Network Coordinator Robin Pass wants one thing: more interaction and exchange between and among the development-related postgraduate courses. He plans to talk with as many students and programme coordinators as possible – not only to build and strengthen contacts but to develop synergies among them.
Network Coordinator Robin Pass
Robin Pass’ office is currently at the TU Dortmund – in two year’s time, he’ll move it to the Ruhr Universität Bochum (RUB). Both universities offer development-related postgraduate courses. As the new DAAD-funded network coordinator Pass will keep in close contact with all 43 of the DAAD-funded programmes, with the goal of initiating joint projects and activities among them. The PhD student is no neophyte when it comes to development policy issues – he studied International Relations and Development Policy at the University of Duisburg-Essen. His studies took him to Beijing, where he interned at the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), and to the KfW Development Bank in Frankfurt am Main. After completing his Master’s degree, Pass worked as an assessor for the GIZ’s Economic and Structural Reform programme in China.
Reaping the benefits of diversity
What impresses Robin Pass about the DAAD programme is its diversity. “By bringing together a real variety of universities and disciplines, the programme covers the full range of development cooperation work – from medical programmes and forest management courses to degree programmes in political science and economics.” In the spirit of increasing the transfer of know-how, experience and contacts between the various courses, the new network coordinator welcomes ideas for cross-disciplinary workshops, from programme coordinators and students alike.
A network is nothing without pro-active participants. That is why Robin Pass is looking forward to receiving input. “Every idea counts,” he says. Pass will function as the hub for all network activities.
He is already at work with the launch of a new social networking site where students, instructors, professors and alumni can go to connect and share. Students can also use the site to access information about the individual courses of study.
To increase the external visibility of the programmes as a whole, Pass also plans to showcase the Development-Related Postgraduate Courses Network at key trade fairs and events, where he hopes to build and strengthen linkages with development cooperation organisations and the private sector.
To learn about the courses of study, check out the DAAD’s programme brochure
Contact:
Robin Pass
Technische Universität Dortmund
Fakultät Raumplanung
SPRING
August-Schmidt-Straße 6
44227 Dortmund, Germany
Campus Süd, GB I, Room 409
E-Mail: robin.pass@tu-dortmund.de
Tel.: +49/231/755-8238
