UNWE and UT representatives took part in the “Meeting of the European Universities” in Sofia on behalf of ENGAGE.EU
On December 5th, 2023 an international roundtable took place in Sofia, Bulgaria, on the topic of “Meeting of the European universities”, aiming to gather representatives of all European Universities alliances with both French and Spanish partners. Delegates from 24 Bulgarian, Spanish, and French higher education institutions attended the meeting, organised by the embassies of France and Spain in Bulgaria, the Ministries of Education of Bulgaria and France, and the French Institute in Bulgaria.
ENGAGE.EU was represented by the Rector of the University of National and World Economy Prof. Dimitar Dimitrov, the Vice-Rector for Research and International Affairs and ENGAGE.EU Institutional Coordinator Prof. Michael Musov, and the Vice-Rector of European and International Relations of Université Toulouse Capitole Prof. Estelle Gallant.
All participants unanimously appreciated the significant interest of their membership in the alliances, which strongly support student mobility and multilingualism, and are also a major lever for increasing the attractiveness and competitiveness of European higher education on a global scale, in an ever-evolving competitive environment.
The meeting gave the opportunity to discuss a number of extremely important issues, such as the dissemination of scientific research, and the policies and steps of the alliances for their contribution to the development of the local economy. The participants also discussed the topic of the necessary reforms that the respective countries should undertake in order to facilitate the mutual recognition of diplomas and to ensure the possibility for future students to obtain a European diploma alongside the diploma of the respective country.
Prof. Dimitrov emphasized the success of the first funding phase of ENGAGE.EU and the even higher goals for the second one, which began on November 1st. “All our partners have a very close profile. They teach economics, administration, law, sociology, political science. Our community includes over 125,000 undergraduates, 3,000 PhD students, and 14,000 faculty, researchers, and administrative staff. The world is becoming more and more interdisciplinary and connected, and at a global level there is a need for the combination of different sciences and the transfer of knowledge and technology. A university cannot do this alone, therefore cooperation is key in this process and it is good that we are moving in this direction”, he added.
