News

The evolution of the modernisation agenda for higher education

by Eva Åkesson
Rector Uppsala University

On 24 January, the Coimbra Group broke new ground by holding its first High-Level Workshop on Lifelong Learning and Employability. The Workshop was a great success and bodes well for similar events in the future, bringing Coimbra Group university leaders together with European higher education experts and policymakers to discuss how comprehensive, research-intensive universities can contribute constructively to the higher education modernisation agenda…

CG statement on European Universities Networks

The Coimbra Group Executive Board has released a statement on European Universities Networks. “The Coimbra Group Executive Board calls for urgent clarification of the concept of “European Universities Networks”. (…) Existing Higher Education networks have a crucial role to play at European level in facilitating effective cooperation based on their extensive accumulated experience and expertise. […]

Reflections for European research policies: outcomes of the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the EU

by Taivo Raud
Head of Research Policy Department, Estonian Ministry of Education and Research and as of the 1st of January 2018, Head of the Research Department of the University of Tartu

Estonia assumed the Presidency of the Council of the EU for the first time in history in the second half of 2017. For the Presidency, we had two priorities in the field of research and innovation – first was building the stronger case for increased investments in R&I, and the second to start the discussion on how to rationalize the EU research funding landscape…

High-Level Workshop on “Lifelong Learning and Employability”

The Coimbra Group is organizing the First Coimbra Group High-Level Workshop on “Lifelong Learning and Employability”, taking place next 24 January 2018 (14h-18h30) in the Permanent Representation of the Czech Republic to the EU (Brussels). This event aims at bringing Rectors from the Coimbra Group Universities together with European Higher Education Experts and Policymakers to […]

A reflection on renewing the undergraduate curriculum and the influence of globalisation on higher education

by Patrick Prendergast
Provost & President Trinity College Dublin

Ego Mundi Civis Esse Cupio – ‘I long to be a citizen of the world’. This very Renaissance sentiment, as expressed by Erasmus in the 16th century, has been turning round in my mind ever since I first heard it. I used it in my inaugural address, when I was elected Provost in 2011, to encapsulate what I wished for our students.

Do we have Good Women in Science?

From the Doctoral Studies WG A tradition in the Fall: the Nobel Prizes. Once more, women are not represented in the list of Nobel Prize winners. This is also becoming a tradition, but we should not get used to it. We should reflect on what is happening to women in Science in 2017, because it […]

A reflection on the evolution of higher education and research policies of the European Union, within the perspective of the Brexit vote

by Sir Timothy O’Shea
Principal University of Edinburgh

These are interesting times in Higher Education and Brexit, of course, poses a variety of new challenges for universities.
The University of Edinburgh is, and always will be, a truly global university…

Executive Board statement: university autonomy in Catalonia

The Coimbra Group Executive Board follows the political development in Catalonia with great concern, in particular with respect to the situation of Higher Education and Research Institutions, the University of Barcelona being a long-standing and valued member of the Coimbra Group of Universities. Hoping for a collaborative, reasoned solution to the overall situation, the Coimbra […]

Improving Erasmus+, extending our reach: the Coimbra Group at EAIE 2017

By Dorothy Kelly, Henri Luchian and Joaquim Ramos de Carvalho The Coimbra Group participated actively at the annual conference of the European Association for International Educational Education (EAIE), which took place in Seville in September. With over 6,000 participants from 95 countries, EAIE 2017 was an opportunity to engage with a wide audience in topics […]

CG High-Level Seminar for Rectors and Vice-Rectors on Education Policy

13-14 November 2017, Trinity College Dublin This event will bring together Rectors and Vice-Rectors of the 39 Coimbra Group universities as well as representatives of key stakeholders in higher education policy and in industry. The Dublin seminar continues the annual tradition of Coimbra Group high-level policy seminars addressing issues of key concerns in, alternately, education […]

A First Response from the CG to the Lamy Report

The Coimbra Group has published a first response to the “Lab-Fab-App” report on maximising the impact of EU R&I programme. In September 2016 Carlos Moedas, the EU Commissioner for research, science and innovation, mandated a 12-person high-level expert group led by former WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy to set out a vision on how to maximise […]

New Executive Board team

The first meeting of the Executive Board after the annual meeting in Edinburgh took place in Brussels. From right to left, bottom to top: Ludovic Thilly (EB Chair, University of Poitiers), Jürgen Barkhoff (EB Vice-Chair, Trinity College Dublin), Lenka Rovná (Charles University Prague), Joaquim Ramos de Carvalho (University of Coimbra), Daniel Donoghue (Durham University), Johnny […]

Coimbra Group stands with Barcelona and Turku

The Coimbra Group would like to express its strong solidarity with the citizens of Barcelona and of Turku and our three member universities, the Universities of Barcelona, Turku and Åbo Akademi. Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences go to the families of the victims. The Coimbra Group strongly condemns these acts of terror against innocent civilians […]

Turkey’s Syrian Youth and Higher Education

Our colleague from Istanbul University, Prof. Yeşim Özer, wrote a paper together with her colleagues, for the Turkish Higher Education Council on “Turkey’s Syrian Youth and Higher Education“. The paper focuses on Syrians in the Turkish higher education system and includes general information on Syrians’ inclusion into higher education in Turkey as well as Istanbul […]

Coimbra Group Position Paper on Erasmus+

The Coimbra Group contribution to the mid-term evaluation of the European Commission’s Erasmus+ Programme is published today on 23 May 2017. The Expert Group underlines both successes and challenges in the paper and draws attention to “The established and respected status of Erasmus+ in Europe (and beyond) [which] comes with responsibilities for this programme. No […]

CG supports Central European University in Budapest

The Coimbra Group has expressed its concern over the threat to academic freedom in the light of proposed reforms by the Hungarian Government and its support for the Central European University in Budapest. Read the letter… Regardless, the Hungarian Parliament voted 123 to 38 to adopt the authoritarian amendment on Tuesday afternoon, 4 April.  https://tinyurl.com/lfz2pp5  […]

Joint communication on H2020

The Coimbra Group and other European associations active in the policy areas of research and innovation have communicated with one voice on Horizon 2020 and the values and developments they wish to preserve and strengthen strong partnerships with the European and global research communities and policy-makers. The one overriding and important goal is to make […]

2017 Arenberg-Coimbra Group Prize for Erasmus Students

It is with great pleasure that we can announce the result of the work of the selection committee established by the Executive Board to assess the nominations from member universities for the Arenberg-Coimbra Group for Erasmus Students. The 2017 Laureate is Ms Aura Nikkilä from the University of Turku, who spent her Erasmus exchange period […]

National Stereotyping and Cultural Identities

‘National Stereotyping and Cultural Identities in recent European Crises’ – This is the topic under discussion at an international and interdisciplinary conference of the ‘Identities in Transformation’ College Research Theme in conjunction with the Coimbra Group Social Sciences and Humanities Working Group, taking place in Dublin, 9-11 March 2017. For more information please click here.

CG interim evaluation of Horizon 2020

The Coimbra Group has submitted a response to the European Commission’s interim evaluation of the Horizon 2020 programme: CG interim evaluation of Horizon 2020