Understanding ETH

[Tim]

ETH is a great space to learn, work and research. It has a great culture of participation, allowing its members a voice in various decision making processes and changes. Yet, understanding how ETH works as an institution is not always easy, for example due to its unique funding situation and political stakeholders. Usually, it takes involvement in VSETH, AVETH, PeKo, KdL or one of the staff units (e.g. Stab des Rektors) to gain insight and understanding in how ETH works as an institution.

Understanding ETH is a seminar series that invites various speakers that are involved with ETH, e.g. campus planing, developement and strategy, ETH foundation, alumni association or the political steering body and local politics. Each speaker talks for 45 minutes and then there will be an open discussion for another 45 minutes between the participants and the speaker.

Topics covered could be ‘how to run a research university’, ‘presidential succession planning’, ‘campus development’, ‘global strategy’, ‘role of ETH foundation’ or ‘role of Alumni’ as well as ‘industry partnering’.

As a course deliverable, each student is expected to pick a focused topic, about ETH Campus development or Community concern, and prepare a whitepaper, article, or issue-analysis which is suitable for publication in ETHLife or some similar venue. It should be something worth sharing among other members of our community!

Participants are about 20 interested students, doctoral students, post-docs, staff, faculty.

What do you think? Would a course that helps understanding ETH be valueable?
I am certainly in to make it happen and am looking for support from ETH. When I found this discussion place, I thought it is a nice place to put this idea out there for the first time.

This idea is inspired by a similar course that happens at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology: understanding MIT.

[Karin BrownKeymaster]

This is an interesting idea. I think it would be useful to consider the direct value to student learning and make that more explicit if it is something you really want to pursue.

[Tim]

Hi Karin,

thank you for your input.

I think the value is ETH – wide: with a better understanding of how a complex institution works, participation of all levels is strengthened and the already great institutions like VSETH, AVETH, PeKo and KdL are enabled to participate even more in the process of making ETH a better place. Furthermore, it offers students perspective to career paths, e.g. in the strategic management of public institutions, something often overlooked by career services.

Would you know people I could turn to to make this happen?
I am in close contact with the organisers of the course at MIT and they are willing to help me with this, too. Yet some ETH backing would be much appreciated. I know a few people from ETH global, but I do not know if this is the right place. Do you have a suggestion?

Tim

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