A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between MPDL Services, on behalf of Projekt DEAL, and Springer Nature sets the scene for the world’s most comprehensive open access (OA) agreement to be finalised later this year. Reaching such an understanding has been possible through acknowledgement of the common commitment of both parties to the principle of open science.More
Following the statement of the Bundesrat on the draft of the amendment to the Vocational Training Act (BBiG), HRK-President Peter-André Alt, made the following comments: "I'm delighted that the Bundesrat has requested in the legislative process that professional titles are developed that cannot be confused with academic qualifications. Its statement strengthens our conviction that new titles such as Bachelor Professional and Vocational Master would be counterproductive."More
Following the announcement of the first 17 European higher education alliances funded by the EU, HRK-President Peter-André Alt commented: “German universities are represented in 14 of the 17 European networks chosen. This is an impressive achievement. It bears testament to the fact that German universities see themselves as engines of the European ideal and are collaborating creatively to develop new forms of partnership. A great variety of approaches has been selected in order to bring the idea of the European higher education alliances to life.”More
The “Rare Disciplines Weeks” were officially launched by the German Rectors' Conference (HRK) and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Seventeen projects are being funded to showcase and network their Rare Disciplines in the coming winter semester. “The joint initiative is designed to strengthen these disciplines, which play an important role in the German higher education landscape but seldom receive the attention they deserve. The goal is to raise the profile of scientific achievements in the Rare Disciplines, provide information about courses of study and career prospects, and give a real taste of the relevance of these disciplines to our everyday lives,” said HRK President Peter-André Alt. More
Rising expectations and pressure to legitimise: at the third Global University Leaders Council Hamburg, 45 university leaders from 23 countries gathered from 5 to 7 June to discuss the rela-tionship between universities and society. It is marked by increasing, some-times conflicting expectations placed on universities to contribute to social development on top of their core commitment to research and teaching. As a result of their exchange, the participants of the Council jointly organ-ised by the HRK, the Körber Foundation and the University of Hamburg, adopted the "Rebuilding University – Socie-ty Relationships" declaration.More
After the 'Future Contract' and the 'Joint Initiative for Research and Innovation' was signed by the Federal Chancellor and the heads of the federal states, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) and the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK, Hochschulrektorenkonferenz) thanked those responsible for their joint effort for universities. HRK President Peter-André Alt: "The fact that both pacts have been signed at the highest level by the federal and state governments highlights their importance."More
