10 years BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg: Big anniversary celebration

The public and all university members are cordially invited: on July 1 in Cottbus, on July 8 in Senftenberg.

With the reestablishment of the university in 2013, the law for the restructuring of the Lusatian higher education region was implemented, which the Brandenburg state parliament had passed on February 11, 2013. Staff and students from both predecessor institutions automatically transferred to the new university, and extensive restructuring was the result: two administrative apparatuses, two faculty structures, two student bodies, two IT systems, two university libraries, three campuses and an extensive range of courses had to be merged and standardized.

"Despite all the challenges, a new beginning can always be a great opportunity," says BTU President Prof. Dr. Gesine Grande. She has led the university since October 2020 and knows that - despite or because of the restructuring - the university community has achieved a lot in the past ten years: for example, the BTU has raised 50 percent more third-party funding, has recorded steadily growing numbers of first-year students for several semesters - in contrast to the nationwide trend - counts hundreds of new academic employees and has founded two new institutes. "We are the driving force behind the development of the Lusatia Science Park, have launched the Lusatia Science Network and are proud that Cottbus has become a hotspot. The region is one of the most dynamically growing science landscapes in Germany - and the BTU is right in the middle of it, instead of just being there," explains Gesine Grande.

So the motto of the anniversary, "We want to know," fits the BTU's new beginnings: "We are curious, we are looking ahead, and we are exploring the big issues of the future that move us all," says the BTU president.

The university is celebrating all that it has achieved together with current and former employees and students, friends, sponsors and partners, families and all those who want to be part of it.

A celebration as colorful as the BTU

Under the motto "10 years - We want to know", the BTU is offering a program as colorful as itself - on the big stage, the small bouncy castle, in laboratories, studios and lecture theaters. "We're providing insights into how the BTU is researching the future, what projects students are carrying out, and what else campus life has to offer in addition to studying and teaching," says Gesine Grande, who will open the anniversary celebration in Cottbus on July 1 at 2 p.m. on the big stage and welcome the university's graduates to the central graduation ceremony from 2:15 p.m. onward. As part of the graduation ceremony , the Förderverein der BTU Cottbus Senftenberg e.V. will award prizes for the best bachelor's and master's theses from all six faculties as well as for the best dissertation at the university in 2022. There will also be a special gathering for Deutschlandstipendiat*innen as well as for alumni, i.e. all former students of the ten-year-old BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg and its predecessor institutions.

The academic highlight of the anniversary will be the ceremony at 5:30 p.m. in the Central Lecture Hall Building. In addition to the Minister President, the BTU also expects Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jörg Steinbach, founding president of the BTU and current Minister of Economics in Brandenburg, Tobias Dünow, State Secretary for Science, Marietta Tzschoppe, Mayor of Cottbus, and Andreas Pfeiffer, Mayor of Senftenberg.

The entire campus area will be used for the event, from the IKMZ and the sports field to starting block B2 with the COLab. The big stage is located on the forum, where the anniversary guests will be offered music and dance performances as well as presentations until midnight. The musical finale will be a classical concert by the Collegium Musicum and a party on top with the Randale Orchestra and DJ.

The party continues on July 8 - then on the Campus Senftenberg: www.b-tu.de/jubilaeum

EVERYTHING AT A GLANCE

THE CELEBRATION
Cottbus: Saturday, July 1, 2 p.m. to midnight

Senftenberg: Saturday, July 8, 11.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.

THE BRANDENBURG UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY COTTBUS-SENFTENBERG

New foundation:

01.07.2013 based on a resolution of the Brandenburg State Parliament of 11.02.2013.

Predecessor institutions:

• BTU Cottbus (1991), Cottbus College of Engineering (1969), College of Civil Engineering (1954), State College of Civil Engineering (1948).
• Lausitz University of Applied Sciences (2009) located in Senftenberg and Cottbus-Sachsendorf, Lausitz University of Applied Sciences (1991) Senftenberg School of Engineering (1972), Senftenberg School of Mining Engineering (1947)

Number of students (as of 12/2022):

6,800 students*, 43 percent female, 40 percent from abroad (125 countries)

Employees (as of 12/2022):

• 180 professors
• 642 teaching and research fellows, 478 of whom are financed by third-party funds
• 694 non-scientific employees, of which 87 are financed by third-party funds
• 13 trainees

Finances (as of 12/2022):

• Budget: approximately 98 million euros (basic allocation from the state)
• Third-party funding income: 51.2 million euros
• Third-party funds granted: 176.2 million euros

Faculties (6 + 1):

Faculty 1: MINT -Mathematics, Mathematics, Physics, Electrical Engineering and Information Technology
Faculty 2: Environment and Natural Sciences
Faculty 3: Mechanical Engineering, Electrical and Energy Systems
Faculty 4: Social Work, Health and Music
Faculty 5: Economics, Law and Society
Faculty 6: Architecture, Civil Engineering and Urban Planning

Furthermore, the BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg is one of the sponsoring universities of the Faculty of Health Sciences within the framework of the initiative Gesundheitscampus Brandenburg.

Profile lines:

• Global change and transformation processes
• Energy transition and decarbonization
• Health and Life Sciences
• Artificial intelligence and sensor technology

Study programs:

30 bachelor's and 32 master's degree programs

International:

• BTU is part of the European university network EUNICE - European UNIversity for Customised Education, which seven universities from Europe joined in 2020. The addition of three new partners in 2022 will strengthen the diversity of the alliance's educational, research and mobility activities.
• BTU's international cooperation network consisting of more than 220 partner universities in over 65 countries worldwide.
• Member of GATE Germany - Consortium for International Higher Education Marketing, Erasmus+ Program, National Code for the Study of Foreigners at German Universities.