Alliances meet in Brussels to discuss a potential legal entity

Around a dozen alliance representatives gathered in Brussels yesterday, joined by nearly 200 more participants online, to discuss the needs, purposes and limitations of establishing a legal entity to facilitate transnational university collaboration.

In the Union of Skills, the European Commission confirmed that it will come forward with a proposal for a legal status of European Universities alliances in 2027.

Based on the latest information gathered by the Commission, 14 alliances have already established a legal entity, more than 10 are in the process of developing one, others are exploring the opportunity, while a few remain unconvinced of its added value for now.

This diversity of approaches was welcomed, as the European Commission and alliances jointly emphasized that establishing a legal entity is not an end in itself. The exchange brought together valuable perspectives, from experience with joint recruitment, to working towards a sustainable collaboration model; tax challenges, issuing alliance-level micro-credentials, and much more.

The meeting showed the strong collaboration among alliances as well as with policymakers to work towards sustainable education collaboration models. These will not only benefit alliances, but also the wider higher education sector. We look forward to continuing this collaboration.