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Georg-August-Universität Göttingen

– Excellence and Profile

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Georg-August-Universität Göttingen (founded in 1737)

Key Data

• 13 faculties, 180 institutes

• 24,600 students

• 11.6 % students from abroad (new entrants: approximately 20 %)

• 13,000 employees (including Medicine), of whom 404 professors

• 114 programmes of study (71 Bachelor / 22 Master)

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The University "Aula”

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Thirteen Faculties

• Faculty of Agricultural Sciences

• Faculty of Biology (including Psychology)

• Faculty of Chemistry

• Faculty of Forestry and Forest Ecology

• Faculty for Geosciences and Geography

• Faculty of Mathematics

• Faculty of Physics

• Faculty of Medicine

• Faculty of Law

• Faculty of Philosophy

• Faculty of Social Sciences

• Faculty of Economic Sciences

• Faculty of Theology

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Financial data

• Expense and revenue 2006333 million euro - University excluding Medicine451 million euro - School of Medicine

• Financial support from the Federal State 2006194 million euro - University excluding Medicine (after cuts of 9 million

euro)126 million euro - School of Medicine (after cuts of 5 million euro)

• Third-party funding 200649,7 million euro - University excluding Medicine 34,1 million euro - School of Medicine

• Contributions to administrative costs: 2.7 million euro

• Tuition fees for extended duration of studies (portion allocated to University): 0.8 million euro

• Tuition fees (2007): ca. 14 million euro

• Trust assets: 600 million euro (properties)

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The Humanities Campus

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Profile

Target profile

• Internationally acknowledged research universitywith priority areas in research-based teaching

• Plurality of subjects – diversityin range of study courses in the natural sciences and humanities

Strategy (based on comparative advantages)

• Internationalisation

• Building profile through research foci

• Systematic developmental planning

• Interconnection with non-university research institutions

• Greatest possible autonomy

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Autonomy

Trust (Foundation) as maintaining body of the University since January 1, 2003

• Full entitlement to make professorial appointments

• Independent staff management (employer status)

• Ownership of property (builder status)

• Independent financial management on the basis of agreements on targets

• Discontinuation of state supervision

• External expertise through excellently qualified members of Foundation Board

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Foundation Board

Chair

Dr. Wilhelm KrullGeneral Secretary of theVolkswagenstiftung

Prof. Dr. Utz ClaassenCEO of EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG

External members

Prof. Dr. Jutta LimbachPresident of the Goethe InstituteInter Nationes

Prof. Dr. Helga NowotnyProfessor of Philosophy and Social Studies of Science, TH Zürich, Chair of the European Research Advisory Board of theEuropean Commission

Prof. Dr. Bert SakmannDirector of the Max Planck Institute for Medical Reserach in Heidelberg,Nobel Prize for Medicine

Representative of the Senate Representative of the Ministry of Science and Culture

Dr. Josef LangeSecretary of State in the Ministry of Science and Culture of Lower Saxony

Prof. Dr. Andrea PolleProfessor of Tree Physiology and Forest Botany

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The Foundation University – a Model

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Network of Non-University Research Institutions in the Locality

• MPI for Biophysical Chemistry

• MPI for Experimental Medicine

• MPI for Dynamics and Self-Organisation

• MPI of History

• MPI for Solar System Research

• Academy of Science Göttingen

• German Primate Centre, DPZ

• German Aerospace Centre, DLR

• Laser-Laboratorium Göttingen

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The North Campus - Natural Sciences

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Research Centres since 2000

• BMBF Bernstein Centre for Computational Neuroscience Göttingen (2004)

• DFG Research Centre for Molecular Physiology of the Brain (2002)

• Competence Network for Sustainable Timber Utilization (2002)

• Institute for Multiple Sclerosis Research, Gemeinnützige Hertie-Stiftung (2002)

• BMBF Research Cooperation Quality of Medical Care in General Practice (2002)

• BMBF GenoMik Competence Network, Göttingen (2001)

• National Genome Research Network CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES (2001)

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Centres of Collaborative Research at the Locality

• BMBF Bernstein Centre for Computational Neuroscience Göttingen (BCCN, 2004)

• DFG Research Centre for Molecular Physiology of the Brain (CMPB, 2002)

• Centre for Systems Neuroscience (ZNV, 2002)

• European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen (ENI-G, 2001)

• Centre for Biodiversity Research and Ecology (GCBE, 2001)

• Göttingen Centre for Molecular Bio-Sciences (GZMB, 1998)

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City of Göttingen

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Graduate Programmes

• 23 third-party funded Graduate Programmes currently involving approximately 360 doctoral students

• International MSc/PhD Programmes

– Neurosciences

– Molecular Biology

– Göttingen Graduate School of Physics

– Biological Diversity and Ecology

– International Graduate School of Mathematics and Computer Science, based on an MSc Programme in Mathematics

– International PhD Program for Agricultural Sciences in Göttingen (IPAG)

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Prizes and Awards

Selected DFG awards in the period 1996-2005

• Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize2004 Konrad Samwer, Solid State Physics2000 Reinhard Jahn, Cell Biology1998 Annette Zippelius, Solid State Physics1997 Gerhard Wörner, Mineralogy and Geochemistry1996 Joachim Reitner, Palaeontology

