Studiengangkoordination in der wissenschaftlichen Weiterbildung – Zentrale Schnittstellenfunktion und vielfältige Aufgabenfelder

This doctoral dissertation on "Program coordination in continuing education at universities" pursues the empirical determination of the scope of professional tasks and the function as central interface in this kind of program coordination. It specifically focuses on program coordination in decentralized study programs at universities and is contextualized in research on adult education professions and research on academic professions. The work therefore significantly contributes therefore to an adult educational and organizational contemplation of the new professional field: continuing education at universities. Formally, the thesis incudes the introductory text as well as six published articles in journals and anthologies: - an article summarizing the scopes of professional tasks of program coordination as the result of an empirical-exploratory study, - two articles which systematically locate program coordination in the context of adult education management or professional work in higher education (third mission), - three articles, which exemplarily focus in depth on guidance and counselling (student support) and cooperation as important tasks of program coordination in continuing education. The introductory text provides theoretically well-founded insights into the field of continuing education at universities (specifics, professionalization) and the university as a specific kind of organization. This cumulative thesis thus contributes to the determination and differentiation measurement of a vocational field (program coordination) in a specific organizational context (continuing education at universities).