Excellence Initiative of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research

As part of its Excellence Initiative, the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research made 1.9 billion euros available to universities starting in 2006 and allocated in a multi-stage competition. Excellence Clusters and post-graduate schools will be established in addition to future concepts for the promotion of top-class university research, with the frequent and leading involvement of Fraunhofer Institutes. The continuation of the Excellence Initiative is currently being discussed.

Fraunhofer is closely associated with these universities and in particular contributes the element of innovation orientation to site planning with its High Performance Center concept. The High Performance Centers take the partnership between universities, Fraunhofer and companies to a new topical level. Together with the politically responsible players, the partners develop a binding, consistent roadmap for research and teaching, for the development of young talent and infrastructure as well as for the transfer of innovation and knowledge. The High Performance Centers are thus intended to optimize the exploitation of scientific results in all sectors of the economy.

The viability of this concept has proven itself in three pilot projects at High Performance Centers in Freiburg, Erlangen and Dresden. In support of the respective universities and regions, Fraunhofer is continuing to expand additional High Performance Centers and in doing so is strengthening the visibility of locations with regard to specific topics particularly characteristic of the respective regions.

Participation in Graduate Schools

  • »Graduate School for Advanced Manufacturing Engineering der Uni Stuttgart«, Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA  and Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering IAO
  • »Bonn-Aachen International Graduate School for Applied Informatics«, Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Information Technology FIT
  • »Jena School for Microbial Communication«, Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF
     

Participation in University Clusters

  • »Integrative Production Technology for High-Wage Countries« of the RWTH Aachen, Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology ILT and Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT
  • »Ultra High-Speed Mobile Information and Communication« of the RWTH Aachen, Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Information Technology FIT
  • »Engineering of Advanced Materials – Hierarchical Structure Formation for Functional Devices« of the University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Systems and Device Technology IISB
  • »Interdisciplinary Center for Integrative Neuroscience « (CIN) of the University Tübingen, Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA 
     

Institutional strategies to promote top-level university research

»RWTH 2020: Meeting Global Challenges« of the RWTH Aachen and the Fraunhofer Institutes Applied Information Technology FIT, Laser Technology ILT, Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology IME, Production Technology IPT

Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA