On September 12, 2024, Professor Ulrich Martin from Hannover Medical School and Dr. Gaby Froriep, PhD Program Regenerative Sciences from Hannover Medical School visited Tbilisi State Medical University. The professors are coordinators of the international partnership project "Preparing Georgian students of medicine and biology for a scientific career in life sciences and medicine," funded by the DAAD-SDG Foundation.

Within the framework of the visit, a project coordination group meeting was organized. Participants included: Project Manager - Associate Professor Nona Janikashvili, Department of Immunology, Tbilisi State Medical University; Professor Tinatin Tkemaladze, Head of the Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine of TSMU, Professor Tinatin Chikovani, Head of the Department of Immunology, Ketevan Mkevadze, Invited Lecturer at Tbilisi State Medical University; Valeri Sharvashidze – a TSMU student and representatives from Sokhumi State University: Marina Pochkhua and Merab Chikobava. Associate Professor Nona Janikashvili presented a detailed report on the elective course "Preparation for a Scientific Career" conducted as part of the partnership project, including results, achievements, and challenges. The foreign coordinators positively evaluated the activities of Tbilisi State Medical University students within the course and discussed the organization of internships for the participant students as part of the 2025 LISA Summer Academy program at Hannover Medical School.

The second part of the visit was dedicated to the presentation of Hannover Medical School's new doctoral program in "Regenerative Sciences," which was presented by Dr. Gaby Froriep. The meeting was attended by representatives from the Faculty of Medicine, the Department of International Relations and the Department of Research Coordination, Master and PhD programs. The guests emphasized the competitiveness of Tbilisi State Medical University graduates for admission to Hannover Medical School's doctoral programs and expressed a desire for increased collaboration in this area. In addition, during a meeting with the staff of the Department of International Relations: Ketevan Bibilashvili, Nona Janikashvili, Nino Kandelaki, Mariam Mosidze, and Nino Chkvinidze, Professor Ulrich Martin and Dr. Gaby Frohriep expressed their readiness to collaborate with Tbilisi State Medical University on future educational and research projects. 

The main goal of the international project funded by the DAAD SDG Fund: “Preparing Georgian students of medicine and biology for a scientific career in life sciences and medicine” is to elevate the theoretical and practical education levels of Georgian students in life sciences and medical sciences to international standards. It aims to provide Georgian graduates with the opportunity to successfully enter well-known international doctoral programs. The project includes integrating an elective course into the curriculum of the Medical Doctor (MD) and the Master's in Pharmacy programs at Tbilisi State Medical University, which will prepare students for subsequent individual research projects. In 2024, eight students from the eighth semester of the MD program and one student from the second semester of the Master's in Pharmacy program completed the elective course "Preparation for a Scientific Career."