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Greetings from the Director

Dear Reader,

The Centre for Higher Education (zhb) is a unique institution in the German Higher Education System that combines research and service in one university center. In addition to the three professorships, there are five divisions that are closely linked to the research activities of the professorships. The zhb was founded in 2011 from the merger of several central academic institutions at TU Dortmund University, to which further divisions were added in 2013 and 2020.

The following research topics exist:

Prof. Dr. Liudvika Leišytė's Professorship of Higher Education conducts research on professional identity, academic entrepreneurship and higher education governance and management.

Prof. Dr. Jens Rowold's Professorship of Human Resource Development and Change Management conducts research on topics such as leadership and leadership styles, human resource development and organizational health.

Since October 2021, Prof. Dr. Johann Pongratz complements the zhb research portfolio with his professorship Complex IT Systems and Digital Infrastructures.

And at my Professorship of Organizational Studies and Management of Continuing Education, the topics of higher education research (including governance of teaching and continuing education) and organizational research (including knowledge transfer and special types of organizations) are dealt with.

The service is organized in the following five areas:

Division of Disability and Studies – DoBuS

DoBuS, under the direction of Dr Carsten Bender, is the oldest and certainly the most renowned division in the German Higher Education System that has developed and implemented concepts for the comprehensive support of impaired students (but also lecturers). The work of DoBuS has been awarded several prizes, including the Zero Project Award.

Division of Foreign Languages

All teaching in foreign languages at TU Dortmund University takes place in this area, which is headed by Dr Meni Syrou. Every year, almost 7,000 students study one of the 14 modern foreign languages offered here, German as a foreign language or Latin. Students can also learn German sign language or practice academic writing and presentation skills (for German and English) in a writing space.

Division of Academic Teaching & Faculty Development

In the area of university didactics, which is headed by Dr Katrin Stolz, the „Start in Teaching“ takes place for all new teachers. In addition to this classic introduction to the design of courses, a certificate course in higher education didactics is offered, as well as many other current events. In addition, the topics of digitalization of teaching and e-examinations have become very important and topical.

Division of Statistical Consulting and Analysis – SBAZ

Since 2020, the Division of Statistical Consulting and Analysis (SBAZ), headed by Dr Swetlana Herbrandt, has also been part of the zhb. All students and employees of TU Dortmund University can get statistical advice for their theses or projects here. Statistical support for projects is also offered for external clients.

Division of Continuing Education

All continuing education at TU Dortmund University is organized through this division under the direction of Dr Jörg Teichert. The content focuses on teacher and head teacher training (e.g. digital learning leadership), management training and additional qualifications in statistics (big data and data science).

In addition, the University Choir, directed by Heinke Kirzinger, also has its home at the zhb. Offers for personal voice training can also be found here.

We try to live this vision every day.

We would be pleased if you contact us directy if you have any questions.

Prof. Dr. Uwe Wilkesmann

Director zhb

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Location & approach

The campus of TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity is located close to interstate junction Dort­mund West, where the Sauerlandlinie A 45 (Frankfurt-Dort­mund) crosses the Ruhrschnellweg B 1 / A 40. The best interstate exit to take from A 45 is “Dort­mund-Eichlinghofen” (closer to South Cam­pus), and from B 1 / A 40 “Dort­mund-Dorstfeld” (closer to North Cam­pus). Signs for the uni­ver­si­ty are located at both exits. Also, there is a new exit before you pass over the B 1-bridge leading into Dort­mund.

To get from North Cam­pus to South Cam­pus by car, there is the connection via Vo­gel­pothsweg/Baroper Straße. We recommend you leave your car on one of the parking lots at North Cam­pus and use the H-Bahn (suspended monorail system), which conveniently connects the two campuses.

TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity has its own train station (“Dort­mund Uni­ver­si­tät”). From there, suburban trains (S-Bahn) leave for Dort­mund main station (“Dort­mund Hauptbahnhof”) and Düsseldorf main station via the “Düsseldorf Airport Train Station” (take S-Bahn number 1, which leaves every 15 or 30 minutes). The uni­ver­si­ty is easily reached from Bochum, Essen, Mülheim an der Ruhr and Duis­burg.

You can also take the bus or subway train from Dort­mund city to the uni­ver­si­ty: From Dort­mund main station, you can take any train bound for the Station “Stadtgarten”, usually lines U41, U45, U 47 and U49. At “Stadtgarten” you switch trains and get on line U42 towards “Hombruch”. Look out for the Station “An der Palmweide”. From the bus stop just across the road, busses bound for TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity leave every ten minutes (445, 447 and 462). Another option is to take the subway routes U41, U45, U47 and U49 from Dort­mund main station to the stop “Dort­mund Kampstraße”. From there, take U43 or U44 to the stop “Dort­mund Wittener Straße”. Switch to bus line 447 and get off at “Dort­mund Uni­ver­si­tät S”.

The AirportExpress is a fast and convenient means of transport from Dort­mund Airport (DTM) to Dort­mund Central Station, taking you there in little more than 20 minutes. From Dort­mund Central Station, you can continue to the uni­ver­si­ty campus by interurban railway (S-Bahn). A larger range of in­ter­na­tio­nal flight connections is offered at Düsseldorf Airport (DUS), which is about 60 kilometres away and can be directly reached by S-Bahn from the uni­ver­si­ty station.

The H-Bahn is one of the hallmarks of TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity. There are two stations on North Cam­pus. One (“Dort­mund Uni­ver­si­tät S”) is directly located at the suburban train stop, which connects the uni­ver­si­ty directly with the city of Dort­mund and the rest of the Ruhr Area. Also from this station, there are connections to the “Technologiepark” and (via South Cam­pus) Eichlinghofen. The other station is located at the dining hall at North Cam­pus and offers a direct connection to South Cam­pus every five minutes.

The facilities of TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity are spread over two campuses, the larger Cam­pus North and the smaller Cam­pus South. Additionally, some areas of the uni­ver­si­ty are located in the adjacent “Technologiepark”.

Site Map of TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity (Second Page in English).