16th VERBUND Scholarship for Women awarded to three female students at TU Wien
VERBUND has spent many years doing things to convince more women to take up technical vocations. In cooperation with the Career Centre at the Vienna University of Technology (TU Wien), the VERBUND Scholarship for Women is awarded to female students each year and is worth 5,000 euros each.
“At VERBUND, we see diversity as a factor for success,” said Georg Westphal, Head of Strategic HR Management at VERBUND, at the award ceremony for the 2024 VERBUND Scholarships for Women. “We awarded the first VERBUND Scholarship for Women in 2009, since when more than 40 women in technology have received a scholarship and been supported for a full year with tailored funding packages.”
Each year, the VERBUND Scholarship for Women is awarded to three female students at TU Wien. They receive a tailored funding package worth 5,000 euros and are supported in their personal and professional further education for a whole year. VERBUND also offers further benefits, such as, for example, the support of Master’s and diploma theses, insights through the attendance of specialist conferences, workshops or guided tours of power plants. The application period for 2025 is expected to open in March 2025.
“The main objective of the VERBUND Scholarship for Women is to inspire more women to get involved in exciting technical fields. Every year, the VERBUND scholarship holders impressively demonstrate the success and joy with which women live out their passion for technology. They thus serve as a positive example for many who are on the verge of choosing their studies or profession,” adds Georg Westphal.
“Here at the TU Career Centre, we’ve been delighted to supported the VERBUND Scholarship for Women for many years as a programme partner. This programme for supporting women offers not only financial assistance, but also a unique opportunity for professional and personal further development. Our partnership with VERBUND underscores our commitment to equality and diversity, through which women are strengthened in a broad range of areas. We are convinced that the scholarship holders of the VERBUND Scholarship for Women will actively help shape the future and we are proud to accompany them on their journey,” says Julia Hainitz, Managing Director of the TU Career Centre.
The scholarship holders 2024
The three holders of the VERBUND Scholarship for Women impressed with outstanding study results, practical experience and a high level of social competence. They can look forward to tailored support for their careers for one academic year.
Dipl.-Ing.in Johanna Bartlechner
“I work on innovative solutions for sustainable technologies to contribute to a green energy future. As part of my doctorate, I’m developing control concepts for fuel cell systems that enable damage-free, highly dynamic operation. This can both increase efficiency and extend the service life of these systems in the long term. This task excites me because it has a direct impact on the energy transition, the mobility of tomorrow and the quality of life of future generations.”
Johanna Bartlechner would give her younger self the following advice: “Don't be afraid to ask questions and try things out. Your curiosity is your strength. Even if things don’t always work out straight away, keep at it – the most exciting discoveries are often waiting behind the biggest challenges.”
Antonia Hunyadi
“The scholarship piqued my interest in VERBUND AG. Not only as a supplier of energy, but also as an exciting and diverse company that can definitely use a female civil engineer.”
Antonia Hunyadi was already interested in technology as a child: “My parents encouraged my passion for building and tinkering right from the start. That’s why it wasn’t a difficult decision for me to attend higher technical college and then study civil engineering. The first school year at higher technical college was a bit daunting with only 5 girls in a class of almost 40 students. But by the time I started at university, I realised that women definitely have a presence in the construction industry.”
BsC Alina Sophia Schärmer
“Even the selection process was an exciting experience for me. During the three-phase process, I was confronted with different situations that I might encounter in an application situation in my professional life. In addition, participating in the scholarship naturally gives me the opportunity to continue my education in a variety of ways and, for example, to attend conferences that I would otherwise not have been able to travel to.”
How does Alina Sophia Schärmer assess career opportunities given the climate crisis? “As a computer scientist, one of my tasks is to design programs as efficiently as possible in order to reduce the energy consumption of digital applications. In addition, energy supply facilities are also increasingly networked and therefore vulnerable to cyberattacks. Writing secure programs and testing for vulnerabilities in the IT sector can help to ensure that the energy supply is maintained.”
