Borders can be found everywhere and at any time. The first thing we often think of are political borders, which are omnipresent in public and political debates: the stronger protection of the EU’s external borders through the new Pact on Asylum and Migration, the border controls that have been in place at Germany’s borders since fall 2024 or Donald Trump’s election promise to hermetically seal the border with Mexico. So, is re-bordering the current means of choice to combat pressing political problems? What does this mean for border regions and the people who live there? In which ways are migration processes changing? And how does all of this affect the cooperation between states? 

At the same time, there is also de-bordering, which leads to the fact that border areas become laboratories of cooperation and coexistence. These developments give rise to a variety of exciting questions for Border Studies. How does cross-border co-operation work? What are the advantages of living in a border region and what kind of cross-border flows exist there? What impact do linguistic, mental, and cultural borders have? 

Through studying in a border region, graduates of the Master Border Studies program not only become experts in complex border issues from a theoretical perspective but are also made familiar with their practical implications. This expertise, combined with excellent language skills, is not only in demand in the labor markets in border regions but also in other transnational and intercultural professional fields. Our alumni quickly find attractive jobs - they work in ministries, cross-border projects and organizations, higher education institutions, tourism as well as regional development and their careers are developing extremely positively. 

The trilingual master is offered by four universities in Germany, France and Luxembourg and is based on a long-term cooperation between the partner universities. In addition to the University of Kaiserslautern, the Université du Luxembourg, the Université de Lorraine and the Saarland University are involved. The master's programme is funded by the German-French University (DFH).

Further information can be found on the homepage of the University of the Greater Region.

Do you want to become a cross-border expert? Apply now! 

Application deadlines:

Further information on the application procedure and admission requirements can be found here.

Information on the required application documents and on the entry requirements can be found on the homepage of the Saarland University.

Graduated from the Master Border Studies – What’s next?

What are the benefits of a cross-border and trilingual master programme? Which competencies acquired in the Master Border Studies help me finding a job? What can I do with my Master Border Studies degree?

In our alumni video graduates tell you more about their jobs and how they started their career.

Alumni Video