33rd UNICA General Assembly & Rectors Seminar | Brussels, 14-16 June 2023

The 33rd UNICA General Assembly and Rectors Seminar was hosted by UNICA in Brussels, 14-16 June 2023.

The administrative General Assembly this year also featured the elections of the new UNICA President and Steering Committee: find out more about the new governance of the network in this short article!

On 16 June, the Rectors Seminar “The way forward: Exploring the paths towards the future of European Higher Education”, provided the academic leaders of UNICA Member universities with an opportunity to discuss and share experiences about some of the utmost transforming trends in European Higher Education: the European Universities initiative (with a specific focus on innovation of Higher Education and models of governance and sustainability in the alliances) and the use of AI in Higher Education.

Universities are taking centre stage in societal development for their privileged position as pit stops in the route of knowledge, culture, and innovation fluxes. In this context, strong partnerships have become one of the main strategies to unlock universities full potential and the European Universities initiative is the most vivid example of that. At the same time, beyond new organisational forms, there are other trends inciting change in the learning and teaching experiences, of which Artificial Intelligence is likely the most debated one in the last year.

As universities enter uncharted territory, academic leaders are challenged to rethink the experience of academia for all the community – from students and staff to those beyond the institution’s walls.

This UNICA Rectors Seminar was yet another opportunity to explore the most viable and strategic paths for universities to remain relevant and continue to make significant contributions to society. On the other side, as a collective of leaders of capital-based universities, it was also an opportunity (and a responsibility) to discuss how the distinctive features of such institutions can serve new trends in Higher Education.

In particular, and in light of the fact that 40 UNICA member universities take part in European Universities a l l i a n c e s, the Seminar aimed to trigger a conversation on the European University initiative, with a focus on:

“Innovation of Higher Education by European Universities alliances: multiple and joint degrees and other initiatives under development”;
“Models of governance and sustainability in the European Universities alliances“;
“The Impact of ChatGPT on Higher Education: learning & teaching in the post-plagiarism era“.