Please activate JavaScript!
Please install Adobe Flash Player, click here for download
ePaper created 2015-05-12, 15:30:36 | version 1.38.0
Photo:private “My colleagues Dr. Thomas Mohnike from the University of Strasbourg and Dr. Michael Rießler from Freiburg and I have been working on the project ‘Building the North with Words: Geographies of Scientific Knowledge in European Philologies 1850–1950’ since the fall of 2013. We are using the history of the field of Scandi- navian studies to investigate how the location at which knowledge is produced, collected, and taught influences its content. The point of departure was the experience in our EUCOR network that Scandinavian studies in Freiburg and Strasbourg are organized very differently as a result of the traditions, institutional integration, and funding at the respective universities. It was clear to us from the outset that our work would have to cross borders in a very literal sense. We thus began meeting twice a week to work together – at the Institute for Advanced Studies of the University of Strasbourg, USIAS for short, in the first year, and at FRIAS, the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, in the second year. This gives us the opportunity to exchange our findings and interim results, to bring together our knowledge, and to see things from the perspective of the other side at all times – a type of collaboration that we find inspiring and enriching.” Prof. Dr. Joachim Grage, Scandinavian studies, University of Freiburg Photo:private It h b I S F t Eucor une fois Universities from three countries have joined forces to form a network for instruction, research, and culture on the Upper Rhine TRINATIONAL ALLIANCE Signed and Sealed The acronym Eucor stands for “European Confederation of Upper Rhine Universities.” In 1989, seven German, French, and Swiss universities signed an agreement setting down the goals of the partnership. The current members of the confederation are the University of Freiburg and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology on the German side of the Rhine, the University of Basel on the Swiss side, and the Uni- versity of Strasbourg and the University of Upper Alsace in Mulhouse and Colmar on the French side. » www.eucor-uni.org Opportunities for Students The students can choose from among 19 cross-border degree programs offered by the EUCOR alliance. In addition, they are free to take courses from the regular curricula of all five member universities to fill gaps in the course offerings of their home university. They have access to all libraries and can take advantage of the universities’ resources. Students enrolled in the Eucor degree programs earn a dual or even triple degree. And to ensure that the frequent commute across the border doesn’t get too expensive, the confederation offers commuting allowances. Advantages for Researchers When it comes to securing funding for research projects, researchers from the EUCOR alliance have good prospects: The cross-border partnership qualifies them for several prestigious funding pro- grams. In order to ensure that research itself rather than money management remains the focus of their daily work, the coordination offices at the member uni- versities have streamlined bureaucratic processes. Early-stage researchers have the opportunity to earn binational doctor- ates and receive grants to participate in annual summer university programs. Photo: Hannes-Dirk Flury Photo: Peter Mesenholl Photo: Katrin Albaum 8 Cover Story uni'alumni 2015