2.1. Formal cooperations
There are a number of different formal collaborations in the international arena. The following provides a brief overview of how international partnership and cooperation agreements (e.g., memorandums of understanding, cooperation agreements, student exchange agreements) are developed.
Process and responsibilities
If you would like to establish a formal cooperation, contact your office of the dean and the appropriate department:
- International partnership agreements (see below for details): Contact the Department of International Affairs (each faculty has been assigned a contact person), which supervises and coordinates the initiation process and the drafting of formal cooperations.
- Erasmus+ agreements: Contact the Erasmus+ Team.
- Research agreements and infrastructure use: Contact the Department of Research Management and Funding.
- For information about cooperations with industry and knowledge exchange institutions as well as privacy regulation questions about IP registration, contact the Universität Hamburg Knowledge Exchange Agency.
The following information refers to international partnership agreements.
Drafting a partnership agreement
- In a partnership agreement, the following—inter alia—must be defined:
- letters of intent and general framework conditions (e.g., memorandum of understanding, letter of intent)
- student-exchange agreements
- For Erasmus+ agreements, contact the Erasmus+ Team directly.
- Exchange agreements for researchers
Procedure
- The Department of International Affairs provides templates that have been subject to legal review and can be used easily and quickly.
- If documents are used that do not correspond to Universität Hamburg templates, these must undergo a legal review and, if necessary, be negotiated with the partner university. The Department of International Affairs coordinates this process.
- The Department of International Affairs releases international partnership agreements for signature.
- Once approved, the dean signs the agreement.
- We recommend that you inform your office of the dean about your cooperation plans and intended agreement early on to ensure that the office of the dean endorses the intended agreement and that signatures are possible at short notice if necessary. In some faculties, the office of the dean supports the communication and drafting process together with the Department of International Affairs.
Duration from drafting agreement until signing
- If Universität Hamburg’s templates are used, it is possible to conclude a letter of intent and agreement within a few days, provided that the partner institutions agree to the template and the office of the dean signs it at short notice (the latter is usually possible if advanced notice concerning the required signature is given).
- If Universität Hamburg’s templates are not used or are changed in such a way that a legal review becomes necessary, the drafting process will take approximately 2-8 weeks (based on experience). The duration of the drafting process also depends on how much coordination and negotiation with the partner university is necessary to develop a common document.
Exception: In-depth review
Cooperations that are with institutions in countries where academic freedom is severely restricted or nonexistent and cooperation content that is relevant to export control regulations:
- All intended cooperations that are in subject areas relevant to export control regulations and take place with institutions in countries where academic freedom is severely restricted or nonexistent (classification based on the Academic Freedom Index) must undergo an in-depth review.
- The Department of International Affairs will determine whether an in-depth review is necessary. It also coordinates the review if an international partnership agreement is involved. The in-depth review usually takes one to three months.
Questions and consultations
The Department of International Affairs is available to answer your questions and provide consultations. Contact us regarding regional expertise or faculty assignment. Both are marked accordingly on the Department of International Affairs website so that you can quickly find the right contact person.