Dear all,

I would like to draw your attention to the new initiative Fem4scholar. Please support us if you can, and spread the word! Also, if you could think of any institutions which might be worth approaching, let me know!

Why Fem4scholar?
Women* continue to hold a minority of senior positions at most academic institutions. Highly qualified women* often choose not to pursue academic careers. Many of them do not trust their own abilities and lack basic information about career paths in academia. Institutional support for women* considering a career in the humanities (as opposed to STEM) is nearly non-existent. 

What is all about?
Fem4scholar is a unique project which will be taking place in Berlin (as well as Oldenburg and Bremen) in the winter semester 2018/2019. A mentoring scheme for women* (everyone who identifies as a woman as well as non-binary persons), it is designed to equip future scholars in the humanities with skills indispensable in academia. Our mentees are BA and MA students, as well as graduates who for various reasons decided to leave university but are still considering an academic career. We focus on such areas as developing one's research project, conference participation, giving presentations, securing funds for travel and research, applying for PhD positions, project management and mental health in academia. 
Our approach is personal and aimed at boosting individual skills and recognizing specific expectations and career plans of every participant. The mentees gain practical knowledge about academia and are encouraged to plan an event, present at conferences and apply for funding. The mentoring scheme is interdisciplinary and gathers future scholars in a variety of disciplines. The sole requirement for participation is an interest in academic career. Our assumption is that the sooner you learn certain skills, the better you are prepared for challenges ahead. The students support each other in a peer2peer process and can share their competences with each other.

What we have achieved so far 
Fem4scholar was founded by Dr Carla Schriever, based at the University of Oldenburg. The first round of mentoring took place in the summer term 2018 and exceeded all expectations: the participants organized two trips to London and Rijeka, one third of the participants presented at academic conferences in Germany and abroad, four participants secured funds for research trips, two received a scholarship. All thanks to fem4scholar! 

After hearing about Carla's amazing project, I decided to team up with her and set up Fem4scholar in Berlin. We will be jointly responsible for the Berlin-based project (a weekly seminar and a series of workshops on weekends).

Why do we need your financial support?

So far, we have not been able to secure financial support from institutions. We would like to keep the training free of charge for our participants. 

Our crowdfunding page is available in German: 

https://www.gofundme.com/fem4scholar-mentoring 

Many thanks, 

Iga