Berlin's universities crumble as elections loom and funding dries up

Berlin's universities crumble as elections loom and funding dries up

Berlin's Universities in a State of Collapse, Warns Outgoing TU President

Berlin's universities are in a catastrophic state, according to Geraldine Rauch, who served as president of the Technical University of Berlin (TU Berlin) until March. In a guest column for the Berliner Morgenpost (Saturday edition), she describes leaking ceilings in lecture halls, with buckets "casually placed in entrances, labs, and auditoriums—hastily cordoned off with caution tape." Entire buildings, she writes, have now been closed to students and staff.

At the same time, tuition fees are rising, and up to 14 percent of all university places could be cut in the coming years due to budget constraints. "Soon, universities will no longer be able to cover their operating costs on their own—something that, in the private sector, would amount to bankruptcy," Rauch warns.

A professor currently heading the Institute for Biometry and Clinical Epidemiology at Berlin's Charité hospital, Rauch is calling for "genuine student representation in university policy decisions" and reliable long-term funding, which she says is currently nonexistent. She also stresses the need for "housing policies that don't leave students out in the cold."

With Berlin's state elections approaching on September 20, Rauch criticizes political parties for failing to engage meaningfully with student voters: "Students appear in party platforms, but rarely as a concrete political priority. They are talked about—rarely with."

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