“Supercampuses” already exist in Europe which allow students and researchers to work in several universities spread across the continent. The country takes stock of the participation of Spanish universities in a process which should lead to the creation of European diplomas.
“The merger of European universities is no longer a dream”, title The country. There are already forty-one alliances between higher education establishments scattered throughout Europe and it is already possible to start a course in Spain, continue it in Ireland and complete it in Italy. “The European Commission is now working on the creation of the Community diploma and launching the European student card”, announces the Spanish daily.
Dutchman Rij Mathot, 25, is preparing a master’s degree in sustainable development entitled Global Challenges for Sustainability, a course designed jointly by the University of Barcelona, Trinity College Dublin, University of Utrecht, Loránd University- Eötvös in Budapest and the University of Montpellier. His first semester of studies took place in Barcelona, the second will take place in Utrecht and a third destination has yet to be determined:
Each day, a teacher teaches his course on one of the campuses. On each of the different sites, regarding twenty students follow it remotely and work with those of their fellow students who live elsewhere in Europe via an online platform. In Barcelona, Rij Mathot rubs shoulders with students from Ireland, Nigeria, Belgium and India.”
A pooling of resources
The master’s degree which Rij Mathot will obtain will bear the seal of the five universities which offer the course he has chosen. But the European Commission now intends to move towards the creation of real European diplomas. “Transnational experiences that are facilitated by alliances between universities must be validated by a diploma. The idea is to start determining common criteria because we must have confidence in the reliability of education systems”, explains Christina Galache, Education Advisor at the Permanent Representation of Spain to the European Union.
Several major Spanish universities are part of the alliances that have already been formed. In addition to the University of Barcelona and the network it has formed with four other European campuses, the University of Zaragoza has been presiding since 2020 UNIT-Universitas Montium, an alliance of five other universities: the University of Turin, the Savoy Montblanc University of Pau-Pays de l’Adour, the Universidad da Beira Interior, Portugal and the University of Vest Timisoara. “All partner institutions share the same research challenges : they are located in border and mountainous areas, with a harsh climate and sparse populations.”
As for the University of Granada, which receives 1,600 Erasmus students each year, it coordinates the Arqus alliance within which the universities of Bergen, Graz, Leipzig, Lyon and Padua have developed a common curriculum in cybersecurity.
“European alliances are good from a funding point of view – because Europe contributes – and the pooling of resources makes it possible to improve management, research and teaching at the same time”, emphasizes Dámaso López, vice-rector of the Complutense University of Madrid. The alliance formed by the Complutense with the Sorbonne and the University of Bologna, among others, is also preparing to inaugurate a degree in European studies coordinated from Louvain.
A European diploma project must be tested this year, specifies The country. To start, the students concerned will receive a simple certificate which will attest to the particular dimension of their training. But soon a real European diploma, recognized by all the Member States, should be available in a single and easily authenticated format.
Source
Founded in 1976, six months following Franco’s death, “Le Pays” is the most read newspaper in Spain. A centre-left daily, it belongs to the Spanish editorial group Prisa. At the end of 2013, elpais.com launched two new editions for
[…]
Read more
