This month’s peer-to-peer exchanges between ACA members focused on two important but highly complex questions: How to assess the first achievements of the European Universities Initiative (EUI) to charter the way forward? And how to evaluate the impact of student mobility more broadly?

These topical discussions took place in the framework of ACA’s two Thematic Peer Groups (TPG) for “Research on International Higher Education” and for “European policies and programmes developments”.

The debate in both TPGs was informed by latest scientific research on the two topics. In the Research TPG meeting, the leaders of the European Network on International Student Mobility – Connecting Research and Practice (ENIS) – Prof. Christof van Mol and Dr. Nicolai Netz – presented a comprehensive overview of the most up-to-date research on the individual and institutional impact of international student mobility, drawing some implications for future research, as well as policies and programmes in this area.

In the European TPG meeting, Daniela Craciun and Ariane de Gayardon de Fenoyl from the Center for Higher Education Policy Studies (CHEPS), the University of Twente, shared preliminary findings of the two studies conducted for the European Parliament on the first lessons, main challenges and perspectives of the EUI and for the European Commission on the state and effectiveness of national funding systems of higher education to support the EUI. ACA Director, Irina Ferencz presented a number of highlights from the ongoing MICHE project, that looks at the relevance of the European Universities Initiative from a national-level perspective, advising participating Czech higher education institutions on how to maximise their participation in related alliances, as well as how to transfer innovative approaches internally and at system level. The project is coordinated by ACA member DZS – Czech National Agency for International Education and Research.

ACA members will continue the discussions on both topics in the course of next year.

ACA TPG Research Meeting

ACA TPG  European Policy and Programmes Meeting