BUT officials held talks with rectors of EULiST partner universities in Northern Europe

In the first week of October, two bilateral meetings of representatives of partner universities of the European University Alliance EULiST took place. Members of the management of Brno University of Technology, Rector Ladislav Janíček and Vice-Rector Iveta Šimberová visited Jönköping University in Sweden, where they met with Rector Måns Svensson, then Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology in Finland, where they met with Rector Juha-Matti Saks and Vice-Rector Jari Hämäläinen.

Both meetings resulted from the participation of the Rector of BUT at the 2024 European University Association Funding Forum in Helsinki, where he gave a lecture on mechanisms and policies of financing Czech higher education. "It is always enriching to meet face-to-face with our EULiST alliance partners on the grounds of their universities, to perceive the context, to be inspired by the views and experiences and the location when planning cooperation. We are at the birth of a new way of international cooperation built on close partnerships between European universities of the same or similar focus. For this concept to be successful, it needs to best reflect the issues of the time and the societal needs we are addressing in different contexts and conditions. We look forward to further developing our alliance together through collaboration that will strengthen our universities and enable us to find innovative solutions in synergy that reflect the needs of modern society. It is up to us to take advantage of the opportunities that this university alliance brings us," commented Rector Ladislav Janíček, current Chairman of the Governing and Management Boards.

The Presidency of the EULiST Alliance raises a number of issues related to the future strategic direction of the formation. The Alliance reached its first milestone when it became a registered European University composed of ten universities. However, there is a need to go further and to focus on setting up cooperation between the partner universities so that this unique combination of European, mostly purely technical, universities has real benefits for each of them. "There is a need to share good practices, to identify the strengths and qualities of each partner university, both in terms of professional competences and infrastructure. We have agreed with our Finnish and Swedish partners to strive for efficient, effective and synergistic networking of our universities through planned activities, as well as to share and leverage excellent practices and experiences to achieve internationally competitive results. It is important to get to know the views and approaches of each partner regarding studies and research, which will unsurprisingly result in a number of similarities," said the Rector of BUT.

"In the countries we meet on these trips, there is a certain set of exactly the same or similar topics and each partner finds different solutions in the context of their national specificities. One unifying theme, for example, is finding ways to address the general decline in interest in technical and science education that is occurring despite industry's call for a technically skilled workforce. Another common challenge is the focus on internationalisation of studies and attracting students from abroad. In this respect, it appears that any quality European university that wants to be competitive must move towards a dual language educational offer and create conditions for making studies available to those interested in studying abroad," said Ladislav Janíček.

"Competitiveness today clearly needs to be seen in an international context. The close connection of technical universities with the application sphere, especially the link with industry, is an important attribute of competitiveness. The interdisciplinarity of studies and research is becoming a critical factor for international success. In the field of research, modern universities are challenged by high-quality international grants, which require bringing together the excellent competences of academic institutions in strong consortia, for which the EULiST Alliance provides an excellent opportunity. The active mobility of students, but also of academic and research staff, including doctoral and post-doctoral fellowships, is becoming increasingly important. Mobility creates an opportunity to develop both international competences and the international culture of our universities. As a result, international cooperation and mobility can be considered a normal part of work and study obligations. International mobility not only contributes to the personal and professional development of our students, academics and researchers, but also provides valuable impulses for the development of the universities themselves. It inspires and gives a new dimension to the institutional image and perception of our universities as international corporations," the Rector outlined other topics from the meeting with representatives of Nordic universities.

The topic of international mobility was further elaborated by Iveta Šimberová, Vice-Rector for Internationalisation and External Relations of BUT. "It is great that we agreed in our joint meetings that one of the strengths of our cooperation is to ensure mobility of students, academic, scientific and administrative staff. Thanks to the wide network of partner universities, everyone can gain valuable international experience, learn about different approaches, systems and specifics of organizational cultures of universities in different countries. For academics and researchers, the cooperation represents an opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience, share resources and infrastructure. Student mobility within the partner institutions of the European University Alliance brings a number of important benefits. In addition to enriching their personal and professional lives, it improves language skills, broadens their knowledge and skills in the field, creates valuable contacts beneficial for future career opportunities, and teaches them independence, adaptability and intercultural competence. Partner universities can make more efficient use of laboratories, libraries and other facilities, which enhances the quality of staff research and student education. Joint projects and research initiatives enable the integration of different fields and disciplines, leading to innovative solutions and new perspectives. This multidisciplinary approach is essential for addressing the complex challenges facing our societies. This also increases the competitiveness of European institutions at a global level," said the Vice-Rector after visiting EULiST's Nordic partners.

The discussions of the representatives of the partner universities clearly show a need to build the Alliance so that it can be a source of inspiration, experience, a model of effective cooperation, a reference of good practices, accepted standards and agreements, which can be adequately used as a basis for argumentation and decision-making within the universities and in negotiations with partners at the national level. "Collaboration should enrich and contribute to the development of individual partner organisations and should not be a formal burden. It is therefore crucial to set up a pragmatic and transparent organisational structure, clear governance and operational communication mechanisms within the Alliance. " said Rector Ladislav Janíček in conclusion.