At the nationwide Girls' Day on April 25, students in grades 5 to 9 were able to get a taste of professions that are not typical for girls and boys. The Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences took part with a wide range of offers and was very pleased to be able to welcome pupils for the first time as part of the simultaneous Boys' Day taking place at the same time.

Jonas and Béla went "on the trail of medicinal plants" together. From anise, to devil's claw, to cinnamon: the HSZG's Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Laboratory offered the fifth graders an exciting insight into the vast world of natural remedies under the expert guidance of Prof. Fester and Jennifer Dutschke. Pipetting was particularly well received by the pupils.

Just like the offer: "Nature shows us how it's done" in the laboratory next door. Laboratory engineer Lydia Laarz demonstrated to the pupils how many technical inventions are based on natural mechanisms that shape our environment with the help of clear experiments that they carried out themselves. This fascinating field of bionics - the link between biology and technology - aroused great interest among the pupils. There was also plenty of fun with handicrafts.

Whether different plant forms or the locomotor system of animals, humans have taken the animal and plant world as a model in many respects. "As a horse lover, I find it really exciting how science can learn from nature," says Magdalena, who is in Year 8 at the Geschwister-Scholl-Gymnasium in Löbau.

Diagonally opposite the materials technology laboratory, university employee Corinna Herrmann invited schoolgirls to immerse themselves in the exciting world of organic chemistry. The aim was to make a fragrant hand cream together! First of all, a lot of laboratory work was required. In many individual steps, the students were shown what it takes to ultimately create a great product. "So this is what it could be like in a cosmetics production laboratory," some of the students must have thought and made their dream job as a chemist a reality.

"My favorite part was when we had to melt the granules," reports Lieselotte enthusiastically. Mixed with various other ingredients and cooled down to a certain temperature, a unique hand cream was created for the body care-conscious girls. The product was rounded off with a very personal touch in the form of a scented oil. "The schoolgirls could choose between Lemon, lavender and rosemary. The offer was very well received," reports Corinna Herrmann. Together with the many other colleagues, the HSZG laboratory employee took extra time for Girls' and Boys' Day to give the young scientists an exciting day.

University employee Jan Fallgatter was one of them. In the CAD lab, he demonstrated to the students how to create a digital building model on a PC using modern technology. The students designed and created their own personal dream house in a very easy and practical way.

Maria Riemer's inorganic chemistry laboratory, on the other hand, was steaming, banging and smelly. Here, the students got to know the subject of chemistry in a slightly different way: They made "magic writing" invisible and visible again, dissolved objects in liquids, flambéed banknotes and brewed a magical "beer". They prepared the show experiments themselves and carried them out under expert guidance. Afterwards, the pupils all agreed that chemistry is anything but boring.

"Research is fun!" The pupils were able to see this for themselves this morning. At the lunch that followed in the canteen, fifth-grader Maja was still raving with enthusiasm that each participant had received two tins of hand cream with a personal label, while others confirmed that they would definitely like to take part again next year.

Over cauliflower schnitzel, pasta and chocolate pudding, the participants were able to exchange ideas once again and even talk to the Vice-Rector for Education and International Affairs, Prof. Sophia Keil. As with previous Girls' Days, it was once again a great pleasure and personal concern for her this year to enter into a direct exchange with the students, not only to obtain their open and honest feedback on the university's program, but also to find out about their wishes and goals in (school) life. "The students' feedback is very important to us, especially with regard to the development of the Future Learning Location Upper Lusatia (ZukLOS). Together with our partners, we want to develop innovative learning opportunities in the STEM field for pupils at extracurricular learning locations in order to promote enthusiasm for these exciting topics and secure the next generation of scientists and specialists of tomorrow."

At the next Girls' and Boys' Day on April 3, 2025, pupils will once again be able to try out various activities at Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences.

Text: Cornelia Rothe