"The idea of the university" is the focus of an international symposium hosted by School IV - School of Humanities and Social Sciences on 13 and 14 November.
What constitutes a university? To approach this question, Prof Dr Volker Berghahn from Columbia University, New York, will begin by comparing the university systems in the USA and Germany.
This will be followed by an assessment of the situation within Germany - based on arguments that already caused a great deal of controversy in the Weimar Republic. After introductory lectures on historical university ideas, a panel discussion chaired by FAZ science journalist Jürgen Kaube will bring the positions into dialogue.
The symposium will conclude with an annotated reading of Karl Jaspers' "Idea of the University" with actress Elfie Hoppe and Prof. Dr Reinhard Schulz and Prof. Dr Oliver Immel from the Institute of Philosophy at the University of Oldenburg.
Their colleagues Prof. Dr Matthias Bormuth and Prof. Dr Mark Siebel are organisers of the event. The event begins on Thursday, 13 November at 6 p.m. in Lecture Hall 3 of the Lecture Hall Centre (Building A14, Uhlhornsweg 86).