In summer 2016, German Federal and State Governments agreed upon a follow-up programme to the Excellence Initiative – the so-called “Excellence Strategy” (ExStra).

The programme comprises two funding lines that are intended to be applied for consecutively:

1. Clusters of Excellence for project-based funding of internationally competitive fields of research at universities or university consortia.

2. Universities of Excellence to strengthen universities in the long term and to expand their leading international position in research, either as individual institutions or as university consortia.

An application for the title of “University of Excellence” can only be submitted if at least two Clusters of Excellence have been approved at a university, or at least three at a university consortium.

The Excellence Strategy is the follow-up programme to the Excellence Initiative.

Initially announced in Germany in 2005/06, the Excellence Initiative of the German Federal and State Governments is a funding programme to promote science and research at German universities. It was replaced in 2017/18 by the Excellence Strategy. Funding under the Excellence Strategy began on 1 November 2019.

The Excellence Initiative funding programme was launched jointly by the German Federal and State Governments in 2005 in order to strengthen Germany as a science location in the long term, improve its international competitiveness and make top-level university research more visible.

The competition pursued these strategic objectives in three project-related funding lines:

1. Graduate Schools for the promotion of early career researchers
2. Clusters of Excellence for the promotion of top-level research
3. Institutional Strategies for the project-related expansion of top-level university research

Only those universities that were successful in all three funding lines were permitted to have the title of “University of Excellence”. In the final funding phase from 2012 to 2017, these included TU Dresden and ten other universities in Germany.

The Excellence Strategy funding programme was adopted in 2016 by the German Federal and State Governments to succeed the Excellence Initiative, with the aim of further strengthening universities by promoting top scientific performance and continuing as well as enhancing co-operation and the development of profiles. It is intended to carry on the momentum and the successful development achieved through the Excellence Initiative.

In the Excellence Strategy, the funding lines have been reduced from three to two:

1. Clusters of Excellence
2. Universities of Excellence

The Graduate Schools funding line will not being continued as part of the Excellence Strategy since Graduate Schools have increasingly been integrated into the regular structures of universities.

In contrast to the Excellence Initiative, which had a time limit on it (final programme phase from 2012 to 2017), the Excellence Strategy will run for an indefinite period of time. However, this does not mean that successful universities will now receive permanent funding.

Every seven years – starting in 2025/26 – the future Universities of Excellence will have to undergo an evaluation. This will determine whether the conditions for funding are still being met, i.e. every seven years, the Universities of Excellence must

• be successful once again in the joint and open competition of the first funding line with at least two or three Clusters of Excellence and
• subject themselves to an evaluation intended to check whether the overarching funding criteria are still being met

In 2017, the Excellence Strategy was endowed with 80 million euro and from 2018, will be endowed with a total of 533 million euro annually. 75 per cent of the funds are provided by the Federal Government, 25 per cent by the Federal state where the individual universities have their seats.

As was the case with the Excellence Initiative, the Excellence Strategy is also implemented by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the German Council of Science and Humanities (WR), with the DFG responsible for the Clusters of Excellence funding line, and the WR for the Universities of Excellence funding line.

The funding decision is made by the Excellence Commission. It consists of a Committee of Experts with 39 members and the federal and state ministers responsible for science.

Based on the recommendations of the Committee of Experts, the Excellence Commission makes the decisions regarding the funding of Clusters of Excellence and Universities of Excellence.

In doing so, the members of the Committee of Experts and the state ministers have one vote each, whereas the federal minister has sixteen votes. This corresponds to 39 votes for the Committee of Experts and 32 votes for the state representatives. Thus, the scientific community has the majority of votes in the Excellence Commission.

The internationally staffed Committee of Experts consists of 39 renowned researchers from a variety of scientific fields. These experts also have many years of experience on the international stage as well as in university management, academic teaching and the economy.

The members of the Committee of Experts are jointly put forward by the Senate of the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the Scientific Commission of the German Council of Science and Humanities (Wissenschaftsrat, WR), and then appointed by the Joint Science Conference (GWK). The Chair of the WR and the President of the DFG are members of the Committee of Experts without voting rights and they chair the Committee.

The Excellence Initiative projects ran until October 2017 and continued with bridge or completion funding until the start of new funding under the Excellence Strategy as of 1 November 2019.

At TU Dresden this affects

• the Graduate School Dresden International Graduate School for Biomedicine and Bioengineering (DIGS-BB)
• the two Clusters of Excellence Center for Advancing Electronics Dresden (cfaed) and Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD)
• and the Institutional Strategy “The Synergetic University”

The funding line of the Graduate Schools is not being continued under the Excellence Strategy because they are increasingly being integrated into the regular structures of universities. However, funding of early career researchers will play a crucial role in future Clusters of Excellence and Universities of Excellence. In addition, the Research Training Groups of the German Research Foundation (DFG) will continue to provide funding opportunities for doctoral programmes with a thematic focus.

