On Thursday, the Director of the School of Geology and Mining Engineering at the Mongolian University of Science and Technology (MUST), Professor Khavalbolot Kyelgyenbai, and Professor Andreas Horsch, Vice-Rector Sustainability and Communication, signed a new agreement on joint cooperation. The two universities have been cooperating since 1993 on the basis of a "friendship agreement" concluded in 1986, and the corresponding university cooperation agreement was renewed in 2023. Changes to the study and examination regulations on both sides have now made it necessary to update the joint study programme that has been in place since 2011. The new study programme in the field of Geoengineering, which has been fixed with the signatures, is called the "3+3 programme" and for the first time not only includes students from MUST, but also those from TUBAF.
"One new feature of the 3+3 programme is reciprocity," explains Katja Polanski from the International University Centre (IUZ). "Previous programmes aimed for Mongolian students to first study in Ulaanbaatar and then come to us for further studies and a degree." Now, conversely, TUBAF students can also study at MUST and obtain a degree.
3+3 stands for the planned duration of the programme participants' studies. Mongolian students start with a three-year bachelor's degree programme in Ulaanbaatar and then move on to the diploma programme in Freiberg. This takes them a further three years, as in addition to the actual degree programme, they have to acquire German language skills to at least C1 level and also complete an internship semester. This extends the duration of the programme by a further three years. At the end of the study programme, there is "a double degree", says Katja Polanski from the IUZ, "the graduates receive the German diploma, which is recognised by the MUST as a Master's degree."
In addition to language skills, prospective MUST students must also prove their subject-specific knowledge in selection interviews. Head of Studies Professor Carsten Drebenstedt from TUBAF conducts the interviews directly on site in Ulaanbaatar. "I very much welcome the fact that the new 3+3 programme is now also open to the German side, as we can learn a lot from each other. The fact that it is now easier for Mongolian students to start a degree programme here is a strong signal. In times of a shortage of skilled workers, we need to open up universities and the economy to international students and graduates," says Carsten Drebenstedt.
In 2024 alone, ten students from MUST came to Freiberg to study on the joint mining study programme. In view of this, an expansion of the programme seems well worth considering. According to Katja Polanski from the IUZ, a transfer to other degree programmes at the MUST is already under discussion.
What else was on the Mongolian delegation's agenda in addition to the 3+3 agreement
The MUST delegation was mainly a guest at Faculty 3 in the week commencing 9 December 2024, where they visited institutes and held talks with potential interested parties for joint research projects. On Tuesday, the delegation members introduced themselves at the Faculty Council meeting. On the same day, the Director of the School of Geology and Mining Engineering at MUST, Professor Khavalbolot Kyelgyenbai, and the Dean of Faculty 3, Professor Stefan Buske, signed a Memorandum of Understanding. This envisages joint activities in research and teaching, not least (further) exchange programmes for students and staff.