From samurai and cherry blossoms to the enchanting world of manga, anime and video games, Japan has an undeniable pull on many students. Applications for study abroad placements at our Japanese partner universities are at an all-time high. Japanese students, however, seem much more reluctant to venture to HSD. Last year, the International Office recorded 14 outgoings to and only 5 incomings from Japan. This imbalance is more than just a missed opportunity. It impacts the development prospects of our university partnerships that are based on the principles of mutual benefit and reciprocity.
One key mission of the HSD-Japan Gateway project is therefore to increase the appeal of HSD to students at our Japanese partner universities. To achieve that, we are launching a new teaching format centered around a transdisciplinary Summer School in Düsseldorf which is aimed specifically at students from our Japanese partner institutions. Obviously, for best results a close coordination of timing and content with our partners in Japan is highly recommended.
This is what the first HSD-Japan Gateway delegation to Japan led by the Vice-president for Student, Academic and International Affairs, Thomas Molck, set out to do. In the span of two weeks in mid-March 2026 the project team visited a total of seven Japanese universities – three established and four prospective partnerships – and candidly discussed the respective opportunities and expectations regarding the cooperation with HSD in general and the HSD-Japan Gateway Summer School in particular. With great success: The Summer School titled “Mixed Media and Human Data Interaction” will be piloted in mid-September 2026 offering an intensive, interdisciplinary program at HSD’s Center for Digitalization and Digitality (ZDD) in Düsseldorf. The curriculum integrates human factors, human-machine interfaces, digitalization, tracking, interactive broadcasting, virtual set environments, mixed reality, new interfaces and human data interaction. It leverages HSD’s state-of-the-art labs and expertise in digital transformation and technology, focusing on the human role in shaping digital futures.
Students from at least four different universities in Japan will be participating alongside HSD students from different faculties. Prof. Jens Herder (Faculty of Media) and Prof. Kay Schröder (Faculty of Design / ZDD) who were part of the delegation visit are currently finalizing the content and schedule in collaboration with their colleagues in Japan who will be joining the program as guest lecturers. Moreover, first steps have been taken towards realizing a comparable Winter School hosted in Japan, albeit the details regarding the when and what are still to be determined. The HSD-Japan Gateway delegation also laid the groundwork for transdisciplinary research collaboration between HSD and its Japanese partner institutions. Prof. Kay Schröder will further develop this angle during his upcoming research semester in Tokyo in Winter 2026.
While delegation visits abroad are undeniably time-consuming, high-cost endeavors, the return on investment – particularly when it comes to high-context cultures such as Japan – is immeasurable. Not only do they provide the opportunity to explore the actual campus and on-site facilities, more importantly, they allow the participants to connect with their counterparts on a more personal level. This is crucial for ensuring the quality and long-term sustainability of institutional partnerships. With this first delegation visit, the HSD-Japan Gateway opened new pathways for student mobility that will continue to grow in the years ahead.
HSD-Japan Gateway is part of UAS.International 2026-2028. The German Academic Exchange Service funds the program "Internationalization of Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS)", or "UAS.International" for short, using resources provided by the Federal Ministry for Research, Technology and Space.
