Lawyer and professor of law Prof. Dr. Katharina Dahm will be at the helm of Mainz University of Applied Sciences in the future: The Academic Senate of Mainz University of Applied Sciences elected Prof. Dr. Dahm as the new president of the university on June 25, 2025. She is a professor of labor law and the Central Equal Opportunity Officer at Mainz University of Applied Sciences. The 45-year-old professor will take office on March 1, 2026, following her appointment by the Minister of Science and Health of Rhineland-Palatinate. She has been elected for a term of six years.
The current President and Chair of the Academic Senate, Prof. Dr. Susanne Weissman, congratulated her successor: “I extend my warmest congratulations to Prof. Dr. Katharina Dahm on her election as the new President of Mainz University of Applied Sciences. In her, the university has acquired an extremely competent president who will lead Mainz University of Applied Sciences in the coming years in a committed, professional and forward-looking manner. On behalf of the entire Executive Board, we wish Katharina Dahm all the best and every success.” Prof. Dr. Weissman has played a key role in shaping and driving forward the development of Mainz University of Applied Sciences in recent years. Her term of office ends on February 28, 2026, after which she will retire.
Prof. Dr. Michael Maskos, Chair of the Mainz University of Applied Sciences University Council, also congratulated Prof. Dr. Katharina Dahm on her election and looks forward to working with her starting in March 2026. “As the University Council, we were very pleased with the good pool of applicants and were able to hold interesting and inspiring interviews during the process. In the end, we succeeded in presenting the Senate with a shortlist of high-caliber candidates. Prof. Dr. Dahm has an excellent network in the region and is already working closely with the current University Executive Board as the Central Equal Opportunity Officer. I am firmly convinced that Ms. Dahm will continue to lead Mainz University of Applied Sciences on its chosen path toward tackling the challenges of the future in an innovative way and will also successfully contribute to the Mainz Science Alliance and the collaboration with the city of Mainz.”
Prof. Dr. Katharina Dahm expressed her gratitude: “Mainz University of Applied Sciences is very close to my heart. I started as a tutor at this university in 2008 – to be elected President today fills me with pride and immense gratitude. I would like to thank the committees for the trust they have placed in me. As the new President, I would like to strategically develop Mainz University of Applied Sciences as an attractive, international location; a place that inspires people to work, teach, research, and study. I am motivated to meet the university’s social responsibilities with fresh ideas and together with all university members in a pragmatic and forward-looking way. Our greatest strength is our interdisciplinary approach – the interaction between Design, Engineering, and Business.”
About Prof. Dr. Katharina Dahm
Prof. Dr. Katharina Dahm is Professor of Employment Law, Private Commercial Law, and Public Welfare Law at the School of Business. She is also Program Director of the Master’s degree program in Employment Law and Human Resources Management. From 2021 to 2024, she was a Senator of Mainz University of Applied Sciences. Prof. Dr. Dahm was elected to the office of Central Equal Opportunity Officer at Mainz University of Applied Sciences in September 2022 and re-elected in May 2025. As spokesperson for the Rhineland-Palatinate State Conference of University Women* (Landeskonferenz der HochschulFrauen*, LaKoF*), she has also been campaigning for gender equality at universities of applied sciences at the state level since April 2024. Before being appointed to Mainz University of Applied Sciences in 2018, Katharina Dahm worked at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) as a research assistant and then as a lecturer (akademische Rätin) at the Chair of Civil Law, Labor Law and Commercial Law. She received her doctorate in Labor Law and completed her habilitation (postdoctoral lecture qualification) in Civil Law and Sports Law. She is a member of the Academic Association for Family Law (Vereinigung für Familienrecht), the German Family Court Conference (Mitglied des deutschen Familiengerichtstags), the Association of Civil Law Teachers (Zivilrechtslehrervereinigung), the German Association of University Teachers (Hochschullehrerbund Deutschland), and the German Association of Women Lawyers (Deutscher Juristinnenbund).
About the application process
The election followed an application process lasting several months and a public hearing of the candidates at the university. The University Council undertook the application process for the successor to the presidency of Mainz University of Applied Sciences and, in consultation with the Ministry, submitted an election proposal with three suitable candidates to the Academic Senate. The University Council decided to commission an external service provider to support the process to ensure the greatest possible level of professionalism.
