• New HRK brochure: "German Rectors' Conference: The Voice of the Universities"

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  • New folder "German Universities: Excellence in Education, Research and Innovation"

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  • New: leaflet "Right of residence for researchers from non-EU countries in Germany" available in English

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News

Growing expectations placed on universities

Growing expectations placed on universities

The list of requirements placed on universities is long. They are expected to make higher education available to a growing number of students, attract new social groups to study programmes and meet diversified labour market requirements. At the same time, internationally competitive research is expected to solve issues concerning the world's future and applied research is supposed to boost the economy at the local level. These were the key findings of the study "The Place of Universities in Society" by the University of Oslo, commissioned by the Körber Foundation. More

HRK President appalled at repression of Turkish researchers: Strong protest against imminent imprisonment of Professor Dr Füsun Üstel

HRK President appalled at repression of Turkish researchers: Strong protest against imminent imprisonment of Professor Dr Füsun Üstel

Around three years after the petition "We Will Not Be a Party to this Crime!" was published, the repression of researchers by the Turkish authorities has taken on a new dimension. The President of the German Rectors' Conference (HRK), Professor Dr Peter-André Alt, stated his views on this: "I am alarmed, or rather appalled, at the events at Turkish universities since the petition "We Will Not Be a Party to this Crime!" was published. More

7. HRK survey of universities: Continual sharp rise in number of newly enrolled refugees

7. HRK survey of universities: Continual sharp rise in number of newly enrolled refugees

The academic integration of refugees at German universities continues to progress well. An increasing number are successfully making the transition from the orientation and preparation phase to their chosen course of study. This was revealed by the most recent survey by the HRK, which has seen the best response to date, of its member universities in the 2018/2019 winter semester. The number of new enrolments with a refugee background has risen sharply from 3,000 in the previous winter semester to almost 3,800 in the current winter semester.More

Making use of national research data infrastructure as an opportunity for universities

Making use of national research data infrastructure as an opportunity for universities

“The national research data infrastructure (NFDI) offers great potential for science at German universities. However, both the universities themselves and the states must take the lead to specifically support academic involvement,” President of the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK) Professor Dr Peter-André Alt said today in Berlin. His remarks were made in reference to a lecture delivered by the Chair of the Council for Information Infrastructure (Rfll), Professor Dr Petra Gehring yesterday before the HRK Senate.More

HRK Senate calls for programme for applied research

HRK Senate calls for programme for applied research

Germany needs broader funding of applied research for universities of all types. The Senate of the HRK has affirmed this position in a statement adopted yesterday and is calling for an appropriate funding programme. The objective is to give researchers better options for advancing their own ideas about how to apply their work, independently of external targets. The Senate noted that, to date, funding of applied research projects has either been primarily driven by an interest in discovery or strongly oriented towards demand from industry and society. More

HRK rejects “Vocational Bachelor” and “Vocational Master” as qualification designations

HRK rejects “Vocational Bachelor” and “Vocational Master” as qualification designations

Qualification designations must be unambiguous and informative. Designations such as the “Berufsbachelor” (vocational bachelor) or “Berufsmaster” (vocational master) which the Federal Minister of Education and Research wishes to introduce in vocational education, do not meet these criteria. This was emphasised by the Senate of the German Rectors' Conference (HRK) in Berlin yesterday. The Senate's rejection was a reiteration of previous statements by the HRK President directed towards the Minister and the Federal Chancellor, on plans in the context of an amendment to the Berufsbildungsgesetz (Vocational Training Act). More