Connected with the World

Connected with the World

With over 70 partner universities drawn from six continents, some 20,000 bilateral research projects, close contacts with the United Nations and its institutions, the University of Bonn is part of an extensive global network bringing together institutions of research and higher education with companies and organizations.

Bonn, the city of Academia and the United Nations

The University of Bonn is embedded in a dynamic local research network featuring a range of local non-university research organizations including a number of Max-Planck, Helmholtz, Fraunhofer and Leibniz institutes, and the United Nations University. Bonn is the only UN city in Germany with 20 UN commissions working towards the “Sustainable Development Goal Agenda”.

On a wider scale, the University of Bonn is part of an excellent regional research network including the Research Center Jülich and strong university partners in the Rhineland region (Cologne and Aachen). The University of Bonn also works together with leading international universities. The attractiveness of the University for international researchers is reflected by the leading position assumed by the University of Bonn in a number of rankings.

With the Bonn Research Alliance (BORA) the University of Bonn has established a further network that integrates a number of non-university partners in the city. BORA serves to sharpen the research profile of the city, provide support for early-career researchers and improve the local research infrastructure, thereby adding to the development of the University and augmenting the development of Bonn as a location of research.

The International Choir performs at the the University's 200 year jubilee in the former plenary hall.
The International Choir performs at the the University's 200 year jubilee in the former plenary hall. © Volker Lannert/Uni Bonn

International Networks

Led by the conviction that international exchange enriches the quality and effectiveness of our research, the University of Bonn has identified the internationalization of its activities across the board as a central priority. An open and intercultural approach is reflected in both everyday university operations and a range of strategic partnerships and specialist networks between individual research areas and a multiplicity of international partners.

Playing host to some 5,500 students from over 130 various nations, the University makes a special contribution to the international flair of the city of Bonn. International researchers coming to Germany through programs such as the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation prize the University of Bonn as host institution.

Highlights of our international research networks:

  • GlobalMathNetwork together with École Normale Supérieure (Paris), Kyoto University, New York University, and Peking University 
  • European Doctoral Program in Quantitative Economics together with Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Barcelona), European University Institute (Florence), London School of Economics, Université Catholique de Louvain, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (Paris), and Tel Aviv University as an EDP exchange partner.
  • TAKeOFF – Tackling the Obstacles of Filariasis and Podoconiosis Disease Control together with LMU München, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology / Kumasi Center for Collaborative Research (Ghana), National Institute for Medical Research (Tansania), and University of Buea (Kamerun).
  • PARI – Program of Accompanying Research for Agricultural Innovation together with the University of Hohenheim, Technical University Munich, the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), the African Growth and Development Policy Modeling Consortium (AGRODEP) and partners in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria, Togo, Tunisia and Zambia. 
  • European Cultures - European Identity together with Université Paris Sorbonne, Università degli Studi di Firenze, University of St. Andrews, Université Toulouse, Universidad de Salamanca, Uniwersytet Warszawski, Université Fribourg, University of Sofia and University of Irvine. 

Partner Universities

We have established cooperation agreements with a large number of universities throughout the world, a number of which have developed into especially close strategic partnerships. The University has moved to establish France, Ghana, Great Britain, Israel, Japan, the Netherlands and the USA as strategic priorities. A special focus of our international work rests on the “Global South”. The University of Bonn is also associated with some 300 further partner universities within the scope of the ERASMUS program.

Global Network Officially Launched

Emory University (USA), the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel), the University of Bonn (Germany), the University of St Andrews (UK) and Waseda University (Japan) have signed a joint Memorandum of Understanding, laying the foundation for collaboration within their Global Network. The aim of the newly formed network is to foster multilateral collaboration among the partners in three core areas: education, research, leadership and innovation.


The electoral palace in the city center from a bird's eye view in fisheye optics.
© Volker Lannert/Uni Bonn

Regional Networks

The University is part of a number of strong regional networks with universities and research institutions :

  • ABCD-J: We maintain vibrant networks within the science region of the Rhineland. The rectorates of the universities of Aachen, Bonn, Cologne and Düsseldorf (ABCD) consult regularly to explore cooperation possibilities and to coordinate future plans. This has resulted in joint third-party funded projects and in multilateral cooperation that includes the Research Center Jülich, such as the Bioeconomy Science Center (BioSC) and the West German Genome Center.
  • German U15: An association of 15 research-focused German universities with a comprehensive subject range. The goal of the association is to represent common interests in the German science system.
  • Frankfurt-Mainz: In addition to the close cooperation within the Rhineland area, we have multilateral cooperation with the Universities of Mainz and Frankfurt. This research partnership benefits especially in the small-subjects areas and immuno-sciences.

Local Networks 

Students and researchers in Bonn profit from a variety of local networks:

Bonn Research Alliance (BORA)

n 2018, the University of Bonn initiated the Bonn Research Alliance (BORA) with a large number of local non-university partners located in Bonn. BORA serves to enhance our research profile, helps support junior researchers and improves infrastructure, thus enabling the University of Bonn to develop and Bonn to grow as a major research site.

BORA Partners

  • Fraunhofer Institute for Algorithms and Scientific Computing (SCAI)
  • Fraunhofer Institute for Communication, Information Processing and Ergonomics (FKIE)
  • Fraunhofer Institute for Intelligent Analysis and Information Systems (IAIS)
  • German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Helmholtz Association
  • Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change, Research Museum Koenig
  • Max Planck Institute for Collective Goods
  • Max Planck Institute for Mathematics (MPIM)
  • Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior – caesar
  • Max Planck Institute for Radioastronomy (MPIFR)
  • Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (BICC)
  • German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS)
  • United Nations University, Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS)

70

Partner universities on six continents

130+

Nationalities

300+

ERASMUS partner universities

Alumni-Network
© Uni Bonn

Alumni Network

The University of Bonn Alumni Network and the associated Alumni Portal provides a networking platform for all previous members of the University - students, teachers, members of staff and visiting researchers alike. The portal enables its users to network in various specialist groups, meet other alumni in national and regional groups or track down old friends. 

The Universitätsgesellschaft Bonn

The Universitätsgesellschaft - Freunde, Förderer, Alumni e.V. is one of the oldest university friends’ associations and celebrated its 100th jubilee in 2017. Since its foundation in 1907, the 2000-member Universitätsgesellschaft provides supplementary funding to the research and teaching activities of the University of Bonn. The society provides a way for members to stay in touch with their university.

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Our Research Profile 

The research conducted at the University of Bonn is performed under excellent conditions.

Our Vision

Find out more about the values of the University of Bonn. 

Degree Programs 

The University of Bonn provides a diverse teaching curriculum from Agricultural Sciences to Traffic Psychology.

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