The new degree program Redesigning the Post-industrial City (RePIC) is funded by the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) for 74 months with an Erasmus Mundus Grant. Through the competitive Erasmus Mundus funding program, the EU supports excellent innovative master's degree programs for highly qualified students leading to multiple or joint degrees. RUB has developed RePIC together with seven partner universities of the UNIC consortium over the past two years and received the funding commitment on July 25, 2023. The funds will be used in particular to finance scholarships for RePIC students. This funding comes "just in time", as applications for the first cohort, which will start at RUB in October 2023, are still open for EU students until July 31 (https://repic-application.ruhr-uni-bochum.de).

RePIC is a four-semester master's program that addresses students worldwide who want to address the pressing issues of transforming urban spaces towards sustainability and resilience. The Erasmus Mundus evaluators have no doubt that RePIC will be able to train the experts who are desperately needed in this field in a way that is both practical and suitable for Europe. The students spend the first semester at the RUB, and in the second semester they choose one of four specializations offered by the following tandems: RUB/U Oulu, U Koc/EU Rotterdam, U Zagreb/U Deusto, UCC Cork/U Liège. In the third semester, students opt to continue in Cork or Liège. The master's thesis can be written at one of the eight locations.

The multi-partner program is coordinated by the RUB and is located at the Institute of Geography in the Faculty of Geosciences. Prof. Dr. Thomas Feldhoff, scientific coordinator of the project and head of the study program, is pleased about the approval together with his closest colleagues, PD Dr. Dennis Edler (Dean of Studies) and Dr. Matthias Falke (Program Manager).

Background: The Institute of Geography in the Faculty of Geosciences at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum has developed the joint degree master's program Redesigning the Post-Industrial City (RePIC) as part of the European university alliance UNIC - The European University of Post-Industrial Cities in cooperation with seven other UNIC partner universities and is responsible for its implementation and coordination. As part of the program, students not only learn about eight partner universities, but also about urban spaces in transformation through Engaged Research or Challenge Based Learning practice projects. There are already more than 30 practice partners in all partner countries who have pledged their support in such projects and especially in City Labs, the RePIC real laboratories of post-industrial transformations.

RePIC homepage: https://www.unic.eu/en/repic#all

RePIC application portal: https://repic-application.ruhr-uni-bochum.de

Contact: Prof. Dr. Thomas Feldhoff, 0234-32-24847, thomas.feldhoff@rub.de