Principal Partner of the ifs internationale filmschule köln is the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW.
The ifs is funded largely through a state grant provided by the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, as well as through the Film- und Medienstiftung Nordrhein-Westfalen, sponsorship funds provided by the film and television industry and through participation and tuition fees.
Furthermore, the ifs receives additional support from the industry through contributions in kind, consulting for the conception and development of the study and further education programs, lecturers and the establishment of internships.
TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences)
The ifs offers its courses in cooperation with the Technische Hochschule Köln (University of Applied Sciences). For this purpose, both institutions concluded a cooperation agreement in 2002 on the basis of § 66 Para. 6 of the Higher Education Act NRW without a time limit. This cooperation allows ifs to offer courses at university level and expands the TH Köln’s portfolio to include film-oriented courses.
According to the cooperation agreement, ifs as a private educational institution is responsible for the conception and implementation of all accredited courses of study in the field of film and media education, while the TH Köln awards the university degrees and guarantees the equivalence of the courses of study. In order to ensure these quality standards, the TH Köln appoints professors and sends them to the ifs. One of the central tasks of the professorship there is to ensure compliance with the formal and content-related criteria for Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programs.
In addition, the management of ifs and the Executive Committee of the TH Köln meet at regular intervals to coordinate the medium- and long-term planning of the ifs’ range of courses.
For ifs students, the cooperation with the TH Köln offers many advantages. They can register as regular students of the TH Köln and thus have access to the university’s services. These include various counselling services (e.g. general study counselling, studying with a child, studying with disabilities). In addition, registered students receive a semester ticket, can take part in university sports and apply for the student union’s dormitory places.
The ifs has also established close ties to other members within the higher education landscape. The exchange of professional and educational competence, mutual support, and common synergies are the distinctive attributes of these cooperation agreements. ifs is a member of the Association of Film and Television Universities CILECT and its European sub-association GEECT. Furthermore, the ifs is a member of AG Kurzfilm and the university founder network cologne hgnc, as well as the ELIA network – European League of Institutes of the Arts.
