The University of Turku and six other universities form the European Campus of City-Universities (EC2U) Alliance. The objective of the cooperation is to create a pan-European campus with a new model of quality education. The aim is that the cooperation produces synergy benefits for education, research and innovation.
The EC2U Alliance started its activities in November 2020 and it consists of
- Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi, Romania
- University of Coimbra, Portugal
- Friedrich Schiller University of Jena, Germany
- University of Pavia, Italy
- University of Poitiers, France
- University of Salamanca, Spain
- University of Turku, Finland
The Alliance is coordinated by the University of Poitiers and at the University of Turku led by Piia Björn, Vice Rector for Education. The EC2U Alliance is a joint project for all UTU staff members and students and an excellent tool to implement the University’s strategy and internationalisation programme.
The objective of the Alliance is to enhance the quality, capacity, attractiveness and international competitiveness of European higher education and to create innovative forms of collaboration and seamless mobility between the seven universities and cities. Among other things, the EC2U Alliance has created three joint Master’s degree programmes and three Virtual Institutes that focus on doctoral training and research.
The aim of the European Commission is to have 60 alliances by mid-2024, encompassing over 500 higher education institutions. Currently there are 44 alliances in Europe, consisting of 340 higher education institutions. Out of these, 14 are Finnish institutions.
The Alliance involves circa 160,000 students and 20,000 staff members. The operations are partially funded by Erasmus+ and Horizon2020 programmes of the EU.
EC2U has established three international Master's degree programmes. University of Turku offers modules in all three and has an intake to two of them: European Languages, Cultures and Societies in Contact and Sustainable Cities and Communities.
- LIFELINE - Lifelong Well-Being and Healthy Ageing
- European Languages, Cultures and Societies in Contact
- Information for applicants is available here.
- Sustainable Cities and Communities
- Information for applicants is available here.
EC2U has established three Virtual Institutes (VIs) whose themes are based on the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) but do not exclude other themes. The objective of the VIs is to bring researchers in different stages of their academic career together, starting from PhD students. The Virtual Institutes foster research cooperation between researchers of the Alliance universities and offer among other things training, thematic seminars as well as opportunities for internationalisation and for joint funding applications and publications.
The Virtual Institutes are
Once a year, EC2U organises a Think Tank on a topical issue, inviting stakeholders such as representatives of the cities, businesses, lobbyists and associations in the region to join researchers in reflecting on the issues at hand. Each partner university organises its own Think Tank locally and the results will be compiled as recommendations for the entire European community. The results will also presented during the EC2U Forum.
EC2U organises a Forum every six months, welcoming students and staff to attend. Forums offer an excellent opportunity to learn more about the achievements and activities of the Alliance as well as to network with colleagues from the partner universities. The next Forum will be held in Jena between 23 and 25 May 2023 and the last Forum of the pilot phase will be held in Poitiers in mid-October 2023.
European Universities
The core objective of the European Universities initiative is to
- promote European values and identity by increasing collaboration between new generation Europeans.
- enhance the quality, capacity, attractiveness and international competitiveness of European higher education and to enable a deep systemic change of higher education institutions.
The aim of the European Universities initiative is systemic change of higher education, arising from deep collaboration. The continuity of cooperation and activities beyond the funding period is central to the initiative. The activities of the alliances encompass the whole higher education community from students to researchers and from teachers to support services.
More information
For more information about EC2U activities at UTU, please approach ec2u@utu.fi.
The representative of the University of Turku in the working committee of the Alliance is Vice Rector Piia Björn. She is in charge of the group that coordinates the EC2U cooperation at UTU. At the University of Turku, the local EC2U Project Manager is Liisa Järvinen and the local EC2U Project Coordinator is Lassi Yli-Muilu.
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