It was clear to us that we would be back!
Girls' Day at the HSZG gave schoolgirls from Year 5 onwards an insight into various STEM degree courses.
Girls’ Day at HSZG is an event that not only schoolgirls look forward to. “It’s great when we can show interested girls what we’re researching here, how we go about it, and what the end results are, ” says lab assistant and master’s student Jennifer Dutschke. Together with Professor Karin Fester, she guided students in grades 5 through 7 through the “Tracking Medicinal Plants” activity in the Natural and Environmental Sciences labs on the Zittau campus during the nationwide Girls’ Day on April 27.
“We learned about various medicinal herbs and their effects,” Amelie says of the event. The seventh-grader had already visited the HSZG with her friends last year for Girls’ Day and conducted experiments in the Materials Engineering and Materials Testing Laboratory. “It was clear to us that we’d be back!”
After all, the beauty of Girls’ Day is simply that female students can freely explore career paths—free from gender stereotypes—that at first glance might seem atypical for girls. This includes standing in the Pharmaceutical Biotechnology lab at the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences, experimenting, and trying things out—all without any pressure and according to the motto: “Do what you like!”
“Making medicines using plant and animal cells is a really cool topic,” Amelie says. “You can’t see the active ingredients and properties of chia seeds, linden blossoms, and flaxseeds at first glance. We let them soak, ran tests, and in a subsequent experiment were able to make the ingredients visible through color reactions.” Prof. Karin Fester has also been swept up in the excitement.
"The students were incredibly interested and asked questions in a wide variety of directions. They will later remember that they have already worked in a laboratory and may then decide to pursue a career in science."
”Lab assistant Corinna Herrmann also challenges gender stereotypes with her program “A Day as a Synthetic Chemist.” She introduced Luise, Sophie, and Matilda from Schkola Ostritz and the Herrnhut Zinsendorf Gymnasium to the purification of solids in organic synthesis. It might sound complex at first, but it turned out to be absolutely fascinating for the sixth- and seventh-grade girls, who explored topics like recrystallization and melting point determination with keen interest for the first time. “Helping students discover the joy of research while also overcoming their initial reservations is incredibly rewarding,” Corinna Herrmann summarized.
During the subsequent group lunch in the Zittau student canteen, the students were able to discuss their experiences with Prof. Fester, Jennifer Dutschke, and Karin Hollstein, the Chancellor of the HSZG, and learn even more about medicinal plants.
Girls' Day is a nationwide career and academic orientation day for girls. It is sponsored by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women, and Youth and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.
On Girls’ Day, girls learn about careers or fields of study where the proportion of women is less than 40 percent, such as in IT, skilled trades, the natural sciences, and technology. Or they meet female role models in leadership positions in business and politics.
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