[1] In 1978, he graduated with a dissertation on contactless three-dimensional object measurement (Verfahren zur automatischen Vermessung räumlicher Objekte durch rechnergestützte Auswertung stereoskopischer Fernsehbilder).

He completed his habilitation in 1982 in the field of Electronic Design Automation (EDA), Topologische Prüfung komplizierter geometrischer Strukturen.

[5][6] In 2012, he initiated more financing through private sponsorship, as state funding is not sufficient to match international standards – €17,000 per student and year in Hannover, compared to €30,000 at the University of Texas and €125,000 at Harvard.

[7] On 20 November 2013 Barke opened a memorial event "Verleihung und Entzug von Titeln während der NS-Zeit an der Technischen Hochschule Hannover", dealing with the awarding and removal of scientific titles at the Hochschule during the Nazi period.

Prompted by a Masters thesis "Die Technische Hochschule Hannover und der Entzug akademischer Titel während der NS-Zeit" by Christian-Alexander Wäldner, a study group of the university's senate had researched how academic positions, degrees and honours had been removed, based on ideological discrimination, between 1933 and 1945.