In December 2016, the CLIB-Graduate Cluster Industrial Biotechnology ended officially after seven highly successful years. The Graduate Cluster was initially founded in 2009 by the state North Rhine-Westphalia together with the three universities Bielefeld University, Dortmund University and Düsseldorf University to offer a joint, industry oriented PhD program for highly motivated scholars from all over the world. The outstanding program was embedded into the Cluster Industrielle Biotechnologie CLIB2021, supported by CLIB2021 member companies and based on the four technology platforms PolyOmics, Expression, Biocatalysis and Downstream processing that are established at the three universities. This structure enabled a direct transfer of knowledge between universities and industry and advanced the interdisciplinary work of the technology platforms. Altogether, scholarships for 120 excellent junior scientists within a tight network between University and Industry were funded until the end of 2016.

At Bielefeld University the cluster will live on as the PhD study program Industrial Biotechnology offered by the Technical Faculty and the Faculty of Biology. To allow also further doctoral students this special kind of education the study program Industrial Biotechnology was established and PhD students funded by other sources performing research projects in Industrial Biotechnology can enrol in this program.