The European Universities Initiative is a new framework for collaboration between universities in the European Union. Andrew Gunn reflects on the first few years of the initiative and assesses how it might help shape the future of European higher education

Gunn, Andrew

English

LSE Research Online

Assessing	the	potential	of	the	European	UniversitiesInitiativeThe	European	Universities	Initiative	is	a	new	framework	for	collaboration	between	universities	in	the	EuropeanUnion.	Andrew	Gunn	reflects	on	the	first	few	years	of	the	initiative	and	assesses	how	it	might	help	shape	the	futureof	European	higher	education.The	idea	of	a	European	University	is	as	old	as	Europe’s	political	union	itself.	A	supranational	university	was	firstmooted	in	1948,	and	various	proposals	were	discussed	amongst	the	founding	members	in	the	early	years	of	theEuropean	Community.	However,	none	of	these	proposals	came	to	fruition,	owing	to	a	lack	of	consensus	amongstmember	states	over	what	form	it	should	take.These	discussions	identify	what	would	be	an	enduring	fault	line	running	through	the	European	political	project:	is	itabout	economics	and	trade	or	culture	and	social	solidarity,	or	both?	And	where	does	higher	education	fit	into	both	ofthese	differing	rationales?The	European	Universities	InitiativeIn	the	late	1960s,	European	leaders	agreed	to	fund	the	European	University	Institute,	Florence,	the	postgraduateand	post-doctoral	institute	in	the	social	sciences	which	opened	in	1972.	However,	this	small,	specialist	institutewasn’t	the	supranational	university	featuring	the	full	range	of	subjects	many	had	envisaged.	For	some,	theEuropean	University	remained	an	unfulfilled	ambition.The	issue	would	return	to	European	politics	following	the	election	of	Emmanuel	Macron	as	French	President	in	May2017.	Macron’s	vision	for	an	overhaul	of	the	European	Union	featured	resurrecting	the	idea	of	a	EuropeanUniversity.	In	September	2017	the	President	made	a	speech	at	the	Sorbonne	University	where	he	set	out	his	visionfor	a	“fair,	protective	and	ambitious	Europe”	underpinned	by	greater	convergence	and	solidarity.Macron	stated	“the	strongest	cement	that	binds	the	European	Union	together	will	always	be	culture	andknowledge”.	He	argued	that	the	many	languages	of	Europe	should	be	made	an	asset,	so	that	Europe	is	a	placewhere	all	students	can	speak	at	least	two	European	languages	by	2024,	and	that	instead	of	lamenting	the	divisionsbetween	nations,	exchanges	between	them	should	be	increased.To	realise	this	vision,	Macron	believed	it	was	time	to	create	“European	Universities—a	network	of	universitiesacross	Europe”	that	will	“be	drivers	of	educational	innovation	and	the	quest	for	excellence.”	This	agenda	was	thentaken	up	by	the	European	Commission,	and	it	moved	quickly	through	the	EU	institutions.	In	2018	the	mainobjectives	for	the	new	European	Universities	Initiative	(EUI)	were	set	as:	first,	promoting	common	European	valuesand	strengthened	European	identity	through	collaboration,	and	second,	delivering	a	“substantial	leap	in	quality,performance,	attractiveness	and	international	competitiveness	of	European	universities”.A	‘network	of	networks’Two	rounds	of	calls,	in	2019	and	2020,	invited	existing	European	universities	to	collaborate	and	produce	proposalsfor	networks	to	be	funded	by	the	initiative.	The	EUI	is	an	innovative	model	of	collaboration	as	it	is	a	‘network	ofnetworks’	–	multiple	unique	alliances	developed	using	a	bottom-up	approach,	which	are	all	members	of	a	largerstrategic	scheme.This	means	the	EUI	didn’t	produce	one	network	but	41	different	networks	involving	284	higher	educationinstitutions,	each	of	which	has	five	to	nine	members	united	by	an	overarching	theme.	Each	network	may	also	haveassociate	partners	in	addition	to	full	members	enabling	wider	collaboration.	These	can	be	a	wide	range	oforganisations	including	NGOs,	businesses	and	government	agencies.LSE European Politics and Policy (EUROPP) Blog: Assessing the potential of the European Universities Initiative Page 1 of 3		Date originally posted: 2021-05-14Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2021/05/14/assessing-the-potential-of-the-european-universities-initiative/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/A	network	may	be	themed	around	a	subject	area,	such	as	the	Alliance	for	Common	Fine	Arts	Curriculum—EU4ART.	However,	the	design	of	the	selection	criteria	meant	a	wide	range	of	unifying	themes	can	be	seenamongst	the	selected	alliances.	For	example,	The	European	University	of	the	Seas	is	an	alliance	of	six	universitiesin	coastal	locations	who	are	committed	to	more	effective	ocean	governance	and	delivering	the	SustainableDevelopment	Goals	for	the	ocean,	while	the	European	University	for	WellBeing	seeks	to	make	a	measurable	impacton	European	citizens’	quality	of	life.Some	of	the	alliances	are	new,	developed	specifically	for	the	funding	call	such	as	the	European	University	of	Post-Industrial	Cities,	while	others,	such	as	Athena	and	Aurora,	are	existing	networks	that	sought	EUI	funding.	