TH-Wildau - News

Efficiency, networking and freedom: Prof. Alexander Köthe introduces himself as the new Dean

Since February 1, Prof. Alexander Köthe has been the new Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences. He succeeds Professor Heike Pospisil, who has held the position since 2018. In this interview, he talks about the internal and external challenges facing the department, the focus of his work as Dean - and how his son's carefree love of experimentation reminds him to take a relaxed approach to some things.

Why did you decide to stand for the position of Dean of the INW faculty?

I expect to be at TH Wildau for another 27 years. That is a long time, and I would like to actively contribute to making the INW department future-oriented and competitive. I see the competition less within the university and more externally. In particular, HTW Berlin, which is located in the immediate vicinity and has a large number of students, is our biggest competitor for students. Our department has motivated and committed lecturers and an excellent infrastructure. Nevertheless, we could still do with more students. To achieve this, it is necessary to break new ground and use the scope for innovation that our university is providing as part of the strategy process. This opportunity, coupled with my long-term perspective at TH Wildau, has prompted me to apply for the vacant position of Dean.

What are your priorities and goals for your term of office?

One of my main concerns is to increase efficiency. There are numerous synergies in our degree programmes that we have hardly used so far. We need to improve in this area to create capacities for new courses and at the same time provide the freedom to set innovative impulses in research and transfer. A promising approach is to bundle courses across different degree programmes. This would not only reduce the teaching load, but also promote networking among students from different specializations. The freed-up capacities would enable us to create additional offers, such as courses in English, targeted support programs for high-performing students, or digital formats for preparing and following up on course content. This would further increase our attractiveness for future applicants.
Another important issue is the stronger networking of technology and management. From my time as a founder, I know that a lack of understanding for both areas can often lead to conflicts – especially when technology and economic thinking are not sufficiently aligned. In today's economy, we need business economists and engineers who understand both worlds. Therefore, we need to further intensify the exchange between departments. This is necessary to keep our teaching up to date and practical and to advance application-oriented research. Examples from industry show that even a technically innovative product is only successful if there is a market and investors for it. At our university, we have the necessary experts for both areas, and by working closely together, we can better transfer research results into practice.

What challenges do you see for your department in the coming years?

Our department faces several external and internal challenges in the coming years.

One key challenge is the decline in the number of students. Although the teaching in our department is of high quality, we need to improve our performance data. One promising approach is to increase support for dual degree programmes, in which we have already gained new industry partners for many degree programmes. To remain attractive for companies and students, we need to become more flexible. Technologies are constantly evolving: some trends are short-lived, while others endure over the long term. However, we cannot create a new degree programme for every innovation. Instead, we need to be able to respond more flexibly to technological developments – for example, by introducing general, interdisciplinary degree programmes.
Another challenge is the replacement of professorships. In the next ten years, some colleagues will be taking their well-deserved retirement. However, it is not always easy to find qualified specialists. To remain attractive for new colleagues, we should be more open in terms of denominations and more strongly oriented towards the profiles of potential applicants. Flexible course models can also be an advantage here.
Finally, the strategy process at our university presents a challenge. The path we have chosen is the right one, but it will force us to rethink the tried and tested and try out new things. However, I am confident that we as a department will rise to this challenge. As researchers, we know that innovative approaches can sometimes fail – what is important is that we remain open to change and have the courage to break new ground.

What are you looking forward to most in your new role?

Short and sweet: I'm looking forward to being able to actively shape and make a positive contribution to our university. There is one small downside: I will be able to work less directly with students in the future. In addition to teaching in the lecture hall and laboratory, we have launched exciting projects in recent years, such as our autonomous ferries. Unfortunately, there is now a little less time for that. Nevertheless, I have been able to build up a small, motivated, scientific team that will continue to grow in the future and is now independently taking over the supervision and training of students.

How do you start your working day perfectly?

For me, the perfect start to the working day begins even before I arrive in Wildau. Since I travel from Potsdam every morning, I first check on Google Maps to see if the A10 is clear. During the drive, I listen to a morning briefing to catch up on current events. After that, depending on my mood, I like to put on a playlist on Spotify, either electro or German pop to sing along to.

During this time, I plan my day in my mind and get a rough overview of upcoming tasks and appointments. When I arrive at the Dean's office, I am happy to get a freshly brewed coffee from Ms. Erdmann. After greeting my colleagues with a friendly “Good morning...” and my coffee cup in hand, I start the work day feeling motivated.

How do you best switch off after a long day at work?

For me, switching off after a long day at work depends on the day and the season. In summer, I ideally spend time with my son at the playground or at the lake. It is incredibly relaxing to watch him play so freely and try to defy the laws of physics. It often makes me realize that you shouldn't take some things too seriously.

If it gets late and my wife has already put our son to bed, I enjoy watching a series on the couch. Alternatively, my wife – who trains future educators at a technical college for social services – and I like to have intensive discussions about learning methods in adult education. Even if that doesn't sound like switching off at first glance, it helps us to review the day together and gain new insights for the next day. This way, we can inspire each other and end the evening on a positive note.

More about Prof. Alexander Köthe

Prof. Alexander Köthe
Dean of the Faculty
Engineering and Natural Sciences
Hochschulring 1, 15745 Wildau, Germany
Tel.: +49 (0)3375 508 126
E-Mail: alexander.koethe(at)th-wildau.de
Web: http://www.th-wildau.de/koethe

External communication TH Wildau:

Mike Lange / Mareike Rammelt
TH Wildau
Hochschulring 1, 15745 Wildau, Germany
Phone +49 (0)3375 508 211 / -669
E-mail: presse@th-wildau.de