Maternity protection and studying with children

Notifications and proofs (Section 15 MuSchG)

According to Section 15 of the Maternity Protection Act, a student should inform the University of their pregnancy and the expected date of delivery as soon as they know they are pregnant. The student is to submit a copy of their pregnancy record booklet, a medical certificate, or the certificate issued by a midwife or obstetrical nurse as proof of the pregnancy. The certificate of pregnancy shall include the expected date of delivery. Likewise, a breastfeeding student should promptly inform the University that they are breastfeeding.

Students may only avail themselves of the protection clauses included in the Maternity Protection Act if they have informed the University that they are pregnant or breastfeeding.

The University will contact the student immediately upon receiving the notification.

The University must then inform the Freiburg Regional Administrative Authority, the regulatory authority responsible for pregnancy and periods of breastfeeding (Section 10 and 27 MuSchG).

In addition, the Service Center Studium forwards the notification from the pregnant or breastfeeding student to the Dean’s Office or Examination Office responsible for the degree programme(s) in which the student is enrolled, as well as to the Office of Safety, Environment and Sustainability and the Maternity Protection Officer at the University of Freiburg.

Students who are employed by the University should also submit their notification of pregnancy or breastfeeding to the department in which they are employed.

In the case of external internships, the employer for the purposes of the Maternity Protection Act is generally the institution with which the internship was arranged and therefore not the University.

The University may only permit a pregnant student to attend required courses and complete coursework or graded assessments in the last six weeks prior to delivery if the student has made an explicit declaration to the University that they wish to do so and if their participation in such courses or the completion of such coursework or assessments does not constitute an irresponsible risk to the life of the mother and child.

The pregnant student may retract this declaration at any time with effect for the future. The expected date of delivery as specified on the medical certificate or the certificate from a midwife or obstetric nurse is taken as the basis for calculating the period of protection before delivery. If the pregnant student does not deliver the baby on the expected date of delivery, the period of protection before delivery is reduced or extended accordingly.

The University may not allow the student to study again until a period of eight or twelve weeks has passed after delivery, unless they declare explicitly to the University that they wish to continue their studies during this period. This declaration may also be retracted at any time with effect for the future. The period of protection after delivery is extended from eight to twelve weeks in the case of a premature birth or multiple births and if the child has been determined by a doctor to have a disability as defined by Section 2(1) Sentence 1 of the ninth book of the German Social Code (Sozialgesetzbuch). In the case of a premature delivery, the post-delivery protection period is generally extended by the amount by which the pre-delivery protection period was reduced, but only if the student requests it.

If the student wishes to attend courses, take examinations, or complete coursework within the aforementioned periods of protection before or after delivery or before and after delivery, they must declare that they wish to do so.

If, based on the risk assessment under Section 10 MuSchG or a medical certificate in accordance with Section 16 MuSchG, the student has been issued a ban on work that conflicts with this declaration, the declaration is ineffective for the purposes of maternity protection.

Pregnant and breastfeeding students may not work in the time between 8:00 pm and 10:00 pm or on Sundays and holidays, unless the following conditions have been met:

1. the student expressly declares their willingness to do so;
2. their attendance is required at that time for training purposes;
3. there is no irresponsible risk to the pregnant student or their child from working alone

Attendance at courses after 10:00 pm is not allowed in any case.

The pregnant or breastfeeding student may retract their declaration at any time with effect for the future.

The University is required under Section 10 of the Maternity Protection Act to assess what risks pregnant or breastfeeding students or their children are or could be exposed to. The University must determine on the basis of this risk assessment whether and to what extent protective measures are to be taken.

Risks may arise particularly during activities in laboratories or workshops, while studiyng medicine or dentistry, during field trips, during courses or internships held outdoors, during practical physical education courses, or during teacher education and psychology degree programmes involving contact with children and adolescents.

As soon as the University becomes aware of the pregnancy, it conducts an individual risk assessment to determine whether any of the courses or internal internship/practical training the student is required to complete during their pregnancy and while breastfeeding would constitute an unacceptable risk according to the criteria of the Maternity Protection Act. The risk assessment is conducted by the Office of Safety, Environment and Sustainablility together with the teachers responsible for the respective courses.

Only where reconstructing or reorganising the course is impossible, or where risks cannot be ruled out even if the conditions of the course are restructed, is the University obliged to prohibit the student from participating in certain courses or internships/practical training for the duration of their pregnancy or breastfeeding period.

If the risk assessment leads to restrictions or prohibitions, the University will offer the student an advising session regarding their further course of study, specifically aimed at preventing any disadvantages in their education. The responsible office of the dean of studies / examination office and the University’s Office of Safety, Environment and Sustainability will arrange an appointment with the student.

The Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women, and Youth offers a summary of the most important aspects of maternity protection in its ‘Leitfaden zum Mutterschutz ’.

• Leitfaden zum Mutterschutz [de]

  Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women, and Youth

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