All universities benefit if Germany is acknowledged as an internationally competitive and outstanding science location. As a rule, additionally funded positions also mean an additional range of courses for students.

The Excellence Strategy also provides diverse funding opportunities designed to support universities in building both specialist and strategic profiles. In addition to research, these profiles can also incorporate areas such as research-oriented teaching.

Moreover, the Federal Government supports teaching with other specially targeted measures. For additional first-semester students, the Federal Government is making over 20 billion euro available in the shape of the “Higher Education Pact 2020” from 2007 to 2023. The “Quality Pact for Teaching” provides a further 2 billion euro in federal funds for the improvement of university teaching.

• 21 February 2018: TUD submits six proposals for Clusters of Excellence
• 27 September 2018: three out of six TUD Cluster applications approved
• 10. Dezember 2018: TUD submits application "TUD 2028 - Synergy and Beyond" for the title "University of Excellence"
• 1 January 2019: funding start for Clusters of Excellence
• 20/21 February 2019: on-site inspection at TUD by international reviewers
• 19 July 2019: TU Dresden defends its Excellence title (11 universities selected out of 19 applications)
• 1 November 2019: funding start for "Universities of Excellence"

Every seven years, the Universities of Excellence will be assessed within the framework of an evaluation procedure and, if the assessment is favourable and the formal funding requirements are met (i.e. the necessary minimum number of Clusters of Excellence), funding will continue (see question 25).

Universities not yet funded by the programme can apply within the framework of a new call for proposals. In addition to the eleven Universities of Excellence that will exist by then, a maximum of four further universities can receive funding as Universities of Excellence (see question 26).

88 Cluster projects were selected from a total of 195 proposals to compete in the final round of proposals for the Clusters of Excellence funding line.

The 88 selected proposals came from 41 universities in 13 federal states. Around 40 per cent of the projects were linked to Clusters of Excellence that already received funding under the previous Excellence Initiative; some 60 per cent have been newly developed for the Excellence Strategy competition.

The cluster projects that have been selected for funding were announced on 27 September 2018. Since 1 January 2019, 57 cluster projects at 34 universities have been funded. At TU Dresden, three Clusters of Excellence have been approved.

Experience shows that the topics are so exciting and the scientists involved so energetic that, after a short “period of mourning”, alternative funding formats can usually be found for these projects.

The aim of the Clusters of Excellence is to establish internationally visible and competitive research and training institutions at German university locations and, in doing so, to facilitate the networking and co-operation that are so vital to science.

The Clusters of Excellence are intended to be an important component of the strategic and thematic planning of universities, to significantly enhance their profile and to encourage prioritisation, while at the same time creating excellent funding and career conditions for early career researchers.

Consequently, Clusters of Excellence serve the project-based funding of internationally competitive research fields in universities or university consortia.

57 Clusters of Excellence at 34 universities have been selected for funding. TU Dresden was successful with three out of six cluster proposals.

• Excellence of research and of the participating scientists in their individual thematic field of research
• Scientific excellence and coherence of the research concept for the development of the thematic research field, for interdisciplinary collaboration and for international networking
• Research that is distinct, original and willing to take risks
• Coherence and quality of the promotion of early career researchers
• Quality of concepts for professional personnel development and for equal opportunities in science
• Quality of the strategic development concept for the organisation and further development of the Cluster of Excellence (governance) and compatibility of this development strategy with that of the university or the consortium
• If applicable, the capacities of the partners involved and coherence and quality of the co-operation concept on the basis of binding agreements
•  If applicable, the quality of the proposed measures for research-orientated teaching in the thematic research field (with special focus on imparting good scientific practice)
• If applicable, quality of the proposed measures for the transfer of ideas and knowledge
• if applicable, quality of the proposed measures for the use of research infrastructure

The German Research Foundation (DFG) regularly publishes an open call for proposals for Clusters of Excellence every seven years. The call for proposals for new Clusters of Excellence is made in two stages (draft proposals and full proposals), and in a single stage for the continuation of a Cluster of Excellence (full proposals only).

First, draft proposals are assessed by panels of experts. Based on the findings, the Committee of Experts (see questions 4 and 5) decides in which Clusters of Excellence are to be invited to submit full proposals. Full proposals for new Clusters of Excellence and for continuing Clusters of Excellence will also be assessed by panels of experts. The Committee of Experts will then make a recommendation for new and renewed proposals on the basis of scientific assessments.

The Commission of Excellence (see question 4) will make its decisions concerning the proposals on the basis of these recommendations.

Principally, the funding period for each Cluster of Excellence lasts for two seven-year periods; new proposals are possible, and these can also be from the same thematic field of research.

The university allowance is additional strategy funding that universities with Clusters of Excellence can receive to strengthen their governance and strategic orientation. The University Executive Board decides on how it is to be used.

Only universities that have been successful with one or more proposals for Clusters of Excellence can receive the university allowance. To achieve this, the Cluster proposals will have contained a compact presentation of the strategic goals of the university, which was then checked for plausibility as part of the expert evaluation of the Clusters of Excellence.

