KIWi provides practical support for initiating and implementing international academic cooperation in a customised and targeted manner. In the field of “matchmaking and international networking”, we support German universities by giving individual advice, holding professional networking events and distributing a comprehensive range of publications with country and region-specific handouts, analyses and reports.

An informed basis is required for initiating cooperation projects and orienting international relations in the higher education sector strategically. Without knowledge of local structures, education systems, the diverse and sometimes incomparable types of higher education institution and degrees, the qualifications of teaching staff and national research conditions, it is impossible to make a well-founded assessment and evaluation of the opportunities and potential of cooperation. The publications in the DAAD Globus series, which are produced and regularly updated in close collaboration with colleagues in the DAAD external network, provide important information in this regard.

In order to implement international, often interdisciplinary cooperation projects, universities and research institutions join forces in larger networks and enter into multilateral partnerships. KIWi provides comprehensive support for selecting suitable methods and instruments to promote international networking: In addition to providing advice on customising the use of existing DAAD programmes, information is also offered on other national and European funding opportunities in an international context. Moreover, KIWi staff collaborate with experienced practitioners at universities to develop guidelines in which critical success factors for regional cooperation and effective networking are mapped out using practical project examples.

Individual consulting in the field of matchmaking and international networks

The KIWi team makes its regional expertise available to German universities in order to provide advice on initiating and implementing cooperations. Please use our contact form for this purpose.

We support internationalisation stakeholders at German universities in:

• The regional orientation of international academic cooperation and identifying suitable partner structures.
• Initiating contacts and preparing cooperation projects with partner institutions abroad.
• Selecting suitable national and European funding instruments for sustainably organising international teaching and research cooperations.

Matchmaking in the KIWi Connect format

The KIWi Connect event format is used for peer-to-peer experience exchanges on practical issues relating to academic cooperation. Matchmaking events are also regularly organised within this framework. These enable German and foreign universities to exchange expertise, e. g. on joint research topics, and engage in networking activities in order to establish cooperative relationships.

KIWI Kompass: Cooperation guidelines

The cooperation guidelines in the KIWi Kompass series have a regional focus, provide information on developments in selected higher education systems and investigate the opportunities and potential of international academic cooperation on the basis of practical examples. They are developed by DAAD regional experts in close dialogue with universities that have gained relevant project experience with partners from the countries concerned.