EDITOR'S PICK
EUROPEAN UNIVERSITIES ALLIANCES
SUMMER 2025 EDITION | SNEAK PEEK
2025 Summer Forum | European Universities Alliances (Editor's pick)
IN CONVERSATION WITH
ALLAN GOODMAN AND JAN PALMOWSKI
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Senior Researcher, Swiss Federal University for Vocational Education and Training
Across Alliance Coordinator
Postdoctoral Researcher, University of St. Gallen
Secretary General, Unite! European Universities Alliance
Head of Communications, FilmEU European University
Una Europa Senior Local Lead, University of Helsinki
Doctoral Researcher in Education, University of Oxford
Chief Communications Officer, EUTOPIA European University Alliance
Innovation manager Education, SURF
Assistant Professor of Higher Education Policy at the University of Twente
Head of the Una Europa Alliance Unit, University of Bologna
Task Lead, ENGAGE.EU Strategy 2035
Associate Professor, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya
Secretary General, European Association for the Applied Sciences in Higher Education
Assistant Director for European Educational Initiatives, The University of Bergen
Head of Communications, CIVIS European University Alliance
Secretary General, HEROES Alliance, Thomas More University of Applied Sciences
Secretary General, ENGAGE.EU
Project Manager, CIVICA Alliance Libraries
Published by European Association for International EducationPO Box 11189, 1001 GD Amsterdam, the NetherlandsE-mail: info@eaie.org, publications@eaie.org, www.eaie.org
Editor: Eva JanebováPublications Committee: Eva Janebová (Chair), Ragnhild Solvi Berg, Queenie Lam, Arnim Heinemann
Director, Knowledge Development and Research: Laura E. RumbleyHead of Marketing and Communications: Léa BasinKnowledge Development Coordinator: Cecilia AlbèDesigners: Nhu Nguyen, Maeghan Dunn
Copyright © 2025 by the EAIE All rights reserved. Extracts from Forum may be reproduced with permission of the EAIE. Unless stated otherwise, opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the position of the EAIE.ISSN 1389-0808
Doctoral Researcher in Public Policy at Central European University
“The EUI reflects the EU’s evolving vision for higher education, which now integrates social and political goals alongside economic ones.”
“To successfully implement large-scale initiatives like the EUI, institutions must move beyond top-down communication strategies.”
“University alliances are forging new learning methods and European certifications to equip students with the tools to deal with global problems.”
“What's truly distinctive about this collaboration is its European context - the EU driving it not just with funding, but with a political framework.”
This issue offers a rich and multifaceted exploration of a bold European experiment – one that tests the extent to which integrated collaboration can enhance student learning, teaching, research, innovation, societal engagement and talent development. It is an ambitious endeavour to define what 21st-century higher education can and should look like – and how it can succeed in addressing global challenges.
While this issue focuses on a European Union initiative, it would be a mistake to assume it holds relevance only for European audiences. On the contrary, the pioneering steps taken by European universities toward forming deeply integrated alliances offer inspiration and practical insights for institutions and policy-makers around the world seeking to elevate international partnerships to the next level. This is exemplified in a dynamic dialogue featured in this issue between two prominent leaders in international higher education: Jan Palmowski (The Guild) and Allan Goodman (IIE), who provide comparative European and American perspectives.
Even more significantly, European Universities Alliances (EUAs) represent a stronghold for shared, values-based higher education – an approach that may prove more resilient in the face of rising scepticism toward internationalisation and global academic collaboration. While the initiative may appear centred on research integration and educational mobility, its potential impact reaches much further.
The true significance of the EUAs may lie in their transformative influence on students’ personal and professional futures, their sense of European identity, and the long-term cohesion of European societies. These outcomes, while still emerging, underscore the scope and promise of this grand initiative.
This issue of Forum focuses on how the European Universities Initiative (EUI) is reshaping higher education across Europe. With over 570 universities involved and nearly half of the student population enrolled in institutions that are part of an alliance, the issue presents insights from both researchers investigating the impact and practitioners sharing concerns, inspirations, and lessons learned through direct experience.
With more than 60 alliances currently active, there is no one-size-fits-all model, making it nearly impossible to capture the full scope of the initiative in a single issue. Fortunately, there is also no need to do so. However, it is crucial to begin with an evidence-based perspective. Therefore, this issue opens with a section dedicated to recent research and practitioner-oriented articles focused on stakeholder engagement.
We also feature an insightful interview on the value of alliances, highlighting their significance for European higher education and offering inspiration for institutions beyond the EHEA. This is followed by practice-oriented contributions designed to foster stronger connections amongst partner institutions.
A research-based article by Daniela Craciun, Agata Lambrechts, Nadia Manzoni, Alina Felder-Stindt, and Antonin Charret outlines the significant structural, educational, and research-related changes introduced by EUAs – while also raising critical concerns about their long-term sustainability, given the current short-term funding model.
Meanwhile, PhD students Agata Mannino and Francesco Girotti offer an in-depth, evidence-based analysis of stakeholder engagement across 39 alliances (funded in 2019 and subsequently renewed). Their findings suggest that while stakeholder awareness of alliances is increasing, full understanding and effective participation are still lacking. They call for greater collaboration and co-creation of the alliance narrative – a theme further developed in Sabine Sainte-Rose and Hans-Georg van Liempd’s inspirational piece on strategic planning.
Their contribution also raises important critical questions, such as the increasingly common – yet potentially problematic – practice of creating new administrative units outside of existing international offices, and the need to ensure inclusivity in engaging all university stakeholders in alliance activities.
The European Universities Initiative is far from a superficial project. It demands significant structural and cultural change – a reimagining of the status quo across all university functions.
In this spirit, Anna Stina Sinisalo and Andreas Winkler share practical insights from the Una Europa and Unite! Alliances, focusing on grassroots academic engagement through initiatives such as seed funding and matchmaking activities, while the article by Anna Coutinho, María Isabel Soldevila Brea and Armando Uribe Echeverría offers practical strategies for engaging students in joint curricula and supporting their skill development.
Piet van Hove and John Edwards also emphasise the importance of skill development and introduce another vital aspect of the alliances: their amplified potential to foster connections with industry. While particularly relevant for universities of applied sciences, this collaboration potential is equally valuable for research-intensive institutions.
The second part of this issue centres on the theme of interconnectivity – described by Katrine Molan Hansen through the idea of the "fifth freedom": the seamless exchange of knowledge, data, research, and education across national borders. Three other articles explore concrete ways alliances can enhance this connectivity: Sophie Forcadell highlights the role of university libraries in facilitating open access to research data and educational resources; Christien Bok discusses the creation of digital ecosystems to support collaboration, and Jesús Alcober describes how digital infrastructure can promote meaningful engagement.
This issue does not claim to be a comprehensive overview of the current state of the EUA initiative. Rather, it offers a compelling starting point for further exploration and discussions – many of which may take place at the 2025 EAIE Conference and Exhibition hosted in Gothenburg.
With great appreciation to the authors for sharing their expertise with the EAIE readership community, and special thanks to Ragnhild Solvi Berg and the EAIE's Thematic Committee on European-funded programmes for their support and expert guidance on this issue.
Eva Janebová, Editor
publications@eaie.org
