Partnerships and networks
Connected around the world
The University of Freiburg is part of major cross-border networks and collaborates with renowned partner universities around the world. The University focuses on expanding its partnership network within its key research areas and on reducing global knowledge asymmetries through its collaborations. As the first German signatory of the Africa Charter, it is also committed, alongside other research-intensive universities, to an ethically grounded and partnership-based engagement on an equal footing on the African continent.
The existing international partnerships focus on academic collaboration, teaching partnerships, and student and staff exchanges. Together with its partners, the University promotes the international exchange of knowledge and perspectives, thereby strengthening its own capacity to address the challenges of today and tomorrow.
The University of Freiburg is part of major cross-border networks and collaborates with renowned partner universities around the world. 91 Global Exchange Partners, four Enhanced Partnerships, the Eucor – The European Campus network, the European EPICUR Alliance, the University’s involvement in the European LERU network, and numerous international partnerships at faculty level form the foundation for international exchange in research, study, teaching, administration and knowledge transfer.
Eucor – The European Campus
Eucor – The European Campus is a trinational alliance between the Universities of Freiburg, Basel, Haute-Alsace and Strasbourg, and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. Together, the universities pool the expertise of their researchers, lecturers, doctoral candidates and students in a strong research and economic region spanning France, Germany and Switzerland. The collaboration is underpinned by shared structures, a common governance framework and a shared strategy for research and teaching. Eucor covers the entire spectrum of university activities – from joint research projects, International Research Training Groups (IRTG) and cooperation on research infrastructures to free student mobility, dual degrees and cross-border professorships.
The EPICUR University Alliance
The European higher education alliance EPICUR brings together nine European partner institutions: the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, the University of Strasbourg, the University of Haute-Alsace, the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, the University of Southern Denmark, Adam Mickiewicz University and the University of Amsterdam. The alliance was founded in 2019 and focuses on flexible learning through the EPICUR Centre for International Teaching and Learning (EPiC TLC), as well as on research opportunities via EPICUR Hubs and seed funding options.
Enhanced Partnerships
The University of Freiburg maintains a wide range of international partnerships. Enhanced Partnerships forge particularly close links with four universities worldwide: the University of Adelaide, the University of Ghana, Nagoya University and Pennsylvania State University. Together with its partner universities, the University of Freiburg addresses global complexities by combining expertise in teaching, research and administration. The universities are strengthening their joint visibility in order to have an impact on society.
The partnerships and their current focus:
- Cooperation with Adelaide University spans several areas: student and staff mobility, research, joint doctoral training, teaching and institutional collaboration. The focus is on the fields of sustainability and biomedicine.
- Close collaboration within the international research college MIASA (Merian Institute for Advanced Studies in Africa), with a focus on sustainable governance, is a key component of the relationship between the University of Freiburg and the University of Ghana. There are collaborations in law, linguistics, Islamic studies, political science, environmental policy and medicine.
- A shared priority in the partnership with Nagoya University is to support early-career researchers, teaching collaborations and academic cooperation. The focus is on the natural and life sciences, medicine, environmental and sustainability sciences, and engineering.
- In addition to student exchanges, teaching and research collaborations take place in the fields of chemistry, biology, German studies, and liberal arts and sciences with Pennsylvania State University. Another key focus of the collaboration is materials science research, which is based at the joint Convergence Center for Living, Multifunctional Material Systems
League of European Research Universities (LERU)
The University of Freiburg is one of three German universities to be a member of the League of European Research Universities (LERU). The aim of this network of 24 research-intensive universities in Europe is to foster exchange in the fields of excellent teaching and internationally competitive cutting-edge research. LERU is committed to basic research and promotes broad-based research in partnership with industry and society. Working closely with its members, LERU addresses issues relating to research management and funding, open science, responsible science and innovation, research impact, research infrastructures, doctoral training, academic careers and gender issues.