Belarus – proactive partner of the German Academic Exchange Service

Since 1992 within exchange program there was provided financing for 3 500 Belarusians.

Finken noted the growth of those interested in summer school attached to German Universities this year. According to him, the “DAAD-career” – education or research work in the FRG - usually starts from such courses. He also noted that most of the Belarusian scholarship holders are from Minsk, the regions are poorly represented. The main sphere of interests of the Belarusian participants is economics.

Gebhardt Weiss, the ambassador of the FRG, noted in his speech at the meeting the importance of science for the development of society. In his opinion, those Belarusians, who raise the level of their skills, who study or make scientific researches abroad, are “considerable capital for the country.” The diplomat hopes that German scholarships not only in economic sciences will be of interest, but exchange will be established in all spheres, particularly such important spheres for the humanity, as preservation of the environment. 

Thomas Pral, the head of the DAAD representative office in Moscow, underlined that the quantity of the scholarships given in Belarus is “not a present, but the evidence of the high level of the education of the Belarusians“. Pral informed about the positive experience of participation of Germany in the Bologna process (the process of the harmonization of the educational systems of the EU countries) and said that he hopes that Belarus, one of the few European countries, that do not take part in it, “will not think of it incredulously”.

In his turn, the chief pro-rector of the BNTU Vladimir Solomakho noted that the Bologna process is oriented not on the increase of the quality of education, but on developing academic mobility. According to him, the Belarusians “need time to comprehend”. “Yes, we do not have oil, but we have scientific potential – these are not Nobel Prize Laureates, but they are the product of high quality. We are interested in developing this product, not loosing the pedagogical school we possess”- said Solomakho. At the same time he underlined the importance of the Bologna process, and its necessity.

The chief pro-rector of the BNTU also noted that in the beginning, the collaboration with DAAD was of humanitarian and geographical nature, but now it represents professional interests of the Belarusian scholarship holders. The level of the contacts with German Universities and scientific research institutes has also increased lately. 

This year it in Minsk there was the third meeting of the former DAAD scholarship holders. Within the meeting there was arranged an informational presentation of the German companies and Belarusian-German joint ventures, that operate in Belarus, there were presented the programs of this German Exchange Service for the students of the upper division and for the graduates of the Belarusian universities, as well as for the former scholarship holders.

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