Wittenstein Foundation cooperates with Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg
01.06.2023
More local young talent in STEM subjects to secure the region’s future viability – this is the aim of a new collaboration between the Wittenstein Foundation and the University of Würzburg. The Wittenstein Foundation will provide around one million euros for this purpose over a five-year period.
“Skills shortage: Germany lacks approx. 326,000 STEM experts”: Handelsblatt, the business and financial daily, used this headline back in November 2022 to draw attention to a serious problem. There are evidently no signs of an improvement as yet: according to a Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung article from January 24, 2023, “Fewer and fewer young people are studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics – the so-called STEM subjects”. This shortage could soon have impacts not only within and outside of Germany but first and foremost on the Würzburg region’s economic strength and prosperity.
There is no doubt that Germany has some catching up to do in the STEM sector. The Wittenstein Foundation has joined forces with Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg (JMU) to make a vital contribution here. Based in the small south-west German community of Igersheim-Harthausen, the foundation has committed to providing the university with around one million euros over a five-year period. The money will essentially be used to finance two scientific studies investigating extracurricular STEM programs and their effectiveness in the Würzburg / Main-Tauber region. National and international experience will likewise be evaluated and built on.
Studies to identify success factors
The two studies will be coordinated by the university’s M!ND Center. The Mathematics, Information Technology and Natural Sciences Teaching Center networks all teacher training in STEM subjects at JMU and has served as an extracurricular STEM learning laboratory for the Würzburg region ever since it was established in 2009.
The aim of the first study is to determine which STEM education programs already exist in the region over and above school lessons – from the Tauber Valley Youth Technology Learning Center through competitions and school labs to exhibitions, lectures and work placements. The target groups these programs address, the manner in which they are interlinked and what they actually achieve in terms of attracting students and skilled specialists are other questions this study will endeavor to answer.
The second study will focus on the participants in programs of this kind. Young people who have attended one of the numerous STEM events will be monitored and regularly surveyed in the context of a longitudinal study that is scheduled to run for two years. The researchers are hoping to learn why youngsters take part in extracurricular STEM programs as well as when and why they decide to – or not to – train or study in this field.
The goal: a model STEM region
Their interest consequently also extends to pupils who do not want to study maths, computer science, biology, chemistry or physics beyond the normal school curriculum. They, too, will be asked about their reasons, motivation, attitudes and decisions over a long period of time. After all, business and science are very keen to learn how a desire to participate in such “extracurricular activities” can be awakened in this group, so that – ideally – they become just as attractive as sports clubs or music lessons.
Thanks to the financial support from the Wittenstein Foundation, the University of Würzburg is now able to advertise two doctoral positions for young scientists whose studies will, in due course, provide answers to the central question: what must be done, and where, to lure more young talent to STEM subjects? The knowledge gained from this will not simply be applied to the advantage of the region itself; it will also lay the foundation for a suitable model farther afield to ascertain how the future viability of our society can be secured through STEM education.
What participants think
“The generous support from the Wittenstein Foundation is an emphatic vote of confidence in the quality of our research and an important sign that the university and society are growing closer together – also with a view to the next generation of skilled specialists at companies in the local region. We’d like to sincerely thank the Wittenstein Foundation for their commitment.”
Professor Paul Pauli, President of the Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg
“Our collaboration will strengthen educational research in natural sciences, not only at the University of Würzburg but throughout the entire knowledge region. Together, we want to get more young people interested in science and technology again, as the only way to ensure innovative strength, progress and prosperity.”
Professor Matthias Bode, Vice-President of the Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg for Innovation and Knowledge Transfer
“Thanks to substantial financial support from the Wittenstein Foundation, we can now conduct targeted research into the conditions for success in extracurricular STEM education, recognize and exploit development potential for our region, and hence strengthen the role of STEM in society.”
Professor Thomas Trefzger, Director of the Mathematics, Information Technology and Natural Sciences Teaching Center (M!ND Center) at the University of Würzburg
“For many years now, a lot of money has been spent in a lot of places on promoting young STEM talent. Clearly, the success of these measures is, at best, no more than modest. We need to dig deeper to find out where, and how, true trigger points are located along with strategies to significantly improve effectiveness. Together with the University of Würzburg, we want to make progress on linked research issues and successfully develop our Hohenlohe-Franconia region from the outset.”
Dr. Manfred Wittenstein, initiator and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Wittenstein Foundation
“The University of Würzburg and the M!ND Center are ideal partners for our joint research and further development project. We’re convinced that we can make a valuable contribution to overcoming a major challenge in this way, both for us as a region and for society as a whole.”
Dr. Sascha von Berchem, Managing Director of the Wittenstein Foundation
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Image source: University of Würzburg / Photographer: Gunnar Bartsch
From left to right: Professor Matthias Bode (Vice-President, Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg for Innovation and Knowledge Transfer), Dr. Sascha von Berchem (Managing Director, Wittenstein Foundation), Dr. Manfred Wittenstein (Initiator and Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Wittenstein Foundation), Professor Paul Pauli (President, Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg) and Professor Thomas Trefzger (Director Mathematics, Information Technology and Natural Sciences Teaching Center (M!ND Center), Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg) with the model of a particle accelerator at the university’s M!ND Center.
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