Student Marina Wottschal:
Diversity-Consultant wants to support minorities
What exactly does the term "diversity" mean?
Wottschal: Diversity means to appreciate the fact that people are different, for example due to an immigrant background, religion, gender, or someone’s family background. The point is to show that the similarities are much stronger than the differences.
At TUM, where do you consider diversity to be relevant?
Diversity has been a topic at TUM for a long time. Each faculty, for example, has its own Women’s Representative. The TUM has a consultant for questions of gender equality. Before the introduction of a Diversity-Desk, the General Student Committee only had a Queer-Representative. As this position is mainly focused on questions concerning sexual orientation, it covers only one dimension of diversity.
The TUM already is a diverse and colourful place, simply due to its many students and scholars from abroad.
One of the TUM´s main goals is internationalization, e.g. by offering English-language Master programs. Thanks to the internationalization, cultural diversity is created. It is very important to appreciate this factor – since it is our goal to support each member of our university according to his/her individual needs. Another simple example for diversity is the topic of accessibility. For example, if an elevator somewhere on the campus is out of order, this immediately affects people in wheelchairs. Thus, diversity plays an important role on many different levels of university life.
How did you become the Diversity-Consultant?
Before, I was responsible for financial issues within the General Students' Committee. My tasks in this position could be described as highly administrative. After my semester abroad – I spent the summer semester of 2014 in St. Petersburg – I wanted to get more involved with university politics, so I applied for the position of a Diversity-Consultant. I am now in office since beginning of October.
Are you already accustomed with the subject?
Yes. The work of the General Students' Committee is often about issues such as equality or representation of minorities. Also, I came across the topic during my studies: Diversity Management originates from the field of Company Management, although this is more concerned with maximizing profits rather than with the social aspects of the matter. Furthermore, my Bachelor's thesis had to do with gender stereotypes.
What tasks are you assigned to?
Since the position is completely new and since there is no predecessor I could learn from, there is a lot of networking to be done at the beginning. At the moment, I receive requests for appointments on a daily basis. This is why, so far, I only react instead of being proactive. I would never have thought that the TUM´s interest in this position would be so big.
Can anyone just contact you?
Generally speaking, my work is a lot about networking and communicating – with those who are affected and with the decision-makers. One of my main tasks is to improve the flow of information from the students to the TUM’s management. For the students, I want to be a contact person at eye level, because many might thus find it easier to bring up criticism.
What would you like to achieve?
My personal focus is clearly on child and family friendliness. This is just as important for TUM-employees as it is for the students. Four percent of the students have children, but no time to contribute to a child-friendly infrastructure. It is them, the minorities, I want to support. For example, there is already a children’s room at the TUM’s main campus. But it is very small; and there is definitely room for improvement. It is little known that there is a division called TUM.Family – which deals with issues such as childcare or taking care of relatives. Thus, it is my aim to inform the students about the opportunities they have.
Where do you see yourself in the future?
I envision myself in the Human Resources department of a large company: the best position to address the aspect of diversity. A company will only be able to crate a good working environment if it makes use of the individual skills of every employee – without treating anyone different than the other. While working in the General Students' Committee, I could personally experience what it means to address all objectives together and to have a great working atmosphere. My dream would be to create such a working environment in many companies.
Marina Wottschal (24) was born in Russia and has been living in Germany since the age of seven. She has been living in Munich since the year 2000 and started studying Management at TUM in 2010. She likes dancing – Standards and Latin – and loves cheesecake. She has been an active member of the General Students' Committee since her second semester. The work there had a very positive influence on her in all respects, she says. Contact: diversity@fs.tum.de