The Franco-German University (DFH) is an international law institution with its own legal personality, founded in 1997 by Germany and France and financed on a parity basis. Its mission is primarily to initiate, evaluate and financially support Franco-German Degree programmes. A wide range of disciplines are represented, from engineering, humanities and social sciences to natural sciences, law, Business Administration and Economics, and teacher education.
The programs are offered by a network of 186 universities, universities of applied sciences and grandes écoles in more than 100 German and French cities. Currently, more than 6,500 students and around 500 doctoral students participate in the DFH-sponsored collaborations. There is no comparable binational project in the world.
German and French students complete the integrated Degree programmes together in both university systems. They learn different scientific teaching methods, communicate in the language of the partner country and immerse themselves in its culture.
This high degree of integration distinguishes the DFH's integrated binational Degree programmes from simple exchange programmes or stays abroad. The basis is a joint curriculum developed by German and French university lecturers. The offer includes both undergraduate and postgraduate Degree programmes, which find their continuation in Franco-German doctoral colleges and thematic summer schools in the field of research. The DFH provides financial support for the Degree programmes and Doctoral Colleges cooperating under its umbrella and pays monthly mobility allowances to students and doctoral candidates during their phase in the partner country.
The quality of the Degree programmes is guaranteed by the DFH's rigorous evaluation process, which involves independent reviewers and the DFH's equally independent Scientific Advisory Board. Only Degree programmes that meet the DFH quality criteria are accepted. Degree programmes and programs are re-evaluated every four years.
The more than 1,500 graduates who complete their DFH studies each year are highly educated in their field, multilingual, interculturally competent and well equipped for the international job market. Unlike traditional stay abroad programs, they have completed half of their studies in a mixed group in the partner country and thus know the partner country's study system like their own. The DFH's Degree programmes are Franco-German; however, the acquisition of English language skills also plays a role. Often, a stay in a third country is also possible as part of the program. In this way, students are well prepared for an international work environment.
The DFH has a dual presidency of president and vice-president. One of them comes from the German university system, the other from the French university system. They are elected for four years and swap offices after two years. Thus, there is always one French and one German member of the presidium. The university management is completed by a full-time Secretary General. He heads the Franco-German secretariat team in Saarbrücken, right on the French border.
