topic Science

Higher Education

The Federal Government supports institutions of higher education in preparing for the new requirements resulting from the internationalization of higher education and the growing competition.

Institutions of higher education are places of high-quality training and research and are key initiators of innovation in our country, which make a decisive contribution towards securing progress and prosperity. Germany has 394 institutions of higher education: of which 104 are universities, 6 colleges of education, 14 colleges of theology, 51 colleges of art, 189 universities of applied sciences and 30 colleges of public administration. According to figures from the Federal Statistical Office, there were over 1.996 million students in the 2008/2009 Winter Semester, approximately 48% of whom were women. Approximately two thirds of all students are registered at universities; just under 29 % attend a university of applied sciences. The number of first-year students reached a record high in the 2008/2009 academic year with over 386,500 new students. Since the introduction of the "Higher Education Pact 2020" in 2007, the share of first-year students in Germany as a percentage of a year group has risen by more than 2% to 39.1%

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  topic Science

  Initiative for Excellence

  The continuation of the Initiative for Excellence will provide a secure basis for world-class research at universities. Successful projects that were started in the first two rounds can now be continued and new projects for the development of world-class research can be realized.
  more (URL: http://www.bmbf.de/en/1321.php)
   
  
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  topic Science

  The Bologna Process

  The Bologna Process was launched in 1999. It has contributed to the successful modernization of the German institutions of higher education. Germany and its European neighbours have set themselves the task of creating a European Higher Education Area by 2010 in the order to succeed in the international competition for the best brains. In Germany, we have taken advantage of the biggest higher education reform for decades to improve the quality of study courses, to enhance employability and to reduce the length of studies.
  more (URL: http://www.bmbf.de/en/3336.php)
   
  
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  topic Education

  International exchanges in vocational education and training

  How about going abroad during training? Bilateral exchange programmes of the BMBF support apprentices in crossing borders and acquiring international qualifications.
  more (URL: http://www.bmbf.de/en/894.php)
   
  
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  topic Education

  Internationalization of Higher Education

  The Federal Government is supporting German institutions of higher education in their efforts to assert themselves in growing international competition. Higher education marketing is to attract students, young scientists and researchers worldwide to studies and research at German institutions of higher education. The institutions of higher education are moving towards a European Higher Education Area.
  more (URL: http://www.bmbf.de/en/908.php)
   
  
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  topic Research

  The Reform of Higher Education Admission

  Institutions of higher education in Germany are in future to participate more actively in the selection of their students. The new regulation of admission to higher education institutions provides them with a responsibility they had demanded for a long time. The reform of admission to higher education, which was passed in July, regulates in a new way the allocation of study places in study courses with national restriction.
  more (URL: http://www.bmbf.de/en/2570.php)
   
  
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  topic Science

  Ensuring Equal Opportunities by Means of BAföG

  How can I finance my study course? An answer to this question is given by the Federal Training Assistance Act (BAföG). The 22. BAföG Amendment allows further improvements: BAföG rates are raised, the monthly limits on additional earnings are extended to 400 Euros. Students with children are supported with a special bonus. The first parts of the amendment became effective at the beginning of 2008. BAföG support is therefore an important element in encouraging more young people to take up studies and undergo qualified training.
  more (URL: http://www.bmbf.de/en/892.php)
   
  
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  topic Science

  Junior Professorship

  The introduction of the junior professorship established a new career path which provides young scientists with another avenue towards a professorship. The objective was and still is to provide young scientists with an opportunity for independent research and teaching already in their early 30s.
  more (URL: http://www.bmbf.de/en/820.php)
   
  
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  topic Science

  Research at Universities of Applied Sciences

  The BMBF is providing funding for applied research in the engineering, natural and economic sciences at universities of applied sciences under its "Research at Universities of Applied Sciences" programme. Since the beginning of 2009, the pilot call entitled "Social Innovation for Quality of Life in Old Age (SILQUA-FH)" has also been providing funding for research projects at universities of applied sciences which offer study programmes in Social Work and the Care and Health Sciences aimed at improving the quality of life and protecting the independence and dignity of elderly people, particularly people suffering from old age ailments.
  more (URL: http://www.bmbf.de/en/864.php)
   
  
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  topic Science

  Continuing education at institutions of higher education

  Continuing education provides institutions of higher education with an opportunity to develop programmes which are interesting and useful for both industry and science. Because even for academics, qualification no longer ends when the doctor's cap has been earned. And the knowledge of higher education teachers is also in demand among specialists in companies.
  more (URL: http://www.bmbf.de/en/349.php)