Parents working in academia shoulder many responsibilities, whether it’s planning parental leave, working part-time for a while, or negotiating with the supervisor for more flexible working hours. The university can assist you in balancing these responsibilities. Whether or not you are ultimately successful in this endeavour, however, will be decided by your daily work routine.
Information and advice on how to balance work and family life
The Equal Opportunity Office advises our researchers and teachers on the topics of pregnancy, maternity leave, parental leave as well as university services that will make it easier for you to balance work and family life.
Contact: Tanja Edelhäußer
Check lists and information
The blue box on the right contains links to information on the topic of work and family life balance. This information has been compiled specifically for researchers and lecturers at the University of Konstanz (visible after login).
The Tax- and Social Security Service (Human Resources Division) provides further information on public financial family support (Steuer- und Sozialversicherungsservice .
Mailing list “academic career with children”
As a subscriber to our electronic mailing list for researchers with children, you will receive both general announcements in reference to family affairs as well as more topic-specific information (approx. 1-2 per month).
How does work-life-balance concern your supervisor/host?
A successful combination of a career in research and family tasks requires that the supervisor or host sees the latter not as a private affair, but as part of the responsibilities of her or his staff members. The work-life-balance should be part of the conversation about work objectives and career development. Work group leaders are therefore provided with information for family-friendly leadership.
Coaching work / family life balance
The Academic Staff Development integrates the topic academic career and family life balance into its coaching and training activities for researchers and teachers.