Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - English

The Berlin University Alliance's cross-cutting theme of internationalization is linked to its ambition to intensify its network of strategic partnerships with leading universities worldwide and to promote research collaborations. In the Berlin Science Survey, researchers were therefore also asked with whom they collaborate. The results reveal a high level of collaboration within Berlin. International research collaborations are also strongly represented.

In the Berlin Science Survey 2024, the vast majority of scientists state that they collaborate with other scientists from their own field or team (84.5%) (see Figure 1). At the same time, collaborations with partners from their own university predominate (68.5%). There is also a lot of cooperation with other universities in Germany and abroad: 56% and 54% of respondents respectively stated this. At the same time, this means that when it comes to cooperation with partners at other universities, the question of regional location plays a lesser role, because a larger proportion of respondents tend to cooperate with partners from outside the region or even internationally than with partners from other universities in Berlin (39%).

At 44%, collaborations with non-university research institutions are also widespread among the respondents. In contrast to university collaborations, collaborations with non-university research institutions have a significantly stronger regional focus. Almost one-third of the respondents maintain research collaborations with non-university research institutions within the Berlin research area (see Figure 1).

Figure 1 Cooperation partners of the BUA's researchers

Slightly less frequent, at 30.9%, are research collaborations with companies, most of which are in Germany. Just under 19% of all BUA respondents cooperate with companies from the Berlin research area. Research cooperation with universities of applied sciences (UAS) is less common (9%). Cooperation with civil society actors and organisations, such as foundations, associations, organisations, NGOs and citizens, is more common (13%).

Overall, international research cooperation is already at a very high level (see Figure 2). For example, 58.7% of BUA scientists cooperate with people from abroad. By comparison, the cooperation rate for cooperation within Germany (excluding Berlin) is 66.3%. Cooperation is strongest within Berlin: at 95.4%, almost all researchers from the four BUA universities cooperate with other researchers in Berlin. These figures were already at the same level in the pilot survey, so it was not to be expected that they would rise within two years.

Figure 2 Collaboration partners aggregated over region, over time

Overall, the figures indicate that Berlin's research community already has a high capacity for cooperation: cooperation relationships within the BUA are strong and extend beyond its boundaries. International research relationships are also well represented.

The Berlin Science Survey

The Berlin Science Survey (BSS) is a scientific trend study on cultural change in the Berlin research landscape. To this end, the Robert K. Merton Center for Science and Technology Studies at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin regularly surveys the experiences and assessments of scientists in the Berlin research area online. 2,776 female scientists in the Berlin research area took part in the most recent study. We would like to express our sincere thanks to everyone who took part in the study.

The whole report with all topics can be found here:
https://www.berlinsciencesurvey.de/en/results24/sum

The data from the 2024 wave of the BSS are available for download as a scientific use file from the HU's open-access publication server: https://doi.org/10.18452/32547