Prof. Dr. Zhen Ru Dai studied computer science in Lübeck and subsequently completed her doctorate at the Frauenhofer FOKUS institute in Berlin. Following various positions in the business sector both in Germany and abroad – for example, at companies such as Philips Hamburg, Siemens Basel and Nokia Helsinki – she was appointed professor of system and software engineering in the HAW Hamburg Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science in 2009. Since then she has taught primarily in the Mechatronics and Computer Science for Technical Systems degree courses.
Having already served as the international liaison in the Department of Computer Science for eight years, Dai brings significant internationalisation experience to her new position. 'I especially want to expand the preferred partnership programme,' she says of her plans for the coming period. These partnerships, which HAW Hamburg already has in place with universities on virtually every continent, ensure that students can obtain credit points for their courses. But there is another advantage as well: 'The preferred partnership programme gives us significantly more exchange places,' says Dai. She also wishes to promote research activities with foreign partners and continue to expand international exchanges between university staff. Intensifying collaborative online international learning (COIL) is something else she wants to do. This involves the joint delivery of teaching modules by several international partner universities.
Dr. Thomas Flower, dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science, says: 'First, I would like to thank the previous vice dean for international affairs, Prof. Dr. Thomas Clemen, for his lengthy, engaged and successful efforts to make our faculty more international. I am also thrilled that we've found a very good successor for this complex position. Prof. Dr. Zhen Ru Dai brings a great deal of international experience with her, especially with respect to China, which is a particular focus of the faculty.'
(Text: Tiziana Hiller)
