This is a highly encouraging outcome that reflects our ongoing commitment to advancing gender equality in research and teaching, says Professor Irmgard Förster, Vice Rector for Equal Opportunity and Diversity. However, we also recognize that there’s still progress to be made in appointing women to W2 and W3 professorships. Nonetheless, the successes we’ve achieved in recent years demonstrate that we are on the right track.

At the University of Bonn, the long-term trend is clearly positive. As part of its Excellence Strategy, the share of female professors including assistant professors (W1) has increased significantly, rising from about 21 percent in 2019 to approximately 30 percent today. This progress sends a strong signal and results from targeted measures designed to support women in academia, explains Professor Förster. We are determined to stay firmly on this path.

The results of the CEWS University Rankings confirm the University’s strengths in promoting women researchers and the advances we’ve made in this area, adds University Central Gender Equality Officer Gabriele Alonso Rodriguez. At the same time, the figures show that increasing the proportion of female professors remains a major challenge. That’s precisely where we’ll focus our future efforts enhancing the balance between family life and academic careers and ensuring transparent, gender-sensitive appointment processes.

Published every two years since 2003, the CEWS rankings have become a key instrument for quality assurance in gender equality policies. For the latest edition, the methodology has been refined to better reflect shifts in the gender equality policy landscape and changes in gender distribution across higher education.

Source: https://www.uni-bonn.de/en/news/120-2025