For the first time in 30 years, a university other than Oxford and Cambridge, and from Scotland at that, is ranked number one in the British university ranking. Founded in 1413, the University of St Andrews is the oldest university in Scotland and is one of the most renowned universities in the world. The cooperation agreement with Bonn has been in place since 2018 and provides for extensive cooperation in research, studies and administration.
Rector Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Michael Hoch warmly congratulates the Scottish partner university: "We have known for a long time that our students and researchers find quite excellent conditions for study, research and intellectual exchange in St Andrews. We are pleased with the University of St Andrews that this is now also reflected in the current ranking and congratulate them very warmly."
The University of Bonn is linked to St Andrews in particular through the joint degree programme "German and Comparative Literature", in which students study one year each in Bonn and at the University of St Andrews and which leads to a double degree (Master of Arts, Bonn, and Master of Letters, St Andrews). Students of other subjects can also benefit from the excellent study conditions at St Andrews through exchange agreements, which have been funded through the Erasmus programme in the past and will continue in other forms in the future.
Both universities also work closely together in the area of training young academics and in research: Currently, seven doctoral students with projects in the humanities and natural sciences are doing their doctorates in jointly supervised doctoral programmes. Joint research projects can be funded through the "Collaborative Research Grant" set up by both universities - currently two projects in German Studies and Human Genetics, funded since 2020, are already underway. The cooperation is to be further expanded and deepened in the coming years, for example through the regular exchange of administrative staff. A bilateral "Strategic Board" sets the course for further cooperation in annual meetings.