TUM Faculty Tenure Track: Balancing Career & Family
The Technical University of Munich helps researchers to balance family life with their demands of a career.
The TUM Faculty Tenure Track career system also takes family commitments into account –offering, for instance, more flexible working hours and factoring a researcher’s family situation into their performance evaluations.
Extension of the tenure track phase due to parental leave
During the tenure track phase, parental leave or a leave of absence can be granted to care for a minor child within the framework of the statutory provisions (parent tenure clock extension).
In these cases, the tenure track phase is extended by the duration of the leave of absence upon application. The extension period is up to a maximum of four years for parental leave and up to a maximum of three years for other leaves of absence. The status assessments and the Tenure-Evaluation are postponed by the corresponding period.
It is not possible to extend the tenure track phase without approved statutory parental leave.
Parental leave & Maternity protection (service compass in German)
Part-time professorship
During the tenure track phase, part-time employment is possible to care for a minor child within the framework of the statutory provisions (part-time tenure clock extension).
There are two options here: You can take up (part-time) employment of up to 30 hours per week during parental leave. Or working hours can be reduced by taking a leave of absence to care for a minor child; in this case, part-time employment of at least 8 hours per week is possible. In these cases, the tenure track phase is extended upon application in accordance with the duration and scope of the part-time employment; the maximum limit for the extension is four years. The status assessments and the Tenure-Evaluation n are postponed by the corresponding period.
Care times
Part-time employment or leave of absence (elder care) is possible within the framework of the statutory provisions in order to care for relatives in need of care.
In these cases, the tenure track phase can be extended accordingly upon application. The status assessments and the Tenure-Evaluation are postponed by the corresponding period.
Counseling on care (Familyservice) Elder care (service compass in German)
Release from official duties (research semester)
Professors can be exempted from teaching for the duration of one semester - taking into account their performance in research and teaching - if they meet the requirements for being granted part-time or leave of absence for family reasons. This exemption from teaching for one semester serves to compensate for the double burden associated with parenthood when returning to work after maternity leave and parental leave, which is often primarily at the expense of research activities. However, the prerequisite for this is that teaching, including examinations and the supervision of students and academic work, is not impaired by the exemption.
Please note
All of the above measures depend on the specific individual case. For this reason, the respective requirements and the respective extension periods are examined and determined individually.
Consideration in the performance evaluations
The candidate's life circumstances (e.g. parental leave, obligations to family members in need of care, other services to the community) are given appropriate consideration when assessing performance.