Eachnetwork	receives	up	to	€5	million	from	Erasmus+	to	support	a	range	of	activities.	These	include	student	and	staffmobility,	developing	joint	programmes,	common	infrastructure	and	shared	governance	and	removing	barriers	tocredit	recognition.	In	2020	it	was	announced	each	network	would	also	receive	up	to	€2	million	of	Horizon	researchfunding	under	the	“science	with	and	for	society”	chapter.	This	has	bolstered	research	within	the	networks,	whichwere	initially	more	teaching	mission	orientated.Although	this	additional	funding	has	been	welcomed,	when	compared	to	the	money	being	spent	on	innovations	inhigher	education	in	China	and	the	US,	the	EUI	is	operating	on	relatively	small	sums	which	are	spread	quite	widely.Because	of	this,	networks	may	need	to	seek	out	additional	funding	sources.	This	could	open	up	a	role	for	memberstates.Can	the	EUI	succeed?A	prominent	theme	of	EUI	networks	is	the	use	of	challenge-based	education	–	a	fashionable	framework	wherelearning	is	applied	to	solving	real-world	challenges	–	“where	students,	academics	and	external	partners	cancooperate	in	interdisciplinary	teams	to	tackle	the	biggest	issues	facing	Europe	today.”	In	fact,	the	EuropeanConsortium	of	Innovative	Universities	made	challenge-based	education	the	theme	of	their	whole	network.One	highly	serendipitous	feature	of	the	EUI	proposals	was	the	use	of	virtual	mobility,	long	before	pandemiclockdowns	were	a	thing.	For	example,	the	UNITE!	University	Network	for	Innovation,	Technology	and	Engineeringhas	as	one	of	its	five	deliverables	the	creation	of	a	“Virtual	Campus	that	includes	a	platform	for	digital	mobility,virtual	spaces	and	online	tools”.	The	EUI	calls	placed	great	importance	on	‘embedded	mobility’	where	at	“least	50%of	the	students	within	the	alliance	should	benefit	from	such	mobility,	be	it	physical,	virtual	or	blended”,	and	this	isreflected	in	the	operations	of	the	new	networks.Some	alliances	funded	in	the	first	round	have	since	expanded	to	incorporate	new	members.	For	example	in	June2020	the	LSE	was	upgraded	from	‘associate	partner’	to	‘full	member’	of	CIVICA	–	The	European	University	ofSocial	Sciences.	The	LSE	now	sits	alongside	seven	partners	as	a	full	member.As	the	UK	hadn’t	yet	fully	departed	the	EU	when	the	EUI	was	being	rolled	out,	UK	universities	were	eligible	to	joinnetwork	bids;	an	opportunity	denied	to	Swiss	universities	who	wanted	to	be	involved.	This	resulted	in	UKuniversities	being	members	of	seven	networks.The	UK	is	now	a	third	country	and	the	Brexit	settlement	for	higher	education	looks	a	little	incoherent.	UKuniversities	in	EUI	networks	now	participate	from	outside	the	EU	in	a	scheme	designed	to	strengthen	the	socialsolidarity	of	the	regional	bloc	–	the	same	bloc	UK	voters	choose	to	leave.The	politics	of	this	might	be	a	little	odd,	but	for	universities	this	situation	is	perfectly	feasible.	Modern	universities	areadept	at	managing	the	membership	of	multiple	collaborations	and	exchanges	with	differing	rationales	at	any	onetime.	Moreover,	having	one	UK	member	in	several	networks	is	highly	unlikely	to	derail	the	wider	purpose	of	theEU’s	project.The	fact	the	EUI	is	now	drawing	on	both	Erasmus+	and	Horizon	funding	streams	–	the	UK	remains	in	the	latter,	butnot	the	former	–	gives	the	UK	a	small	stake	in	the	scheme	and	may	provide	some	security	for	UK	universities	in	theinitiative.	It	is	too	early	to	tell	if	the	networks	will	deliver	the	intended	results.	But	more	will	be	known	in	May,following	the	mid-term	evaluation	of	the	first	round,	when	the	EU	will	report	on	the	next	steps	of	the	EUI.LSE European Politics and Policy (EUROPP) Blog: Assessing the potential of the European Universities Initiative Page 2 of 3		Date originally posted: 2021-05-14Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2021/05/14/assessing-the-potential-of-the-european-universities-initiative/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/Note:	This	article	gives	the	views	of	the	author,	not	the	position	of	EUROPP	–	European	Politics	and	Policy	or	theLondon	School	of	Economics.	Featured	image	credit:	Lars	Kruse	/	AU	FotoLSE European Politics and Policy (EUROPP) Blog: Assessing the potential of the European Universities Initiative Page 3 of 3		Date originally posted: 2021-05-14Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2021/05/14/assessing-the-potential-of-the-european-universities-initiative/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/

Assessing the potential of the European Universities Initiative

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Assessing the potential of the European Universities Initiative

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