Program 1: Transition partnerships with universities in the transition countries Egypt and Tunisia What is the objective of the

program? This program focuses on strengthening the transition process in the destinations Egypt and Tunisia. By the means of cooperation between universities, it aims at contributing to the sustainable structuring of the study programs at the universities in both countries. In detail, this means supporting the development of curricula or modules, the establishment of international study programs and the acknowledgement of university degrees. Consequentially, the measures are focused on the improvement and the enhancement of the teaching in the partner countries. Next to this main goal, the following secondary objectives are aimed-at: Creation of networks between German universities and their partner institutions; Further qualification of the universities concerning the studies, research, service and university management, as far as this supports the improvement of the studies; Improvement of the university- internal decision-making structures towards good university governance with special regard to the participation of the students; Stabilization of relations that allow for an institutional commitment (enabled by several years of appropriation periods).

Who can apply for the program? Only the professors of German universities can file applications for cooperation in accordance with the director of the university. Additionally, the application has to contain a well-documented and convincing letter of motivation or a memorandum of understanding concerning the aims and measures of the project, issued by the partner institution. Cooperation projects in the partner countries, especially in the fields of humanities and social sciences (e.g. political science, cultural science, law and economic science), will be funded. What will be supported? The support mainly aims at constituting long term partnerships between universities as well as the communication between professors, members of the non-professional teaching staff, graduates (e.g. doctorates) and students. Additionally, a limited amount of non-monetary resources and staff needed for the cooperation project will be funded in order to support the execution of the cooperation. The maximum funding sum usually amounts to 125.000,- per year. Only those applications that include universities in the transition countries Egypt or Tunisia as a partner can be funded. Bilateral cooperations with other Arabic countries are excluded from the program.

Trilateral or multilateral agreements with universities from Arabic ODA-countries can only be supported if the main Arabic partner is located in one of the transition countries Egypt or Tunisia. In this case, appropriate additional costs can be funded within the available resources. The following will not be supported: Applications solely concerning research cooperation, Projects that are already being supported by other institutions (e.g. DFG, BMZ, GIZ) and/ or the DAAD, Excursions and representational travels without professional background, Scholarships that solely aim at individual support and are not being granted within a partnership program.

How does the application process work? A fully filled online application has to be filed via the DAAD online portal (https://portal.daad.de). The name of the program is Transformation: Hochschulpartnerschaften. The application is supposed to be filed in accordance with the foreign partner/s. The deadline for the applications will be November 30th, 2011. In consultation with the DAAD, particular documents may be submitted at a later date. However, those documents are supposed to be submitted before the contract is signed. The support will presumably start on March 1st, 2012 with a contract period of two fiscal years (2012/ 2013). The contracts with the German universities will be concluded under private law. The duration of the project should not exceed a period of 3 years. The extension of the support for the 3rd year has to be requested again. For that application, the measures executed in the 1st and the 2nd year have to be welldocumented and accounted for. The amount of the support is restricted by the budget funds available. The application is supposed to contain the following documents: Application form (form to be found on the online portal) Financial budget (form to be found on the online portal), has to contain a detailed calculation of expenses for the intended measures in the first two fiscal periods, the calculation base of which has to be comprehensible. The funding rates of the DAAD apply (see Appendix 1). Only the expenses necessary for travels, sojourn, equipment and staff can be reimbursed. A detailed description of the project and its objectives (upload as attachment) of max. 10 pages, that contains a definite work plan as well as an action plan (timetable included) for the intended duration of the project and its funding. From those plans, the timeline, the concrete objective, the intended intermediate goals and the duration of the measures have to be derived. Endorsement of the application for the project by the university director. Please fill in the following form available on our website: Befrwortung der Hochschulleitung, get the directors signature, scan the document and submit it attached to the application.

Definite approval of the partner institution (letter of intent or memorandum of understanding) regarding the objectives and the measures of the project (upload as attachment).

Please attach the approval of the partner institution as well as the description of the project before submitting the application on the online portal. What are the DAADs criteria for choosing projects to be supported? A selection panel chosen by the DAAD will make the decision about which projects to support, the amount of funding and the extension of the funding period. This panel will consist of expert scientists who are experienced in cooperating with that region. They will base their decision on the funds available and the criteria listed below. The applications will be rated according to formal and substantial criteria with a special focus on the political relevance for the transformation process. In detail, the following criteria have been established: The academic quality of the projects and measures mentioned in the application (focus on professional cooperation in the fields of teaching, research, consulting or service as well as their contribution to the institution building at the partner universities; The intended innovative effect and the sustainable structural improvement of the teaching conditions, especially at the foreign partner universities (e.g. by means of common curriculum development, development of modules, development of joint study programs, common workshops or symposiums, passing on of experience in the constitution of centers for technological transfer and service points); Successful systematic networking with other universities or other stakeholders in the transition countries; The balance of the measures of cooperation; The integration and exchange of students and young academics into the project on both sides.

The participants of the projects will be chosen by the universities. This choice has to be similarly based on the following criteria: Professional performance, Personal aptitude (social, political, or cultural commitment, motivation for participation).

Social criteria (indigence of the applicant, plights) may only be applied if several applicants display equal levels of professional performance and personal aptitude. The result of the application process has to be documented and retained. The documentation has to be attached to the report (which is part of the source and disposition statement). Deadline: 30.11.2011