University commitment to social responsibility

Transfer and Third Mission

In addition to teaching and research, transfer and "Third Mission" form an integral part of ASH Berlin and are directly anchored in the university’s Mission Statement. Our "Third Mission" encompasses all the activities and actions that involve taking social responsibility and are related to our two core tasks of teaching and research. The university engages itself to support social interests at the local level and interregionally by contributing the expertise of our professors. The involvement of non-academic partners and target groups from non-governmental organisations, municipalities, social and charitable organisations and business through dialogue supports the co-designing of research and teaching topics. Social engagement is a sub-area of our Third Mission – in addition to the areas of further education and the transfer of knowledge in research, studies and teaching – and is part of the "University commitment to social responsibility".

Further education for practitioners

The Centre for Further Education offers opportunities for further education and networking to practitioners from the areas of health, education and social work. The exchange between academia and practice supports both sides and helps to advance the knowledge of the professors through the mutual transfer of knowledge between the university and practice.

Centre for Further Education

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alice solidarisch

The university's activities in the area of refugees, migration, racism, anti-racism movements and inclusions are grouped together under the project name of "alice solidarisch". The different interest groups work together in the university-wide project.

Outcomes of the project include a position paper on social work in collective housing centres.

A number of special initiatives have also been added to the further education programme at ASH Berlin:

  • Seminar series on the topic of refugees and migration
  • Further education programmes for social workers involved in refugee social work

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Presence in a refugee housing centre

Since September 2013, ASH Berlin has been present in the refugee housing centre in Maxi-Wander-Straße (formerly Carola-Neher-Straße). Following large-scale protests against the newly established refugee housing centre in Hellersdorf in summer 2013, ASH Berlin decided to send a strong signal and adopt a clear position against the openly racist protests. The resulted in the idea of being present as a university at the refugee housing centre and to simultaneously open the university to refugees.

The following activities have already taken place:

  • Regular presence through teaching in the ASH room
  • Student internships in the housing centre (6 months or 6 weeks) supervised by ASH Berlin
  • Internships for refugees at the Centre for Further Education at ASH Berlin
  • Dialogue with the housing centre management/operating company based on critical monitoring reports, i.e. reports with detailed observations by students and teaching staff at the university

Projects initiated by students, in particular by the student initiative Grenzen_weg!:

  • Help with homework (Mon-Fri)
  • Specific support for children (Mon-Fri)
  • Accompanying young people to activities offered by cooperation partners in the city district
  • Accompanying women to sports activities offered by cooperation partners in the city district
  • Climbing and bouldering for men (climbing for women is planned)
  • Open discussion rounds and film evenings
  • Internship guidance for refugees
  • Catering for refugees
  • Accommodation advice for refugees
  • German courses

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Anti-racism report centre at ASH Berlin

Discrimination-motivated incidents at the university and in the Marzahn-Hellersdorf district are documented and published in a Berlin-wide register.

Go to anti-racism report centre

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ASH Pre-Study Programme

The ASH Pre-Study Programme prepares refugees for university studies in the area of social work, early childhood education, health and care management, and physiotherapy/ergotherapy.

Go to ASH Pre-Study Programme

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Local projects and public initiatives

The WiPPs project of ASH Berlin promotes the university’s partnerships between academia and practice by supporting cooperation between the university and external partners in the Marzahn-Hellersdorf district. 

To the WiPPs

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Contact person Transfer & Third Mission

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