the German Act on Temporary Scientific Contracts (WissZeitVG), for example. As of July 2022, we have been working on behalf of the Senate and the University Directorate in a university-wide working group that deals with the target areas outlined in the position paper in general and the significance of the WissZeitVG (German law that regulates the employment of scientific staff) for the Bauhaus-Universität in particular.
The working group can be reached by e-mail at perspektiven.mittelbau[at]uni-weimar.de.
Further Information
The opportunities and responsibilities of the non-professorial academics are closely interwoven with the university and its committees and the laws and directives of Thuringia. There are also several funding instruments for teaching, research and artistic projects, as well as professional and personal development. You can access further information under Quick Links.
The most important internal principles for employment of scientific employees at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar can be found here: the Principles for the Employment of Scientific Employees and Artistic Staff Members at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar (Mitteilungen der Universität [MdU] 37/2014). In addition, HENRI (only available from the university network or using a VPN client) offers additional information worth reading, such as qualification goals.