European universities to be the main pillar of the European Education Area

On 17 May, the EU Council adopted conclusions on the European Universities, calling for a strong support for the initiative.

41 University alliances are currently involved in the initiative, bringing together over 280 institutions from all over Europe. These alliances are testing the new concept of the European Universities and examining its potential for transformation of higher education. The initiative was launched in 2017 and EU officials have now agreed that it should be fully implemented during the EU's 2021-2027 financing period. By the end of this year, the European Commission should also report on the main results of the mid-term evaluation of the first "pilot" alliances.

The European Universities represent a new form of international partnership that enables students, staff and researchers to move seamlessly between partner institutions to train, teach, study and do research. lt should foster mobility, development of excellent science and research as well as global competitiveness of European universities. 

The purpose of the European Universities initiative is to strengthen the link between higher education, research, innovation and society. With their conclusions, ministers encourage member states and the Commission to make sure that the initiative remains central to building a European Education Area by 2025, inspiring the transformation of higher education in the EU and helping to achieve the ambitious vision European Education Area and European Research Area. The Council invites member states to take advantage of all available funding possibilities, including the Recovery and Resilience Facility to support the initiative.

Read more in the official press release.