The focus of the Kolleg’s activities is the Alfried Krupp Fellows Program, which was started in 2007 and in which over 150 visiting scientists have participated. It offers outstanding scientists the possibility to carry out a larger scientific project at the Kolleg far away from their daily academic obligations.
Each year, around twelve visiting scientists (“Senior Fellows” and “Junior Fellows”) from Germany and abroad are selected after a closed call for applications in a competitive procedure and invited to come to the Kolleg for six or twelve months. The Fellows are selected primarily based on their scientific excellence and the quality of the research project proposed. Already existing and expected cooperative relationships with scientists in Greifswald are considered in the selection process.
The coupling of the Fellows Program with the University of Greifswald’s research focuses aims to level a path for national and international cooperation projects. The Fellows are also encouraged to convey their research projects, which can include almost any subject, to early career researchers and participate in the University’s teaching with lectures and seminars. At the annual selection of Fellows, importance is placed on international representation of the visiting scientists. Typically, around 30 per cent of the Fellows come from abroad, especially from Central and Eastern Europe.
The former Fellows’ connection to the Kolleg is expressed by the alumni initiative, which helps maintain regular contact with the Kolleg, e.g. with an alumni get-together that traditionally takes place in June and to which current Fellows and friends of the Kolleg are also invited.