Growing Older/IMS

Old age implies not only au-tumn, it sometimes means creativity and expertise. In Germany more than 10.000 experienced pensioners do honorary jobs both at home and abroad. The “Senior Ex-perten Service” (SES) organi-zes a platform where elderly people share their experien-ces with younger generations.

The SES offers a wide range of services, which vary from

training, to solving problems, to giving professional advice. The organization was founded in 1983 by the Association of the German Chambers of Industry and Com-merce and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Coopera-

tion and Development (German acronym: BMZ). The SES started its activities in developing coun-tries. After the fall of Berlin Wall the SES engaged in developing programs in Eastern European countries as well in Germany. “Senior experts are retired spe-cialists from different areas of ex-pertise” said Bettina Hartmann, head of the experts department of the SES. Besides training staff and providing vocational support, the organization helps individuals and companies solve their prob-lems and find the best way to a brighter future.

Young people in need of voca-tional training such as electricians or mechanics approach the SES from all over the country as well as from abroad, asking for trai-

When Experience Becomes Ripening and advice. In Germany the organization puts the people who need training in direct contact with senior experts from the same region. “Since human contact is very important for the training, we make sure that the trainer and the trainee become acquain-ted with each other”, Bettina Hartmann explained. “When we notice that both parties get along with each other, we then make a contract for a year, which can be theoretically prolonged according to the trainee’s need.”

One of the organization’s ex-perts is Peter Viktor Ludwig. Before his retirement he used to work as manager in several cable factories. “Many technical pro-fessions such as specialized car-pentry seem to die out in Germa-

ny; yet such professions exist and are still needed in the developing countries,” said Ludwig. Besides offering his vast experience, he also tries to find new senior ex-perts who are willing to join the SES.

Overseas companies and enter-prises apply for training either

directly or through the SES re-presentatives in their respective countries. The SES dispatches subsequently senior experts with the expertise that fits into the applicant’s professional needs. Since many of these companies cannot afford the training fees, the organization‘s public funds cover the overall expenses, such as the insurance of the experts and the traveling costs.

The SES organizes and offers different programs. In North Rhi-ne-Westphalia, for example, the organization carries out a project by the name “New Impulse for Pu-pils”. With the support of the seni-or experts, school children of dif-ferent ages are encouraged to get in touch with handiwork, natural sciences and technology. The SES is financed by the BMZ and has now fourteen branch offices nati-onwide. The German Federal Mi-nistry of Education and Research finances furthermore an SES’s in-itiative by the name of “Vera” that aims to prevent apprentices from breaking off their training.

Emeritus is a term used to describe a professor who had to retire due to his or her age but is still allowed to teach at a university without pay. In Germany, however, this practice is slightly diffe-rent from other countries. Frank Kearful is an Ame-rican professor who got the chance to work in dif-ferent academic environ-ments both in the United States and Germany. He witnessed several chan-ges within German so-ciety. After decades of teaching in Germany he became a professor emeritus at the Uni-versity of Bonn.

When did you start teaching at the University of Bonn? I started teaching in 1974 and I have been an emeritus since 2004.What is an emeritus? What is special about it in Germany?In Germany the term emeritus means to go on teaching after re-tirement as much or as little as you want but without getting paid. A Ger-man professor has to be a civil servant. In the United States though professors are not ci-vil servants, they hold tenure. So I became a civil servant although I am not German citizen. Since many academics immigrated to other countries after the Second World War German authorities decided to make an exception and allowed foreigners to be civil ser-vants without becoming German citzens.

Interesting about being a profes-sor in Germany is that when one finishes the PhD, the doctor tit-le can become part of the name. What motivated you to keep on teaching after retirement? I like teaching. I enjoy doing it. It also helps me with my writing since teaching helps me develop

ideas for writing. I only teach one class a week. Since I am an emeritus professor I am not obliged to attend department or faculty meetings. I do not have to deal with bureaucra-cy, what relieves me a

lot. Thus, after retirement I feel I am more independent. Due to the long time you spent at German universities; did you get to know different educatio-nal systems in Germany?The German system changed from the way it used to be. I am

very pleased with the bachelor and master degree system which is dif-ferent from the old “magister” and “diplom” system.What were the most remarkable events you experienced during your career as a university pro-fessor in Germany?Although Bonn was not like Ber-lin or Frankfurt, by the time when I arrived there by the end of the sixties there were already political meetings. After class, my students and I used to go to bars where we spoke about politics. I had stu-dents who became leading figure of some German political parties. I had one student from the SPD, one from FDP, one from CDU. We talked about politics after the class, unless politics was already part of the content of the class. This po-litical activity seemed to die out in the following years. Anyway, many generations went on and I witnessed most of them.

QualificationsTechnical areaComercial sectorTraining areaMaterials managementHuman resourcesIT-sector

%433013 6 5 3

Mohammed Al-Sarray

Accumulated Knowledge

Experience from far-off: Seniors share their knowlege with people in developing countries

Generations bridge: seniors help school

children in Germany

Emeritus: Frank Kearful challenged his retirement

Some academics do not want to stop studying, teaching and rese-arching at higher educational institutions. Working at the university for a long period of time seems to create a relationship that cannot easily be broken off with retirement.

„After retirement

I feel I am more

independent.“

Foto

: SES

Foto

: SES

Foto

: Moh

amm

ed A

l-Sar

ray

July, 2012