Six to eight colleges of music participate at any one time in the Colleges of Music Benchmarking Club that was set up in 2011. The Club aims to provide solutions for relevant strategic issues through systematic comparison and continuous exchange. Over this period, there has been some variation in membership; currently the following universities and colleges of music are involved:
- Hanns Eisler School of Music Berlin
- Detmold University of Music
- Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts
- Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media
- University of Music and Theatre “Felix Mendelsohn Bartholdy” Leipzig
- Lübeck University of Music
The higher education institutions involved hold a series of workshops to cover relevant topic fields through systematic comparison. In addition to the university chancellors, representatives from the artistic/academic side and from the administration are involved to ensure the inclusion of a wide range of views. The expressed aim is to apply the findings gained in the workshop in the colleges’ actual practice, thus achieving sustainable improvements in their steering processes.
Focus topics so far have included Quality Management, Part-time Teaching, Appointment Procedures, Applications and Admissions, and Events as well as budgeting in music colleges. The workshops examine the special features of each college of music and the specific impact on profiling and quality development at the colleges. The workshop series 2013 on appointments procedures produced a paper of recommendations on carrying out appointment procedures at colleges of music.
The project will be continued in 2023/2024, after an interruption due to the pandemic. The topic will be "Recruitment at music colleges".
The DZHW collaborates with the HIS Institut für Hochschulentwicklung e.V. (HIS-HE) to provide support in preparing methodology and content for the Benchmarking Club.
