Vocational orientation newly thought: gender roles at Girls 'and Boys' Day!

Vocational orientation newly thought: gender roles at Girls 'and Boys' Day!

On April 3, 2025, the 25th Girls 'Day and Boys' Day will take place in Hesse, an important day that aims to reduce gender clichés in the career choice. This initiative enables girls to sniff in men's professions and boys. The girls 'Day and Boys' Day should encourage children from the age of 11 to look outside the box.

Mounia Addou, 19 years old, is in training as a plant mechanic for pipe system technology at the Heinrich-Kleyer School in Frankfurt. Likewise Ria Müller, 20, who completes an apprenticeship as a car mechatronics engineer there. Both prospective specialists show that there are progress, even if the numbers remain worrying. Headmaster Klaus Sandrock confirms that only 1.2 pupils per class are sitting in technical training.

Current challenges in MINT professions

The underrepresentation of women in MINT occupations (mathematics, computer science, science, technology) is still a central problem. Last year, just 1,400 new training contracts for women in scientific professions were concluded in Hesse, which corresponds to a women's quota of only 11.4 percent. This is below the nationwide average of 12 percent, such as hessenschau.de reported.

At the same time, the number of men in social professions is also low. David Schmidt, 33 years and prospective educators, emphasizes that male educators play an important role for the children. The Berta-Jourdan School in Frankfurt recorded 600 young people in educational training, of which there are only 200 men.

gender roles and clichés

The initiative aims to break through the firmly anchored gender stereotypes. Anke Paul from the Hesse Regional Directorate emphasizes that gender clichés are still widespread. The choice of career is also influenced by these clichés: boys are often encouraged in technical subjects, while girls are often assigned social or linguistic subjects.

Important data prove the problem: Around 20,000 apprenticeships in the trade remain vacant annually, while companies are increasingly dependent on gaining female talents. The aim is to make at least 45 percent of the trainees in MINT professions by 2030-currently only 13 percent zdf.de .

Overall, numerous programs and initiatives such as "Meccanica Feminale" and "Informatica Feminale" show that there are crucial steps to increase the visibility of women in the MINT subjects. The event aims to promote students in a protected framework and to improve their opportunities on the labor market ( Arbeitsagentur.de ).

The Girls 'Day and Boys' Day are more than just a unique event; They are part of a broader movement towards a fairer and more inclusive professional landscape in Germany.