EU-US cooperation in higher education and training
The European Commission, DG XXII, has published a call for proposals for projects under the agreement for cooperation in higher education and vocational education and training between the European Community and the United States of America. This second call for proposals refers to the major component of the programme, which concerns joint EC/US consortia projects. The essential objectives of these projects are to: - Promote mutual understanding between the peoples of the EC and the US; - Improve the quality of human resource development in both the EC and the US; - Improve the quality of trans-Atlantic student mobility; - Encourage the exchange of expertise in new developments; - Form or enhance partnerships; - Introduce an added-value dimension to trans-Atlantic cooperation which complements bilateral cooperation between Member States of the EC and the US as well as other programmes and initiatives. These objectives are to be achieved by promoting an innovative range of student-centred, cooperative activities, in higher education and training, between the different regions of the EC and the US. The programme will support, this year, a maximum of ten original projects which can only or best be carried out through multilateral groupings. It is not intended to duplicate activities which are or can be carried out on a bilateral basis between the US and the individual Member States of the EC. Each joint consortium must involve a minimum total of six partners. There must be at least three active partners in the EC and three in the US. This combination must include at least two partner higher education or vocational education and training institutions in different Member States of the EC and in different states of the US. Third and subsequent partners may be other education and training institutions or other relevant organizations in the same or other Member States and states. Previous experience as a partner in an EC education/training programme (e.g. ERASMUS, COMETT, TEMPUS, PETRA, FORCE) is an eligibility criterion for the European Community lead partner in an EC/US consortium. Consortia may seek programme support for one or more types of activity as an integrated element of the project. Consortia should thus aim at pursuing a coherent strategy rather than engaging in diverse activities. A major component of each consortium (with rare and justified exceptions) will be student mobility. Trans-Atlantic cooperative activities eligible for support are: - Development of organizational frameworks for trans-Atlantic student mobility, including work placements, which will provide adequate language preparation and full academic recognition; - Structured exchanges of students, teachers, trainers and administrators in higher-education institutions and vocational education and training establishments, including work placement as appropriate; - Joint development of innovative curricula, teaching materials, methods and modules, including those exploiting the new education technologies; - Research internships at university, industry or government laboratories for graduate or undergraduate students in science and engineering, provided that students are also enrolled in courses which require class attendance; - Short intensive programmes of a minimum of three weeks; - Teaching assignments forming an integral part of the curriculum in a partner institution; - Other innovative projects, including the use of new technologies and distance learning, which aim at improving the quality and cost-effectiveness of trans-Atlantic cooperation in higher education and vocational education and training. Financial support will be awarded to successful consortia for up to a maximum of three years. Awards are intended to provide seed-funding for carrying out joint innovative projects which can be accomplished within three years or which can, once established, be continued without ongoing programme support. The European Commission (DG XXII) will provide funding for the direct use of the European Community partners and the United States Department of Education (FIPSE) will provide funding for the direct use of the United States partners. Additional support for the US partners' activities may come from other US agencies. Funds will be provided for the EC and US lead partners respectively. For a three-year project, the average level of funding for each consortium is envisaged to be in the region of ECU 100,000 for the EC group and ECU 130,000 for the US group. The guidelines for applicants, and the application forms may be obtained from: European Commission DG XXII - Education, training and youth 200 rue de la Loi B-1049 Brussels Fax +32-2-2955719 or - The main Commission offices in the Member States; - The national agencies for the SOCRATES/ERASMUS programme and the national coordination units for the LEONARDO DA VINCI programme; - Full documentation may also be downloaded from the Europa World Wide Web server, at: http://europa.eu.int/en/comm/dg22/dg22.html(odnośnik otworzy się w nowym oknie)
Kraje
Greece