What power can you wield as a member of an internal committee?
How might it serve your academic career? We’ll explore this question with expert Renate Dworczak again in May 2024 - and here are some thoughts to get you in the mood.
What are potentials of serving on a committee within your university?
- You understand how your institution (and similar ones) works and is governed
- You establish your professional network within the university
- You get proficient in building coalitions across units to reach goals
- You can have an impact on long-term strategic directions of your unit or the whole university
- You are in the know on current developments
- You can get things done and get a reputation for getting things done
What are critical perspectives on committee work?
- It can take time away from scholarly work that has a higher likelyhood of getting rewarded by funders and hiring committees
- If you are a temporary employee or an international scholar, sometimes you have to fight for a seat at the table
- If you happen to fall into an underrepresented category, you might end up fighting off constant invitations to serve in committees
- There might be a culture of decision making and hidden interests that appear impenetrable to an „outsider“
For the Austrian context, this is an insightful article:
- Enzenhofer, B, Elisabeth Anna Guenther, Brigitte Ratzer (2021). „Unangenehm ist normaler Alltag“ – Quote und Macht in universitären Gremien am Beispiel von Technischen Fakultäten in Österreich. In: Wroblewski, A., Schmidt, A. (eds) Gleichstellungspolitiken revisted. Springer VS, Wiesbaden
Behind the Curtain
How to Shape Academia in Committees and Commissions
Datum: Mittwoch 15.05.2024 Uhrzeit: 10:00 - 12:00 Uhr Ort: Palais Kottulinsky, Beethovenstraße 9 Vortragende(r): Renate Dworczak |
Round Table Conversation with Renate Dworczak Being a member of our university generally means doing research, teaching and – more or less – administration. But it can be more, if you like. You can actively contribute to the development of our alma mater and have influence on what this development will be like. We will talk about some ways to do this. In your institute or your department, in your faculty as well as in the senate, you can be involved in strategic planning and decision making. So, e.g., as a member of a Curriculum Committee you could co-decide what our curricula will be like in the future. The Employee’s Council for the Academic Staff und the Working Group for Equal Opportunities are legally installed and can be strong partners for the university’s management. On the long run you might even be interested in university management. All this can be interesting and personally rewarding – just give it a try! This round table conversation is open for all your questions. Take the chance to talk to a highly experienced former member of the leadership of this university and ask her everything you always wanted to know but didn't dare to ask. About the expert: Ao.Univ-Prof. Dr. Renate Dworczak, retired professor of organic chemistry, was until 2022 special representative of the rectorate for gender equality and diversity. She has served as Vice-Rector for Staff, Staff Development and Equality for three four-year terms and prior to that was chair of the AKGL (Arbeitskreis für Gleichbehandlungsfragen/ Working Group for Equal Opportunities). Please register until May 1, 2024. You can enter your questions here: hddVd2ExAlZZYjlE 141-keep | Riseup Pad Location: SR 37.11, 1st floor of Palais Kottulinsky in Beethovenstrasse. |
* This text is part of our Research Careers Community Graz researcher development blog, reflecting about academic culture and working conditions.