Executive Committee

The Executive Committee deliberates and decides on all matters of fundamental importance to the organisation in accordance and compliance with the rights of the other bodies and funding authorities.

The Executive Committee is responsible for determining the strategic orientation of the DAAD programmes, setting up selection committees and appointing their members. In addition, the Executive Board approves the budget, the annual financial statements, the annual report and appoints the Secretary General upon the President’s recommendation.

The Executive Committee is comprised of fifteen elected and five appointed members, and the Secretary General. The Executive Committee may also invite permanent guests to attend its sessions.

The following members currently serve on the Executive Committee until 2027:

President
Professor Dr. Joybrato Mukherjee

Vice President
Dr. Muriel Kim Helbig

Other elected members

• Dr. Birgit Barden-Läufer, U Hannover
• Dr. Mandy Boehnke, U Bremen
• Prof. Dr. Hiltraud Casper-Hehne, U Göttingen
• Dr. Jens Ewen, HfM Weimar
• Dr. Herbert Grieshop, FU Berlin
• Prof. Dr. Sylvia Heuchemer, TH Köln
• Prof. Dr. Karim Khakzar, HS Fulda
• Dr. Yoan Vilain, HU Berlin
• Professor Dr. Andreas Zaby, Berlin School of Economics and Law

Representing the student bodies (2026-2027)

• Kumar Ashish, U Oldenburg
• Aiym Jandybayeva, U Bonn
• Julian Windeck, FAU Nürnberg-Erlangen
• Diana Zhunussova, U Heidelberg

Appointed delegates

• Christina Beinhoff, head of the “Culture and Society” department, Federal Foreign Office (AA)
• Dr. Jochen Zachgo, head of the “Academic Systems” department, Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR)
• Dr. Tania Rödiger-Vorwerk, Head of the Directorate "Global Health, Resilience; Equal Opportunities", Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
• Dr. Volker Meyer-Guckel, Secretary General of the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft
• Dr. Katja Böhler, Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the German Länder

Permanent guests

• Prof. Dr. Robert Schlögl, President of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
• Prof. Dr. Gesche Joost, President of the Goethe-Institut
• Prof. Dr. Walter Rosenthal, President of the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK)

View the list of members on the DAAD Executive Committee (in German).

stud.vorstand at daad-gremium.de
This e-mail address is allocated to the student members of the DAAD Executive Committee for the fulfilment of their statutory duties. This is an external e-mail address and not one used by DAAD staff. The DAAD has no influence whatsoever on the content sent via this e-mail address and therefore accepts no liability for it.

Members

The DAAD is an association of German institution of higher education and their student bodies.

As of January 2026, the DAAD was comprised of the following full members:

• 244 institutions of higher education
• 104 student bodies

As a rule, the members meet in a General Assembly in Bonn once a year. They decide on all matters of the association. New members may join the association upon request of the Executive Committee. The prerequisite for membership is the university’s membership in the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK).

View the list of full members in the General Assembly of the DAAD (in German).

Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees supports the Executive Committee in matters of fundamental importance to the organisation and is entitled to file motions with the General Assembly.

The Board of Trustees is responsible for auditing the annual financial statement, approving the annual budget, and proposing electoral nominations for the office of President, Vice President and the elected, non-student members of the Executive Committee. The Board of Trustees is also responsible for making amendments to the charter of association and deciding on the dissolution of the association.

The Board of Trustees is comprised of 23 appointed and five elected members.

The following members currently serve on the Board of Trustees until 2027:

President
Professor Dr. Joybrato Mukherjee

Vice President
Dr. Muriel Kim Helbig

Appointed members (in accordance with § 14 of the DAAD charter) – with reservations:
a) Federal departments

• Christina Beinhoff, Federal Foreign Office
• Dr. Jochen Zachgo, Federal Ministry of  Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR)
• Dr. Tania Rödiger-Vorwerk, Head of the Directorate "Global Health, Resilience; Equal Opportunities", Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
• Dr. Gunilla Fincke, Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs
• Dr. Kathrin Isele, Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy
• Dr. Kathrin Hahne, The Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media

b) Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the German Länder (KMK)

• Dr. Katja Böhler
• Martina Schmitz
• Frau Dr. Vera Ziegeldorf

c) German Rectors’ Conference (HRK)

• Prof. Dr. Walter Rosenthal, President of the HRK
• Prof. Dr. Frank Dellmann, President of the University of Applied Science Münster
• Dr. Ute Fries, Vice Rector for Teaching, Studies and International Affairs at the University of Music and Theatre
  • Prof. Dr. Ute Habel, Vice Rector for International Affairs at RWTH Aachen University
  • Prof. Dr. Angela Ittel, President of the TU Braunschweig

d) Institutions

• Dr. Heide Ahrens, German Research Foundation (DFG)
• Matthias Anbuhl, Secretary General of the Deutsches Studentenwerk
• Dr. Yvonne Dorf, managing director of the German Association of University Professors and Lecturers (DHV)
• Johannes Ebert, Secretary General of the Goethe-Institut
• Andrea Frank, Deputy Secretary General of the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft
• Dr. Annette Julius, Secretary General of the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes
• Dr. Thomas Kiefer, German Association of Technical Scientific Organisations (DVT)
• Dr. Roman Luckscheiter, Secretary-General of the German Commission for UNESCO
• Dr. Markus Zanner, Secretary General of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (AVH)

Elected members (term of office 2024-2027)

• Prof. Dr. Kerstin Mey, University of Limerick
• Dr. Volker Treier, Member of the General Management of the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce

Representatives of the student bodies (term of office 2026-2027)

• Amro Bay, TU Braunschweig
• Maren Weissig, TU Dresden
• Daniel Janke, University of Würzburg

stud.kuratorium at daad-gremium.de
This e-mail address is allocated to the student members of the DAAD Board of Trustees for the fulfilment of their statutory duties. This is an external e-mail address and not one used by DAAD staff. The DAAD has no influence whatsoever on the content sent via this e-mail address and therefore accepts no liability for it.

View the list of members on the Board of Trustees (in German).