The berufundfamilie Service GmbH certifies the Ludwigshafen University of Applied Sciences on December 10, 2020 for the 7th time the renewed successful implementation of the audit family-friendly university. As one of the longest certified universities, the Ludwigshafen University of Applied Sciences receives the certificate in perpetuity without any restrictions.

As part of the dialog process, the existing offers for the compatibility of study, work and family were assessed and an action program of family-friendly study conditions as well as a family-conscious personnel policy was defined. The resulting measures will be implemented within the next three years.

Ludwigshafen University of Applied Sciences has already been audited as a family-friendly university since 2002 - as the first university nationwide - and sees a family-conscious orientation in dealing with employees and students as an integral part of its organization.

Demographic change, the increasing career orientation and rising qualification of women, the changed understanding of family roles, the development towards a knowledge society and the importance of knowledge as a competitive factor are just some of the social and economic developments that bring the issue of reconciling work/study and family into focus and highlight the need for family support and a family-conscious personnel policy.

The fundamental intention of Ludwigshafen University is to achieve a balance between the interests of the university and the interests of employees and students. This is reflected, among other things, in

• a relaxed training and work situation for students and employees with family responsibilities,
• equal opportunities between employees and students with and without family responsibilities, and
• efficient deployment of personnel and a reduction in dropouts and study duration.

Over the past 18 years, Ludwigshafen University of Applied Sciences has implemented a wide range of measures, such as establishing the issue of work/study/family balance as a permanent topic in all management and leadership meetings, a flexible working time model, home office, family-friendly infrastructure such as breastfeeding and nappy-changing rooms, taking into account the special situation of students raising children or caring for relatives in study and examination regulations, mission statement, development of an in-house continuing education program and introduction of company health management.

For the next three years, the university has set itself goals that will deepen the family-conscious personnel and student policy and anchor it even more firmly in the university culture. The sustainability of the measures already implemented as well as the newly agreed measures should thus be ensured.