#MINT ambassador - Women in technical professions at the TRIDELTA CAMPUS
TRIDELTA Campus / Hendrik Bengs • 20.11.2022
In the companies of the TRIDELTA CAMPUS, many women work successfully in technical and scientific professions. Some of them are also in management positions. On the occasion of Girls' Day, we would like to introduce you to some of our #mintambassadors. In the short interview, you will learn what they love about their job and why it is a good idea to work on campus, especially as a woman. In the first interview of our new series, we introduce Beate Capraro, Group Manager Ceramic Films at the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems IKTS.
What do you particularly like about your work?
What I like about my job is the mixture of scientific and administrative work. I work a lot on the computer, coordinate projects and their processing in our administration. But I'm also often in our laboratories and pilot plants doing research on specific issues. Here I particularly enjoy working in a team: scientists, lab technicians and engineers work together on a project. The state-of-the-art research infrastructure that Fraunhofer offers me for my research work is another aspect that I particularly like about my job.
What are your main activities?
I head the Ceramic Films working group at Fraunhofer IKTS. In addition to my personnel responsibilities, I can directly influence and determine the scientific focus of our working group. I maintain contacts and exchange scientific information with many industry and research partners, for example at conferences, and I work on various committees.
What has been your greatest professional success so far?
My greatest professional success was, on the one hand, taking over as group leader. Here I was able to take on responsibility for an entire research team and actively determine the focus of the work. Another great success was the commissioning of our film casting centre, the largest of its kind in Europe.
Why would you recommend girls to choose an apprenticeship or study in the technical field?
Natural sciences and technology are interesting, exciting and offer many professional opportunities. Girls and women are still far too little represented here. Technology - that's not just engines, machines and plants, there are really interesting applications in the field of ceramics, I would like to mention just three examples here: in the medical field, research into dental prosthesis materials and implants, in environmental and process engineering, wastewater treatment and in the field of e-mobility, research into Li-ion batteries. These applications make a lasting contribution to improving the quality of life and protecting the climate. Many people talk about it, but we can make a very concrete contribution to a positive development.
You work for a company at TRIDELTA CAMPUS. What opportunities do women have in technical professions at the high-tech location for advanced ceramics?
At our institute, women have the same opportunities as men, and that certainly applies to the TRIDELTA CAMPUS as well. However, I think men still dominate the picture here, but this is not because of fewer opportunities for women, but because fewer women learn technical professions or choose technical courses of study. Something has to change here, we women have to become more present, and that already starts at school. That's why formats like Girls' Day are so important. Girls can do "MINT" just as well as boys - they just have to have the confidence to do it. At Fraunhofer, the TALENTA programme also supports young female researchers on their career path, whether they are just starting out or are already ready to take on leadership roles.