EPICUR, ECIU and YUFE Alliance will lead an innovative approach to the European Degree

‍Together with two other European University Alliances, EPICUR Alliance will lead a pilot project to shape the future European Degree and to pilot an innovative approach with strong support of the European Commission. The European Degree label is an opportunity to innovate our education and deepen the European dimension in learning. In doing so, we commit to being bold, staying at the forefront, to respond to the societal needs, and to go beyond traditional models of learning.

The FOCI project (Future-proof Criteria for Innovative European Education) – which brings together members of ECIU University, YUFE and EPICUR Alliances – has been selected by the European Commission under the Erasmus+ programme towards exploring and piloting the possible criteria that will be the basis for the future European Degree.

The truly innovative and inclusive vision for education that unites ECIU, YUFE and EPICUR strongly manifests in FOCI’s goals to work with with stakeholders, pilot first results and issue policy recommendations as concrete tools for advancing the development of European Degree label. In order to generate specific evidence for the added value of a European Degree, the FOCI project includes amongst its key activities the piloting of the European Degree label criteria in the context of a set of joint programmes and other educational models provided by the three Alliances.

The project will run for one year (March 2023 – March 2024) and will enhance the Alliance’s close partnerships and co-creation with diverse higher education stakeholders, including students, labour market representatives, national authorities and quality assurance agencies (from all countries in which partner universities are situated). By bringing all of these stakeholders together, FOCI will explore the fundamental needs and expectations towards the European Degree label, from the perspective of not only the higher education sector, but also broader society, as well as relevant regulatory obstacles which need to be addressed at national and European level in order for the European Degree to become a reality in the near future.

YUFE, ECIU and EPICUR are three “first-wave” European Universities Alliances that have been piloting innovative models of European Universities since 2019 and have already proven their commitment to fundamentally reshaping how higher education in Europe is provided. Universities from these three Alliances have partnered up in the FOCI project to contribute to an evidence-based development of a European Degree label.

FOCI Consortium: