Support for international visiting researchers

Promotion of the initiation and implementation of scientific cooperation projects in research and teaching with the aim of sustainability.

Promotion of new as well as existing cooperations to strengthen Lower Saxony as a science base.

• More information
• Homepage

The DAAD supports longer-term guest lectureships by foreign scientists in the context of teaching stays at German universities. The aim is to internationalize German universities and strengthen the international dimension in teaching. The program applies to all German universities, to all subjects and to academics from all regions of the world.

(a) Enhancement/complementation of teaching topics and teaching methodology:

• teaching programs with a specific professional or intercultural added value (for example, common law in jurisprudence, teaching of intercultural topics, development of new interdisciplinary educational profiles, regional studies),
• opening or cultivating a dialogue in partnership with non-European cultures,
• introduction of new teaching methods, for example problem-based instead of topic-based learning, and
• foreign-language subject teaching by native speakers (not pure language teaching).

(b) Support for international study programs and forms of cooperation:

• Guest lecturing as part of international bachelor's and master's degree programs,
• exchange of teaching staff ("Teaching Staff Mobility") within the framework of partnership and student exchange programs,
• research-related teaching in graduate and doctoral studies.

1. The initiative for a guest lectureship comes from the German university. The university makes the arrangements with the candidates in advance of the application and checks their suitability for the intended teaching activity. The German university is also responsible for the content of the guest lectureship and the organizational implementation of the project.

2. In addition to extensive teaching experience, foreign guest lecturers must be convincing in their scientific qualifications (minimum requirement is a doctorate or a degree comparable to a doctorate). In the field of music and art, artistic qualifications are decisive. As a rule, candidates must belong to a foreign university and be foreign citizens. In exceptional cases, Germans may also be considered, provided they are firmly established in the foreign higher education system and have their permanent residence abroad. The proposed guest lecturers should still be in active university service and, as a rule, have not yet reached the retirement age applicable here when they begin their teaching activities in Germany.

3. The German university ensures that the teaching activities of the guest lecturers are integrated into the regular curriculum. The assignment should mainly take place in the compulsory and elective areas and the courses must lead to creditable study and examination achievements. It is desirable to offer courses in foreign languages. The teaching load does not have to correspond fully to the regular teaching load of a German university lecturer, but should be close to it. At universities, at least six semester hours per week (6 SWS) of independent teaching must be offered, at universities of applied sciences 10 SWS. In the case of joint courses with German colleagues, only the teaching actually provided by the guest lecturers can be counted as teaching load.

Funding is available for longer-term guest lectureships.

• The funding period:
  • for individual grants (Model A): three months to a maximum of two years (initially 1 year with subsequent option to extend,
  • for guest professorships (model B): up to four years.
• Within the framework of guest chairs, shorter teaching stays (at least six weeks) of individual lecturers may also take place in exceptional cases, e.g. for the purpose of holding block courses.

    It is assumed that the foreign guest lecturers will only stay at the German university for a limited period of time.

1. Own contribution of the German university to a guest lectureship:

• In the case of individual funding (Model A), an appropriate infrastructure must be provided for the guest lectureship, which includes, for example, the following services: Office room with communication and computer equipment, use of secretarial services, assignment of a student/scientific assistant, material resources, access authorization for copier and library, access to research equipment. This infrastructure must be detailed in the university's proposal. An additional financial contribution of the university to the salary of the guest lecturers (within the scope of approx. 20% of the salary costs) will be considered as a positive criterion in the selection process.
• In the case of visiting professorships (Model B), due to the long-term nature of the funding commitment, in addition to the provision of infrastructure, a financial contribution of 30% to the salary of the visiting professors is required.

2.The German university supports the guest lecturers in preparing their teaching activities and entry into Germany. During their stay, it also supports the academic integration of the guest lecturers and promotes their social integration as well.

3. German universities are encouraged to extend the impact of a guest lectureship beyond that of the university. This should be done by at least one public and high-profile event involving the media. It is recommended that the guests also be made known in specialist circles outside their own university.

Model A - Individual Funding

Funding is provided for individual guest lectureships of foreign university, who teach at a German university for a limited period of time. The content profile of the guest lectureship in terms of teaching and research should correspond to that of a regular professorship. The guest's teaching program and his/her concrete contribution to the internationalization of teaching must be specified in the university's application. The duration of the teaching activity is a minimum of three months and a maximum of two years.

Model B - Guest Chairs

A guest chair ("position") is funded as a structure-building measure with the help of which the internationalization of a study program is to be made possible and consolidated. This model is suitable, among other things, when a newly established course of study requires a longer-term guarantee of the course offerings and this requires the use of alternating scientists due to the range of subjects. The maximum funding period for a guest chair is four years.

When applying for a guest chair, the course of study, its innovative and international aspects, its particular attractiveness and the integration of the guest chair into the course of study must be explained in detail. To clarify the intention, the guest chair should bear a name.

The decision on the overall concept is made by a DAAD selection committee. In addition, an advisory board is set up at the inviting university to oversee the guest chair and decide on appointments. This advisory board should include two representatives of the university, a personality from local business or the media, and a DAAD expert reviewer.

As with individual funding, the funding period for individual guest lecturers on guest chairs is between three months and two years. In addition, in exceptional cases, guest professors may be invited for short teaching blocks of at least six weeks. Due to the long-term nature of the funding commitment, the German university must contribute 30% of the salary costs of the guest lecturers for all funding measures.

1. Compensation of guest lecturers:

1. in the case of individual funding (Model A / duration of the lectureship 3 to 24 months), the following will be funded by the DAAD:

   • the gross monthly salary of the guest lecturer and

   • the university's employer's contribution to pension and unemployment insurance (maximum 13% of the contribution assessment limit).

   • Remuneration is based on the W pay scale (W-Besoldung) for university lecturers, on the TVöD-L or on special lump-sum payments by the universities for visiting scientists. For classification purposes, the German university clarifies the status of the guest lecturer at the respective home university. Home salaries remain free of charge. If the university contributes to the salary of the visiting lecturer, the DAAD funding is reduced accordingly.

2. in case of a guest chair (model B) the following will be funded by the DAAD:

   • 70% of salary costs for single lectureships from 3 to 24 months (see above)

   • Aufenthaltskosten (Tages-/ Monatssätze) und ein Honorar für die Lehre von EUR 70,00 pro Unterrichtsstunde (inklusive Vor- und Nachbereitung) bis zu einem Kostenanteil von 70% bei Kurzaufenthalten von mindestens sechs Wochen.

     The DAAD rates for study visits of foreign scientists are used as a basis for the subsistence costs (see subsistence rates / fee rates (model B) for short stays).

2. Additional DAAD benefits for the guest lecturer (Model A and B):

• Health insurance subsidy

  • In the case of a health insurance relation of the guest lecturer (statutory or private), which fulfills the requirements of the Social Security Code § 5 in terms of the scope of benefits, the DAAD will provide a subsidy, which the German host university will reimburse to the guest lecturer. This subsidy for health insurance corresponds to 50% of the funds actually spent by the guest lecturer for health insurance, but only to a maximum of the employer's contribution up to 50% of the average maximum amount of the statutory health insurance applicable for the standard tariff. The maximum DAAD subsidy for the employer's contribution to health insurance, if approved, is currently EUR 261.00 and, if approved, will be shown in the financing plan for the grant agreement.

    "Grants" cannot be awarded.

  • In the case of short stays of at least 6 weeks (only within the framework of the funding of visiting professorships) or other proven health insurance coverage for the time of the guest lectureship in Germany, the DAAD grants a reduced monthly subsidy for the employer's contribution to the health insurance in the amount of currently EUR 130,50.

• Mobility and travel expenses during the stay in Germany

  • The so-called mobility allowance is intended to cover the costs incurred by the visiting lecturer when attending conferences and congresses abroad or when visiting colleagues. However, the lump sum can only be granted in the case of a guest lectureship lasting at least one full semester. If this is the case, the guest lecturer can be paid a lump sum of EUR 500.00 per semester by the German host university, provided that the guest lecturer can prove to the German host university that he/she will attend a congress or visit a professional colleague.

• International travel and baggage expenses

  • The guest lecturer receives a flat-rate travel allowance and a flat-rate baggage allowance. The flat rates are country-specific and are intended to cover both costs for travel from the home country to Germany and for the return trip to the home country. Please contact Unit 511 for the applicable rates.

  • In the case of guest lectureships lasting at least two full semesters, travel and luggage costs of accompanying family members (spouse and/or underage children) for the entry from the home country to Germany as well as for the return journey to the home country are also compensated by lump sums. If the spouse and/or minor children remain in the home country during the two full semesters of the guest lectureship, the guest lecturer is entitled to a flat-rate travel allowance (excluding baggage costs) for an interim trip home. Please contact Unit 511 for the applicable rates.

• Workshops and conferences

  • Events that take place in direct connection with and in the course of the guest lectureship at the German university can be financially supported by the DAAD. For this purpose, a concrete program and cost plan with information on the group of participants must be submitted to the DAAD. The maximum funding amount per project is EUR 3.000,00.

Applications for funding of a visiting lectureship/chair consist of

• Application form
• Financing plan of the German host university
• Justification of the application (attachment)
• Description of the content of the courses to be taught by the guest lecturer (Model A) or
• Description of the subject-specific/international profile of the guest lecturer and course of studies (model B) (attachment)
• Curriculum vitae and list of publications of the proposed candidate (attachment)