The university allowance per Cluster of Excellence amounts to a maximum of 1 million euro per year.

If several Clusters of Excellence are located at one university, the university allowance is 1 million euroannually for the first Cluster of Excellence, 750,000 euro for the second and 500,000 euro for each additional Cluster of Excellence.

For three Clusters, the maximum allowance therefore amounts to 2.25 million euro per year.

Yes, in the case of a university consortium, the university allowance per Cluster of Excellence is distributed proportionately among the consortium partners.

No, in the event of receiving funding as a University of Excellence, the university allowance is considered to be covered by this second funding line and is no longer available. This means that the activities financed by the university allowance must be taken into account in the financial plan of the University of Excellence proposal.

The Universities of Excellence funding line serves to strengthen universities or consortia of universities as institutions, and to expand their leading international position in research on the basis of successful Clusters of Excellence.

To be eligible for funding as a University of Excellence, at least two Clusters of Excellence need to have been approved at the same university, or at least three in the same consortium. Success in the competitive process is also necessary. Within the framework of a science-led selection procedure, previous excellent research achievements and a strategic overall concept that is related to the institutions are decisive evaluation criteria.

Starting in 2019, the German Federal and State Governments will provide a total of 148 million euro annually for eleven universities or university consortia.

Depending on each proposal, annual funding sums of between 10 and 15 million euro for proposals from individual universities and between 15 and 28 million euro for university consortia are planned.

A maximum of four new recipients of funding can be admitted in 2026 (see question 26).

• previous excellent research achievements of the applicant university or consortium, assessed during the evaluation according to parameters of scientific performance with the transparent inclusion of available statistical data (e.g. third-party funding, research awards, DFG Funding Atlas, performance in the previous rounds of the Excellence Initiative)
• coherence and quality of a strategic overall concept that is related to the institutions, including statements on, among other things, the following
• governance of the university or of the partners involved;
• research-orientated teaching;
• use of research infrastructure;
• attracting the world's leading scientists and scholars as part of an appointment and recruitment strategy or a joint appointment and recruitment strategy
• personnel development and equal opportunities

Further criteria are

• structural added value and institutional maturity
• existence of a critical mass necessary for the further expansion of top-level research at international level
• quality of the concept to achieve a lasting ability to renew and to maintain the innovative capacity of the University of Excellence
• a leading international position and visibility; international networking; the supraregional importance of the University of Excellence

The Committee of Experts, composed of a total of 39 renowned scientists (see questions 4 and 5), made recommendations regarding the proposals based on scientific assessments in the form of an on-site evaluation at the universities. The Commission of Excellence (see question 4) refered to these recommendations when making its decisions regarding the proposals.

The on-site evaluation at TU Dresden ­took place on 20 and 21 February 2019.

Every seven years, Universities of Excellence will be subject to a selective evaluation which is organised by the Council of Science and Humanities (WR) and assessed by the Committee of Experts (see questions 4 and 5).

In particular, this evaluation will examine whether the conditions for Excellence funding are still being met, meaning that every seven years the Universities of Excellence must

• be successful once again in the joint and open competition of the first funding line with at least two or three Clusters of Excellence and
• be subject to an evaluation to assess whether the overarching funding criteria are still being met

The results of the evaluation will be presented to the Commission of Excellence (see question 4).

If the conditions are still being met, then funding will continue. If the evaluation produces a negative result, the university or the university consortium will have their funding removed by way of a degressive completion funding, limited to a maximum of three years.

Yes, because on 16 June 2016, the Federal Chancellor and the heads of the State Governments already approved a second selection round for four new proposals in seven years’ time.

Regardless of this, the following applies: if a university or consortium stops being funded or funds become otherwise available, the Commission of Excellence (see question 4) will approve a call for new proposals by the Council of Science and Humanities (WR).

The University Executive Board, following years of developmental and preparatory work involving the Deans and Chairpersons at the Schools, the Senate, working groups, internal and external experts and – via the Future Labs held during the first half of 2018 – the interested university public.

The Council of Science and Humanities (WR) expected already existing Universities of Excellence to set out in their proposals how they intend to continue developing their Institutional Strategy, which has been funded since 2012 or even longer. In this respect, the conception of the current proposal was not based on “blue sky thinking” but on the essential features of the Institutional Strategy “The Synergetic University”. The priority was therefore to evaluate those ideas that update or add to the developmental lines described in it.

The competition for Excellence is about visibility and scope:

Universities of Excellence are nationally and internationally more visible on account of this label, which certifies both scientific and organisational excellence. Such universities are in the spotlight of the competition for the best minds, for exciting collaborations and the safeguarding of their continued existence.

The financial resources of the Excellence programmes open up scope for tackling the new, or for expanding the tried and tested.

No, the requirements for studying successfully are not related to the title of “University of Excellence”. What will result are even more opportunities to shape the way students study and to engage in research at an early stage.