This event marked the successful conclusion of CUAS's first ACE awareness and engagement campaign, which began with university-wide presentations in fall 2024, continued with guest talks and workshops across all CUAS schools in early 2025, and culminated in this final workshop that produced a roadmap for future learning within the Alliance. Following the opening remarks by Peter Granig, Rector of CUAS, the facilitation of the workshop was taken over by Julia Christine Marinaccio, Head of the European Universities Office, together with Gerald Hackl, Consultant, Trigon Entwicklungsberatung. The event brought together approximately 40 participants, including faculty and representatives from all four Schools (Health Sciences and Social Work, Engineering and IT, Civil Engineering and Architecture, School of Management), as well as the European Universities Office, ACE²-EU Student Advisory Board, the Rectorate, Center for Teaching and eLearning (Didactic Centre), International Relations Office, CUAS Research, Marketing, and ÖH (Student Union).
Discussion
The workshop was divided into two main sessions. The first session focused on exploring and developing new learning opportunities aligned with the ACE project goals. The central aim was to enhance subject-specific and research-relevant competencies through innovative educational formats. Faculties and staff from different departments proposed activity ideas designed to fit within pre-established structures such as Applied Blended Challenge Programs (ABCs), Flavour Schools, Impactathons, Erasmus+ Blended Intensive Programs (BIP), Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL), Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC), Researcher Development Workshops, and Joint Degree Programs. Student advisory members actively contributed to the workshop by sharing valuable insights into the interests, motivations, and potential challenges faced by our student population, helping to shape a more student-centered approach to future ACE learning opportunities.
Alongside program proposals, the discussion covered key performance indicators (KPIs), project criteria, project chart development and timelines for implementation. Student Advisory Board members raised important concerns about ECTS alignment, workload management, and curriculum integration, which were well acknowledged by the faculty.
The second session focused on the implementation phase. Discussions emphasized the need for structured integration of international learning formats within existing curricula, strategies to ensure institutional support, and recommendations to foster sustainable cooperation with alliance partners. Attention was also given to creating a motivating and flexible framework to encourage both student and faculty participation in these formats.
The workshop concluded with a shared commitment to further developing ACE learning opportunities that are innovative, inclusive, and future-oriented, aligning with CUAS’s strategic goals for internationalization and academic excellence. As a next step, each School will refine their activity proposals internally, so that they are ready to be shared with the alliance in May.
Prepared by
Shaikh Jannatul Moushumy
Member, ACE²-EU Student Advisory Board.
