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Europe at heart. Education in focus.

Memories of Volker Gehmlich (1945–2025)
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For decades, Professor Volker Gehmlich played a pivotal role in shaping European education programmes, notably COMETT and ERASMUS, and in developing the »European Credit Transfer System« (ECTS). Following his passing, Alan Smith and Marina Steinmann pay tribute to his remarkable contributions, which helped to lay the foundations for much of what Erasmus+ achieves today.

After studying economics in Cologne and Leeds, Volker Gehmlich was appointed Professor of General Business Administration and English at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences in 1972. In 1977, Osnabrück became the first university of applied sciences to receive a grant of one million Deutschmarks for the pilot project »European Business Studies«, and funding as a »Joint Study Programme” supported by the European Community (now European Union). 

Volker Gehmlich earned several distinctions during his career, including the 2000 award from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research for excellence in international higher education cooperation. In 2005/2006, he led the process of defining learning outcomes for all tiered degree programmes at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences.

Volker Gehmlich was the initiator and driving force behind the internationalization of the courses offered at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences. He was never concerned with personal preferences or vanity, let alone showmanship, but always with what was strategically right and politically feasible. As early as the 1970s, he pursued his vision of a European higher education and training area with a sense of proportion and unobtrusive perseverance.
Professor Dr. Erhard Mielenhausen, Former President of the Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences

Alan Smith, first Director of the ERASMUS Bureau in Brussels (1987–1992)

Towards the end of April 2025, I called Volker Gehmlich: news of his health problems had also reached his former colleagues in Brussels. It turned out to be an unforgettable phone call. The many years since our last contact simply dissolved, and despite the traces of his illness, Volker was exactly the same friendly, generous, positive-thinking, enthusiastic and humorous person I remembered. Sadly, I must have been one of the very last companions who was able to speak to him again before his unexpectedly rapid death. 

My collegial friendship with Volker dates back to the late 1970s, when I was responsible for the operational implementation of EU grants to promote ‘Joint Study Programmes’ (JSP) – in retrospect, the precursor to ERASMUS. Between 1976 and 1987, the JSP Scheme laid the essential foundations for the later ERASMUS programme and its success by testing creative models for university cooperation and building trust between the people involved.

During this period of change, Volker was an important colleague, especially since business administration was particularly well represented in the development of cooperation models. Some of the dual degree programmes developed at that time, including the programme at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences with British and French partners, which received funding as early as 1977, are still among the most ambitious and integrated models of this form of cooperation today.

Volker also played an active role in several important events at European level, including the very first conference of JSP directors at the University of Edinburgh in 1979.

With his mix of scientific, organisational and communication skills, Volker was predestined to contribute to other important European initiatives beyond institutional cooperation between higher education institutions. In the 1980s, he was already successfully involved in the central implementation office for the EU programme for Cooperation between Universities and Industry (COMETT), and he played a particularly influential part in the development, implementation and continuous fine tuning of the ECTS. 

With Volker Gehmlich's passing, the European higher education community has lost a knowledgeable, committed, creative and warm-hearted colleague who was deeply dedicated to the common cause. All colleagues who had the privilege and pleasure of accompanying him on part of his European journey will miss him dearly.

The ERASMUS Programme (also an akronym for »European Community Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students«) began in 1987 and was then the HE component of “Socrates” (1995-2006) and the Lifelong Learning Programme (2007- 2013) before being subsumed within »Erasmus+« in 2014. 

Volker was an extremely pleasant, enthusiastic, and knowledgeable colleague who was always ready to contribute creatively to solving problems. In short, he was a pillar of our profession! I particularly remember an ECTS meeting for which he invited us to Osnabrück, the »city of peace«. Creating peace and building bridges between peoples: that was something which was close to Volker Gehmlich`s heart.
Peter van der Hijden, former Deputy Head of the Higher Education department at the European Commission
My friendship with Volker from the early days of ECTS continued later on when our university entered into a dual partnership with the University of Osnabrück and Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences. In addition to his outstanding commitment to European cooperation, I especially appreciated his friendly, warm-hearted manner and his distinctive sense of humour.
Fritz Dalichow, ECTS coordinator at the ERASMUS Bureau in Brussels, later International Affairs officer at the University of Derby (Great Britain)

Marina Steinmann, Expert for Erasmus+ Higher Education Cooperation at the NA DAAD

On my first day at the COMETT Information Centre, the phone rang. The friendly professor at the other end of the line began asking me a series of questions that I couldn’t answer. He was amused by my flustered attempts to respond, and I quickly transferred the call to my boss. That professor was Volker Gehmlich, then »Senior Programme Analyst« at the Technical Assistance Office for the European Commission’s COMETT Programme (1987-1994). It was my first encounter with him. 

Volker Gehmlich will be remembered as a key figure in the history of European higher education cooperation, above all for his formative role in establishing the ECTS within the Erasmus programme - a contribution that even earned him the affectionate nickname »the ECTS Pope «. He was responsible for the feasibility study which laid the foundations for the system, led one of the first ECTS pilot projects[1] from 1988, served as an »ECTS Counsellor«, and authored both the »ECTS Users’ Guide« and »ECTS Key Features«. From 2000 onwards, he coordinated the network of National Information and Advisory Centres at European level.

Volker Gehmlich was a member of the »Tuning Educational Structures in Europe« steering group and actively supported its implementation in Central and Eastern Europe through TEMPUS and other initiatives. On behalf of the European Commission as well as the DAAD, he advised higher education institutions in Germany, across Europe and around the world , including in his role as an Erasmus Expert. From 2004, he also assisted German higher education institutions in implementing their reforms, serving as both a Bologna Promoter and a Bologna Expert.

Alongside his main academic work at his home institution, Volker Gehmlich served as a contractor for several pioneering pilot projects in curriculum development, mobility and academic recognition, often becoming the first to test many of his own »innovations« in practice. He was also the author or co-author of numerous publications and studies.

He played a central role in developing the European and national qualification frameworks - including the EQF, EQR and DQR - as well as in shaping sectoral and subject-specific frameworks. Numerous accreditation organisations and working groups across Europe and beyond benefited from his expertise as an advisor and consultant on a wide range of topics in international higher education cooperation. During his countless consultancy visits and conference appearances - always characterised by presentations that were thoughtfully tailored and creatively designed for each occasion - he never lost sight of the bigger picture, nor did he ever lose his patience, even when faced with naïve questions or determined opposition.

Whether it was a request for information, advice, a lecture, an article, a contribution, a recommendation or an expert opinion - Volker Gehmlich could never say »no«. Perhaps because that word simply wasn’t part of his seemingly inexhaustible repertoire, it was ultimately illness that brought his tireless dedication to a halt.

On behalf of everyone who benefited from his vast knowledge - and from his remarkable generosity in sharing it - I would like to express our deepest gratitude and say: Thank you for everything.

[1] See also DAADeuroletter 73, pages 20 to 23.

In our office, Volker was responsible for developing industrial placements for students in other European countries and for promoting COMETT in Germany – a sometimes delicate and challenging role for which he was perfectly suited with his extensive expertise. Above all, however, Volker was a very kind person and a colleague who was highly valued by all of us on the team.
Ed Prosser, first Director of the COMETT Office Brussels
All of us had good reason to hold Volker in high esteem – in the world of higher education he was a guiding light in the truest sense of the term.
Professor Dr. Leo Gros, Volker Gehmlich`s colleague in the DAAD Bologna Experts team from 2007 to 2013
personality

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