Mobility Project

Project facts

Project promoter:
'Alexandru Ioan Cuza' University of Iasi
Project Number:
RO15-0047
Target groups
Students,
Teachers, trainers, managers, leaders and other staff within higher education institutions
Status:
Completed
Initial project cost:
€417,500
Final project cost:
€323,550
From EEA Grants:
€ 291,195
The project is carried out in:
Iaşi

Description

Although partnerships between UAIC and some EEA HEIs already exist, the project is needed to further expand the scope, both domain-wise and geographically, of UAIC academic international cooperation mainly by attracting EEA students and staff to choose UAIC as their exchange destination. The objective of the project is to strengthen the cooperation between Romanian and EEA institutions mainly through the promotion of academic excellence and institutional improvement, reduction of mobility obstacles, good practice exchange and internationalization at home. The project will increase the quantity and quality of the EEA mobility exchanges which are later expected to grow into cooperation projects of research of common interest. The EEA exchanges will provide students with specialized knowledge not only in their study fields, but also on the cultures/societies of all countries involved, meaningful experience and linguistic proficiency which will be used as assets in their future jobs. The staff exchanges will lead to new curriculum design and teaching/assessment methods, as well as implementation of good practices. The three actors that will benefit from the mobility exchanges are UAIC students and staff, EEA students and staff, as well as UAIC and EEA partner institutions as a whole. Donor partners are both HEIs and companies in EEA countries, playing the role of host institutions for UAIC students and staff. The partnership between EEA institutions and UAIC is also expected to better connect different public and private actors across the European territory.

Summary of project results

The mobility project within the EEA Grants was needed to strengthen the cooperation with the existing partner institutions (HEIs) in Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, and furthermore to initiate new partnerships with institutions (both HEIs and enterprises for student traineeships) in these countries. The idea of the project was not only to promote the outgoing mobility flow to the EEA countries, but most importantly the incoming mobility flow (both students and staff) in order to reduce the economic and social disparities among the above-mentioned countries and increase the attractiveness of Romanian institutions. Beyond the scope of mobility project itself, the long-term goal is to create strong links between Romania and the EEA countries with a view to launching cooperation projects of research, where innovation and tradition can work effectively and produce tangible results in various areas. Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi renewed and extended the already existing bilateral agreements with the partner HEIs in the EEA countries and initiated new ones, covering a wide range of fields of study and training, including new partnerships with enterprises. Our institution organized mobility exchanges both for outgoing students and staff, as well as for incoming grantees (including for staff coming from enterprises). Apart from the life-changing student experiences andfruitful staff exchanges, the project led to establishing three cooperation projects (on the subjects of common interest, i.e. Humanities/Languages, Social Work and Tourism) with three partner HEIs from Norway The EEA mobility project coordinated by Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi during the academic year 2014-2015 counted 18 students on a study period abroad, 30 students on traineeships abroad, and 8 outgoing staff exchanges, 1 student on a study period and 4 students on traineeships in our university and 7 incoming staff exchanges – 68 in total. The number of outgoingexchanges was reached only partially, while the number of incoming visits from the EEA countries was much lower than planned.

Summary of bilateral results

The main achievements are the significant numbers of exchanges during 2014-2015 academic year which is expected to increase in 2015-2016. More contacts have been established at faculty/departmental level which will be used in discussing or preparing future projects of cooperation. As far as students on both sides are concerned, they got acquainted to the partner institution’s education system, acquired knowledge of the partner institution’s learning methods, by studying and sitting exams in another country, learning a new language, and opening their minds by experiencing the partner country’s culture and civilization. Regarding the beneficiary staff, they got acquainted totheir colleagues’ work in the partner institutions with whom they shared best practices (during face-to-face meetings, lectures, workshops, trainings or seminars),their teaching/working means and methods, facilities on campus and improved their understanding of the partners’ interests in terms of further cooperation. The bilateral funds contributed to a great extent to the strengthening of the relations between institutions. In some cases, the cooperation which started years ago blossomed within the new EEA funding and triggered more bilateral agreements with more institutions (HEIs and companies). In the case of some institutions, the enthusiasm of the partnership led to an increased number of students in the next academic year (e.g. Sor-Trondelag University College, Norway). Due to the visibility of the partner institutions promoted by incoming/outgoing staff, student exchanges were put in place (the case of Liechtenstein) which were extended even through other mobility programmes (Erasmus). As regards innovation, the new working techniques acquired by students during their traineeships have led to discussions on possible cooperation (research) projects on social work and tourism.