At a glance
For: School pupils, prospective students, those interested in STEM subjects
Topics: Integration of academic and vocational orientation, cooperation with Chambers of Industry and Commerce (IHK) and Chambers of Skilled Crafts (HWK), development of stereotype-sensitive career choice skills, trial study periods, workshop weeks and company visits, key skills and professional fundamentals
Location: Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences
The orientation semester for studies and training in STEM fields
Today, female students with a university entrance qualification (Abitur or equivalent) have a greater need for career guidance than in the past due to the overwhelming number of professions and educational pathways available. At the same time, the increasing number of female Abitur graduates and the expansion of tertiary education mean that students with much more diverse educational and life backgrounds are now beginning their studies at universities and colleges.
The heterogeneity of the student body results in a heterogeneity of individual needs regarding the learning and study environment, to which universities and colleges must adapt their offerings. The significantly higher dropout rates among students with a migration background and first-generation students, as well as the increased number of apprenticeship contracts terminated by trainees with and without a migration background, clearly demonstrate the need for action.
Higher dropout rate in STEM studies
STEM subjects are particularly affected by this challenge: On the one hand, STEM degree programs are popular with first-generation students and international students. On the other hand, the curriculum is cumulative, meaning that difficulties at the beginning of studies can hinder understanding later on. Both of these factors are reflected in significantly higher dropout rates in STEM fields.
Against this backdrop of need, the sub-project hejMINT is piloting the development of an orientation program for STEM careers. hejMINT adopts the innovative concept of DasDoris!, which is characterized by the integration of academic and career guidance as well as experience-based decision-making. Through pedagogically supported experiences and exploration of future educational pathways, young people are encouraged and empowered to make a career or study choice that matches their own skills, learning prerequisites, and interests. Furthermore, the imparting of the necessary key skills and subject-specific foundations aims to facilitate a successful entry into university studies or vocational training.
With a heightened awareness of their own strengths, interests and prerequisites, and the necessary professional foundations, the participants begin their individual orientation process.
The curriculum for the hejMINT orientation semester was developed collaboratively with the university's six STEM departments and with input from the Frankfurt-Rhine-Main Chamber of Skilled Crafts and the Darmstadt Chamber of Industry and Commerce. hejMINT is offered as a one-semester orientation program and begins with an intensive arrival and self-discovery phase. During this phase, participants explore and reflect on their own skills and interests, as well as career-related stereotypes and individual circumstances.
Furthermore, participants become familiar with the university's institutions, key contact points, and technical platforms, and complete preparatory courses in mathematics and physics. With a heightened awareness of their own strengths, interests, and prerequisites, and possessing the necessary subject-specific foundations, participants begin their individual orientation process. From a selection of courses within the STEM degree programs, they create a personalized timetable to explore the programs that interest them. Alongside attending specialized lectures, participants are supported in their orientation process and prepared for a successful start to their studies through specially developed modules: "Orientation & Decision-Making," "Scientific Work & Successful Studying," "Interdisciplinary Practical Project," and a "Basic Mathematics Course for STEM.".
To provide career guidance, the project collaborates with the Frankfurt-Rhine-Main Chamber of Skilled Crafts and Trades (HWK) and the Darmstadt Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK). During a two-week stay at the HWK's vocational training and technology center, participants are introduced to various professions. In addition, training ambassadors, practitioners from different professional fields, and company visits to businesses in the region offer participants insights into diverse STEM career fields.
The orientation semester “hejMINT” will start for the first time in April 2024 and will be offered in both the winter and summer semesters.
Contact person in
Bahareh Gondani , Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences
