A consortium of organisations led by the British Council won, in late 2014, a European Commission contract over the implementation of the “Enhancing the attractiveness of European higher education in the world” project. The project ran until the end of 2017 and its overall objective was to contribute to strengthening the profile of the entire range of European higher education on the world stage, and of EU-funded opportunities, and make them more visible and accessible to mobile learners and academics. The main aims of the project were to show students, researchers and influencers worldwide what studying in Europe offers, to highlight study, research and scholarship opportunities in Europe, to direct students and researchers to European and national education portals to plan their studies, and to connect European higher education institutions with international students and partners.

Towards these aims, the partners engaged in a diverse set of marketing and training activities, such as:

• Organised a series of branded ´Study in Europe´ fairs (in Canada, Ecuador, Egypt, Nigeria, Peru, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Tunisia and USA)
• Delivered marketing webinars for European higher education professionals and organised virtual events
• Revamped the `Study in Europe` portal and delivered a social media strategy 
• Produced a package of promotional material
• Established and trained a network of European Higher Education Experts (EHEEs) - information multipliers and advisers on Study in Europe - in 5 partner countries (Brazil, China, India, Russia and South Africa)

ACA’s role in the project was to set up and to run a network of European Higher Education Experts (EHEEs) in five countries, i.e. Brazil, China, India, Russia and South Africa. The network consisted of 10 experts in each country, who until the end of 2017 organised a number of ´Study in Europe´ information sessions at their higher education institutions (HEIs) in order to inform and guide students and researchers from their and other HEIs in their city or region about study and research opportunities in Europe.

As the first step, ACA hosted a kick-off information and training seminar in each country, during which the EHEEs got a first orientation about the policy context of European higher education, about study opportunities in Europe and respective databases and websites informing about them, and about scholarship and support programmes at European (Erasmus+) and national level (plus respective websites and online databases), about practical matters such as visa regulations, permits of stay and work, etc.

During the two-year period, ACA supported and guided EHEEs in their work by providing updates on developments and opportunities in European higher education, and advising EHEEs whenever needed. In the first half of 2017, another set of seminars, this time to evaluate and assess the work of the networks, took place in the partner countries.

Read more about the seminars and EHEE networks in the 5 countries:

ACA information and training seminar in Moscow in 2015 and Moscow in 2017
ACA information and training seminar in Rio de Janeiroin 2016 and Rio de Janeiro in 2017
ACA information and training seminar in Beijing
ACA information and training seminar in Cape Town in 2016 and Cape Town in 2017
ACA information and training seminar in New Delhi in 2016 and Pune in 2017

For further details about the project and the network of European higher education experts, please contact Irina Ferencz or Marija Mitic at ACA (irina.ferencz(at)aca-secretariat.be or marija.mitic(at)aca-secretariat.be).