On 17 April 1980, the then President of the University, Prof. Dr Hans-Dietrich Raapke (left), signed the first co-operation agreement with a foreign university, the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen (Netherlands).

For medical students, the exchange can be part of their degree programme. But students on the Water and Coastal Management degree programme can also complete their degree at both universities. Whether it's for your studies or for leisure, Groningen is well worth a visit. However, our university not only has particularly close ties with the Netherlands, but also with South Africa.

Nelson Mandela University (NMU) in Gqeberha is our second strategic partner university. This co-operation has existed since 16 April 1998 and focuses on educational sciences, for example internationalisation and diversity in everyday school life. There is also close cooperation in educational research, marine sciences, higher education research, digitalisation and sustainability research.

For student teachers, there is the DAAD-funded Internationalising Teacher Education programme, in which the University of Groningen and the NMU are also involved. Digital workshops and lesson studies are organised here. Topics include inclusion, multilingualism and diversity.

The University of Oldenburg also cooperates closely with both universities in research, for example on medical topics and healthcare issues. There are also currently several joint projects in linguistics, history, cultural studies and musicology. You can find out more about the internationalisation of the University of Oldenburg here.