Católica participates for the 1st time in the meeting of Portuguese higher education institutions in European University Alliances
Francisco Mendes-Palma, Director of Global Engagement at Universidade Católica Portuguesa (UCP), and Maria Lopes Cardoso, Director of Partnerships, Alumni and Employability at UCP's Porto Regional Centre, represented the University at the 2nd meeting of Portuguese higher education institutions (HEIs) in European University Alliances, which took place on 23 November at the University of Minho in Braga.
According to the Director of Global Engagement at Universidade Católica Portuguesa, this was "an extremely productive and constructive meeting, where the strategic lines of national collaboration in promoting European university alliances were established, which should count on a positive Portuguese contribution."
Regarding UCP's participation in the Transform4EU Alliance, Francisco Mendes-Palma comments: "participation in the Transform4EU Alliance also has an impact on the relationship that UCP establishes with other Portuguese higher education institutions."
With the participation of the President and Coordinator of the Higher Education Team at the National Erasmus+ Agency and representatives from 16 universities and institutes, the meeting aimed to define the creation of an HEI forum to promote a joint response to the various challenges facing these HEIs within European universities.
The forum, which will be under the tripartite leadership of the Universidade do Minho, Universidade da Beira Interior and Instituto Politécnico do Cávado e Ave in this initial phase, aims to be a space to discuss fundamental issues such as funding and mobility, share good practices and be the HEIs' favoured interlocutor with the government and other Portuguese entities involved in coordinating higher education.
The European University Alliances are a flagship initiative of the European strategy for universities, and the European Commission's ambition is to expand this initiative to 60 European university alliances involving more than 500 HEIs by mid-2024.