Why Europe matters:

Education as an opportunity for European integration?

The European elections are now several weeks behind us and yet the topic of the EU is more current than ever. Whilst Brussels must now come to terms with the election results, we would like to explore here what role the university and students actually play in Europe.
Education is, as is well known, a matter for individual states, but especially in times of ever-accelerating global upheaval, climate change and the rise of right-wing populist parties, the states of the European continent face common challenges that strike at their very substance and can only be solved together.
Universities and higher education institutions play an important role in this. They primarily serve as the field to produce trained specialists for the labour market through good education and training. In this way, our society remains competitive on a global basis and can hold its own against competition.
Through the exchange of knowledge and cooperation between different universities, they additionally take on the character of integration at the European level. In the course of the agreements of the Bologna Process, degree programmes and qualifications were standardised across Europe and thus a European higher education area
without borders was established. In 2002, the Copenhagen Processes then brought about further cooperation in vocational education and training. This set the framework for European cooperation in general and vocational education.
Probably the most well-known programme of educational cooperation in Europe is Erasmus, which enables us students to study at universities abroad with state funding. This and other internal programmes enable academic exchange across national borders. This exchange thus begins with the student themselves, who can thereby make an important contribution to global integration. By taking advantage of this offer or engaging in projects, students are already making an important contribution to global integration.
Further funding programmes for education and research in Europe can be found with "Horizon2020" for example on the representation page of the European Commission:
https://ec.europa.eu/germany/home_de.
That European cooperation should be expanded is certainly not up for debate here. For interested readers, the editorial team refers here to the already mentioned page of the European Commission: https://ec.europa.eu/germany/news_de. There, 60 comprehensive reasons are listed for why Europe is
indispensable for every single European.
The comprehensive reform proposals of French President Macron also touched on the role of universities in the discourse on greater integration. To promote community and integration, this must go beyond obvious economic interests. Universities in particular could prove to be a cornerstone in further developing the European project.
What role Europe plays for students and higher education institutions is thus crystal clear. In addition to financial and organisational support, the European Union also facilitates the exchange of educational institutions and students with one another. The networking opportunities that arise from this for each individual are of enormous advantage.
As for the question of what role the student can play within Europe, the answer likewise lies clearly in the integrative character of mutual exchange in every respect. European integration is necessary to promote exchange and agreement among countries. Only as a united continent can its inhabitants stand against global challenges – and education in particular plays a
key role here. To what extent one personally wishes to make a contribution to Europe is, however, ultimately always a matter of personal discretion.
For more detailed questions about how and through what the EU affects me and my region, please visit the page https://what-europe-does-for-me.eu/en/portal/1/0.

Marcel Dinkel