No. 110/2019

Cover photo: Humboldt Foundation/Robert Bartholot, infographics and illustrations: VisualDriven  13 HUMBOLDT KOSMOS 110/2019 At the end of the fellow- ship period, the Founda- tion asks its sponsorship recipients to provide feedback on their research stay in Germany online. They evaluate various aspects of their stay on a given scale and, in some cases, are able to add free comments, as well. All responses are anonymised for the purpose and the comments are evaluated using qualitative content analysis. Over 95 percent of those sponsored in the last six years completed the survey. The results thus reflect a comprehen- sive, representative pic- ture of Germany as seen through the eyes of the Foundation’s fellows. GERMANY FROM THE OUTSIDE The place, the people and academic life: after their stay, Humboldt Fellows complete an evaluation sheet. Read about the marks they award Germany. I f you are granted a Humboldt Fellowship and spend time working on research in Germany, you are bound to form an opinion about the way academia works at German universities and research institutes, and you will also get to know the country and its people: How open and tolerant are Germans towards their guests? What about their sense of humour? Are people here progressive, bureaucratic, hospitable? How well-equipped are the labs and the libraries? And what about working hours, child- care and junior researchers’ career prospects? These are the questions the Humboldt Foundation asks its sponsorship recipients at the end of their fellowship. Researchers from all over the world assess how they and their families have experienced the 18 months the average fellow spends here during their research stay. The survey invites open comments, not least on how Germany com- pares with the fellow’s own country. The evaluation “Germany from the outside” collates the results of the surveys conducted in the last six years from 2013 to 2018 and evaluates the responses of a total of more than 1,800 Humboldt visiting researchers from over 140 countries. The results show that Germany and its sci- ence system are largely perceived very positively and also hold their own internationally. Depending on where the respondents come from, how- ever, there are points of criticism. Background