Autonomy remains a necessity for institutions’ ability to fulfil their core missions. University Autonomy in Europe IV: The Scorecard 2023, published in March this year by the European University Association (EUA), collects, compares, and weights data on university autonomy in...

On 24 March, ACA Director Irina Ferencz participated as an expert in the second session of the European Citizens' Learning Mobility Panel. The citizens’ panel is part of a broader consultation strategy, which aims at gathering feedback from all interested...

In light of the ongoing evaluation processes of the current and previous Erasmus+ programme, the European University Foundation (EUF), the European Students Union (ESU) and the Erasmus Student Network (ESN) organised on 23 March an event dedicated to the Erasmus+...

The Erasmus Mundus programme has played a significant role in the development of joint programmes at European and national level since its establishment nearly 20 years ago. The Erasmus+ third application round under the current programme generation shows that the...

Interoperability, blended mobility, virtual exchange and digitalisation strategies...these are just a few of the hot topics discussed at the Digitalisation in International Higher Education: Forward Looking Perspectives conference, co-organised by the Czech National Agency for International Education and Research (DZS) and the Academic Cooperation Association (ACA), 1 –2 March...

The Inclusion ACAdemy is a new, tailor-made training series on inclusion and widening participation in international programmes, designed for higher education institutions (HEIs) from Austria, Croatia, Finland, Germany, Iceland and Slovenia. The training series has been created for HEIs in...

In March, ACA’s member OeAD organised the Bologna Day 2023 dedicated to the transversal topic of internationalisation explored from the perspective of professional development. Hosted by the Paracelsus Medical University in Salzburg, the event brought together 160 participants including 40...

With the new "Ta'ziz Partnership" programme, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is promoting academic cooperation between German universities and their partners from the MENA region. 47 projects selected for 2023 will receive around EUR 4 million. A total of...

The European Commission has published the new ECHE monitoring guide for Erasmus+ national agencies. This document provides the general quality framework for European and international cooperation activities funded through the Erasmus+ programme. All higher education institutions based in EU member...

During the week of 20–24 March, several meetings with Directors-General for schools, vocational education and training and higher education were held in Stockholm as part of the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the EU. Skills supply, green transition, recognition...

On 22 March 2023, the European Commission published a new study exploring the state and effectiveness of national funding for the European Universities Initiative (EUI). The report was prepared by experts from the Center for Higher Education Policy Studies (CHEPS)...

The Global Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education came into force on 5 March 2023, becoming the first legally binding United Nations instrument on higher education, fostering international mobility and opening up increased opportunities for students and...

The new Finnish Higher Education Partnership (HEP) development cooperation programme emphasises equal partnerships between higher education institutions, increases mobility and promotes closer collaboration between administrative staff, teachers and students. Launched in February 2023, the new HEP programme will further enhance...

Early in March, Academic Freedom Index 2023 update was released, assessing the academic freedom on a global scale as of December 2022. According to the report, in 22 countries, academic freedom deteriorated significantly compared to ten years ago, while only...

As of 1 January 2023, the Slovak parliament has approved an amendment to the Act on Health Insurance, regulating the public healthcare insurance for general healthcare provision in Slovakia. Scholarship holders within national/EU scholarship programmes or a programme that is part of an international agreement, residing...

Geflüchtete an österreichischen Hochschulen 12 April 2023 More information Erasmus+ Salon 1: Is the future of Erasmus+ students living in tents? 17 April 2023 More information Rethinking Learning Modes and Learning Paths 20-21 April 2023 More information Preparing universities of...

On 21 February, Nuffic published a new analysis on outgoing mobility of Dutch higher education students. The study was conducted by Saoradh Favier and Anneloes Slappendel-Henschen, based on the outgoing degree and credit mobility data collected from various sources including...

In February, ACA continued with a series of thematic peer group meetings organised for the association members on several topics of common interest. The European policies and programmes thematic peer group convened its ninth meeting on 15 February. The main...

The PROFFORMANCE project partners will organise a series of webinars for higher education teachers and professionals across Europe. This project and its successor PROFFORMANCE+ aim to improve the quality of teaching and learning through the support of higher education teachers....

As usual around this time of the year and finally in the physical format again, ACA conducted its flagship seminar What’s New in Brussels? Latest Developments in European Policies and Programmes. This year's programme focused on the translation of the...

On 13 and 14 February 2023, ACA hosted the kick off meeting of the HIBLend project in Brussels. The aim of this three-year project funded under the Erasmus+ programme is to raise interest in and enhance the capacity of higher...

Accompanying the EU's Green Deal, and the German government's National Hydrogen Strategy, German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) has launched a new scholarship programme called "ERA Fellowships - Green Hydrogen." The programme supports national and international research stays, internships and expert...

The European Commission has launched a call for evidence on the European learning mobility framework, accompanied by a public consultation on the same topic. Views on the upcoming initiative can be expressed between 8 February and 3 May 2023 via...

The European Commission published a report assessing the progress made by member states in the automatic and mutual recognition of higher education and upper secondary education and training qualifications and the outcomes of learning periods abroad. This report follows the...

On 8 February, the German Federal Government published its new research and innovation strategy: Zukunftsstrategie Forschung und Innovation. This strategy aims to provide a response to the multiple new and existing challenges ranging from climate change and digitalisation to the...

On 6 February 2023, Türkiye was hit by two major earthquakes, with magnitudes of 7.7 and 7.6 respectively. The earthquakes also affected neighbouring countries, causing severe casualties and injuries in Syria especially, and damaging buildings in Lebanon, Iraq, Cyprus, and...

The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) has released new data showing the negative effects of Switzerland’s continuing non-association to Horizon Europe. Since 2021, Switzerland is no longer associated with European programmes. Swiss researchers can still participate in collaborative...

The National Union of University Students in Finland (SYL) and the National Union of Students in Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences (SAMOK) have received financing of EUR 85 000 from The Centre for Peace Mediation of the Finish Ministry of Foreign Affairs for...

China recently lifted its temporary rules that were put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing foreign universities to offer online courses to students within the country. Like many other countries, it recognised the need for students to continue their...

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has adapted the research programme on IT security “Digital.Sicher.Souverän.“ (Digital.Secure.Sovereign.) to new developments and threats and complemented it with the BMBF's newly published “Agenda Cybersecurity Research” (in German). In the new publication,...

Digitalisation in International Higher Education: Forward Looking Perspectives 1-2 March 2023 More information TORCH Annual Forum: Sharing Common R&I Policies and Strategies 8 March 2023 More information Polonium Foundation- Science Polish Perspectives Meetup in Brussels 9-10 March 2023 More information...

With the national accompanying programme "European University Networks (EUN)–National Initiative", ACA member, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) supports German universities participating in the EU initiative “European Universities”. The third funding round of the program, which started in January 2023...

Movetia's latest publication: “Mobility Rates and Internationalisation Index of Swiss Higher Education Institutions” addresses a wide range of questions, such as which Swiss higher education institution has the highest mobility rate or which internationalisation factors are most encouraging for student...

Recently, the Swedish Council for Higher Education (UHR) has been tasked by the government to map and analyse the conditions of Swedish HEIs’ participation in the European Universities Initiative (EUI). The report will entail an evaluation of the ongoing EU...

An impact assessment was recently conducted by ACA member, EDUFI, on its international trainee programmes. These programmes enable international traineeship opportunities yearly for around 200 Finnish higher education students and recent graduates. As in the previous assessment of 2017, the EDUFI...

As the European Commission just published the results of its European joint degree label and legal status calls, the European Universities Initiative continues to be in the spotlight at the start of the new year. Six of the ten selected...

Sweden assumed the Presidency of the Council of the European Union at a difficult time for member states and the Union as a whole as the geopolitical and economic situation in Europe has been strongly affected by Russia’s war against...

The European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT) has recently launched the EIT Campus, a new initiative aimed at fostering innovation and entrepreneurship among students and young professionals across Europe. The EIT Campus is designed to provide rich educational and...

At the end of December 2022, the European Commission informed the Tempus Public Foundation (TPF) – ACA’s member and the organisation that serves as the national agency for the Erasmus+ programme in Hungary – that based on the Council Implementing...

Following the Norwegian government’s budgetary proposal to introduce tuition fees for degree students from countries outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland starting from autumn 2023, approved in the Parliament last December, the higher education sector is widely debating its implementation. As...

On 20 December 2022, Neda Mohammad Nadeem, Minister of Higher Education of Afghanistan, issued a letter to the HEIs across the country to impose an indefinite ban on Afghan women’s access to higher education. Taliban government justified this decision based...

A total of 1484 international degree students were enrolled to Estonian higher education institutions (HEIs) this academic year, which is 15% less than last year. Likewise, the total number of international degree students who currently study in Estonia dropped from...

The objective of the Education Finland programme, which operates within the Finnish National Agency for Education (EDUFI) and boosts Finnish education exports, is to increase the value of education exports to EUR 1 billion by 2030. According to a recent...

UK’s Department for Education has announced the provision of additional GBP 15 million (around EUR 17 million) funding to help students struggling raising with living costs. This will come on top of the GBP 261 million (around EUR 297 million)...

What's New in Brussels 2023 2-3 February 2023 More information IUA In-Person Event, Researchers Share Your Views on Enhancing the Success of Ireland’s New Funding Agency 02 February 2023 More information EDEN NAP Webinar - Students’ Wellbeing In Open and...