The DZHW is a national and international centre of excellence for higher education and science studies. Its data and analyses support higher education institutions, education administration and policy-makers in improving higher education in Germany and Europe. The Centre provides the empirical basis for a sustainable, evidence-based higher-education and education policy. DZHW consists of four departments, it conducts research projects and surveys according to scientific quality standards. Central to its profile are long-term studies on potential students, first-year students, students and graduates, which are unique in Germany, as well as scientific studies on the internationalisation of the German higher education system, on lifelong learning as well as higher education management and funding. DZHW also supplies an important research infrastructure: it operates a research data centre for research on German higher education and science, making the data of the centre and other institutions available to the scientific community and thus promoting further analyses in the field. Close collaborations exists with Leibniz University Hanover as well as with Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, the University of Kassel and the University of Magdeburg.