• Heinz Maier Leibnitz Prize2005 Valerie Blomer, Mathematics2001 Mikael Simons, Neurobiology

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Competition

• DFG Research Ranking (assessment period 2001-2005)

– Rank 12 of 84 universities

• AvH-Stiftung 2006 (attractiveness for top-level researchers 2001-2005)

– Rank 7 of 80 universities

• DAAD Ranking 2005 (international research-orientated study programmes 2004)

– Rank 4 of 100 universities

• Subjects constantly occupying very good or good positions in rankings:Chemistry, Biology, Geosciences, German Literature and Linguistics,History, Mathematics, Physics and Sociology

• Reputation abroad

– Times World League for Science 2004 (worldwide : Rank 26 of 100, Germany : Rank 2)

– Shanghai Ranking 2005 (worldwide: Rank 84 of 500, Europe: Rank 28 von 100, Germany: Rank 4)

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Göttingen State and University Library (SUB)

• Foundation of the Göttingen University Library in 1734

• One of the largest libraries in Germany

• “Library of the Year 2002” (Deutscher Bibliotheksverband and ZEIT-Stiftung)

• Holdings: 5.5 m. volumes, 1.4 m. microform items, 16,000 current journal subscriptions, 13,000 manuscripts, 3,100 incunabulae, 220,000 maps, 350 scholars’ legacies, more than 300 on-line and CD-ROM databases, extensive digital holdings.

• Approx. 4,000 users per day in the SUB new building, opened in 1993

• The Göttingen Digitisation Centre (GDZ) makes valuable literary holdings digitally accessible (e.g. the Göttingen Gutenberg Bible)

• DigiZeitschriften brings on-line 3 million pages from academic journals

• Collections: Manuscript collection, map collection, Asch collection

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State and University Library

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Excellence Initiative by the German Federal and State Governments

• Project-related funding of up to 40 Graduate Schools for the promotion of young researchers(ca. 1.0 million euro for each Graduate School funded plus 20 % supplemental allowance to cover indirect expenses related to the funding programme)

• Project-related funding of up to 30 Excellence Clustersto promote top-level research(ca. 6.5 million euro for each Excellence Cluster funded plus 20 % supplemental allowance to cover indirect expenses related to the funding programme)

• Institutional strategy to promote top-level research at German universities(ca. 21.0 million euro maximum funding)

• Implementation: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation) and Wissenschaftsrat (German Science Council) in cooperation with the Federal and State Governments

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Funding Line 1 – Göttinger Graduate Schools

• Georg-August-Universität School of Science (GAUSS)Natural Sciences and MathematicsParticipating: 4 Göttingen MPIs, German Primate Centre (DPZ), German Aerospace Centre DLR, Federal Agricultural Research Centre, Braunschweig

• Göttinger Graduiertenschule Gesellschaftswissenschaften (GGG) (Göttingen Graduate School for Social Sciences)Law, Economic Sciences, Social SciencesParticipating: Federal Agricultural Research Centre, Braunschweig

• Göttinger Graduiertenschule Geisteswissenschaften und Theologie (GGGT) (Göttingen Graduate School for Humanities and Theology) Participating: MPI for History, German Primate Centre (DPZ), Göttingen Academy of Science, Herzog August Library, Wolfenbüttel

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Funding Line 2 – Göttingen Excellence Clusters

• Haeckel-Centre for Functional Biodiversity Research CFBRParticipating: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, MPI for Biogeochemistry, Jena, MPI for Chemical Ecology, German Primate Centre (DPZ)

• The Making of Cultural Heritage from Antiquity until Today:Invention, Canonization, Transformation, Functionality (CHAT)Participating: MPI of History, German Primate Centre (DPZ), Göttingen Academy of Science, Herzog August Library Wolfenbüttel

• DFG Research Centre Molecular Physiology of the BrainParticipating : German Primate Centre (DPZ), MPI for Biophysical Chemistry, MPI for Experimental Medicine, Göttingen Centre for Molecular Biology (GZMB)

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Funding Line 3 – Future Strategies

Brain Gain – Institutional Strategy to Promote Top-Level Research

Strategy: Development of the “Research Location Göttingen”

• Joint defining of research foci

• Coordinated appointment of professors

• Quality assurance in selection and evaluation of junior scholars and scientists

• Reliable career perspectives for young scholars and scientists with the help of the Göttingen Research Council (GRC), a board representing the expertise within the University and the non-university research institutions in Göttingen

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Funding Line 3 – Future Strategies

Brain Gain – Institutional Strategy to Promote Top-Level Research

Instruments

• Six to eight “Göttinger Research Centres”

Each Research Centre:

– integrates a group of excellent Göttingen scholars into a new research initiative

– offers outstanding conditions for the work and development of young scholars

– occupies an innovative and original research area, promotes interdisciplinary activities and is integrated into the Göttingen research environment

– visibly strengthens the University profile

• Junior research groups with reliable perspectives for their leaders in and outside the Research Centres

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http://www.uni-goettingen.de/