ERASMUS Policy Statement for ERASMUS Charta (2014-2020):
Please describe your institution’s (EU and non-EU) strategy. In your description please explain a) how
you choose your partners, b) in which geographical area(s) and c) the most important objectives andtarget groups of your mobility activities (with regard to staff and students in first, second and third
cycles, including study and training, and short cycles). If applicable, also explain how your institution
participates in the development of double/multiple/joint degrees. (max 5000)
Over a period of 15 years FH JOANNEUM has continuously increased its international activities and iscurrently one of the leading Universities of Applied Sciences in Austria when it comes to student andstaff mobility as well as international projects. FH JOANNEUM cooperates with over 150 partner
universities within the ERASMUS program and another 50 universities in non-participating countries.
Further partnerships exist in various cooperation programs (Tempus, EU-Alfa, LLL, FP, etc.). For theupcoming six years FH JOANNEUM has decided to focus on the establishment of strategic
partnerships and quality assurance measures in all areas of mobility to further promote theinternationalization process of the institution. FH JOANNEUM also remains highly committed to theobjectives of the Bologna Process and will continue working on the implementation of student
centered learning in competence based curricula and the increase of student mobility flows.
Since FH JOANNEUM University of Applied Sciences is convinced that mobility opportunities for study
and work abroad will increase our students’ intercultural competence development and therefore
help them to gain the key skills for the jobs of the future, one of the main objectives remains tocooperate with the best universities in our academic fields. FH JOANNEUM has developed acatalogue of criteria for the selection of new partner universities as well as criteria for continuouslyevaluating existing partnerships. Cooperation agreements will only be signed or renewed when mostof these criteria are met. In this ongoing evaluation process the feedback of returning students andstaff will be as important as the partner university’s international reputation as reflected inmemberships in international organizations such as EUA and international accreditations. We also
welcome being evaluated by our partner universities in return. In international cooperation projects
the evaluation is based on successfully completed projects, content expertise and project
management capacity.
So far, FH JOANNEUM has established partnerships with numerous universities from participating
countries with a particular focus on central and northern Europe. Our cooperation partners outsideof Europe are spread over all continents with the majority in North- and South America, some in Asia
as well as Australia. We see Africa as a potential area in which to extend this network in the future.
When looking for new partner institutions, academic quality and degree program compatibility shallbe prioritized over regional aspects. We nevertheless strive to balance our international network inorder to provide a representative regional selection to our students and staff when looking formobility opportunities.
Over the period of the upcoming ERASMUS for All program, FH JOANNEUM aims to increase its
student mobility both in terms in quality and quantity. We hope to achieve a mobility rate of 20% in
all our degree programs in the 1st cycle. Students shall be provided with a choice of semester-longstudy abroad, short study abroad options or international internship opportunities. As many of thesemobility flows shall be undertaken under the new ERASMUS program, FH JOANNEUM shall therefore
strive to participate actively in the key actions of the new program. Traditional mobility actions suchas study and internship abroad shall be complemented by new forms of mobility opportunities
developed in the areas of cooperation projects.
The increase in quantity and quality of FH JOANNEUM’s mobility activities shall be reached by meansof the following actions:-Development of 6-10 strategic partnerships within the existing network of partneruniversities. The cooperation with strategic partners will take place on the level ofexchange activities (student and staff, short and long term), research and teachingactivities (new and further development of double and joint degrees) as well as incooperation projects in key 2 and 3 actions in the new program-

Implementation of a quality assurance system for the network of partner universities(application of the criteria developed and continuous improvement)-

Securing competence gained through study/work abroad by means of structuredpreparation for and reflection on the intercultural experience (establish mandatory predeparture and re-entry workshops)-

Development of short-term mobility opportunities for part time students and students indegree programs where long-term mobility has not been possible so far for curricularreasons-

Development of 3 additional joint/double degrees at Master’s level (2nd cycle) with special
emphasis on programs taught in English

If applicable, please describe your institution’s strategy for the organization and implementation ofinternational (EU and non-EU) cooperation projects in teaching and training in relation to projects
implemented under the Program (max 2000)
FH JOANNEUM (FHJ) has been active in various international cooperation projects (Tempus, EU-Alfa,LLL, FP, etc.) for over a decade. The related strategic priorities are:-Creation of additional know how (KH) and expertiseTransfer of existing KH and expertise to other HEIs across the globe
Strengthening the KH transfer to and organizational learning of economic partners, especially
SMEs
Matchmaking between labor market and HE through optimization of interfaces (transfermechanisms, indicators, digital technologies, modern didactics, etc.)
Establishing strategic networks to harness synergies and spill-over effects (in teaching,mobility, research capacity and quality)
Keeping revenue shares at current levels (10-15% of R&D income)The implementation of these strategic priorities is the remit of the institutes’ scientific staff and thetransfer centers (TCs). TCs are designed to develop and transfer knowledge through R&D to industry,
academia, the public sector, and society. The TCs hold crucial expertise and provide experience fromprevious projects not only from a technical point of view, but also in terms of the management andcoordination of large-scale cooperation projects. Within these research centers internationallysought-after expertise of academic (teaching) staff guides the R&D-activities and guarantees a returnflow and integration of thematic state of the art knowledge in teaching and education. Mostly young
scientific staff supports and participates in R&D-projects and gets the opportunity to learn and move
forward onto their personal career paths. The R&D strategy is developed using a bottom-up as well
as a top-down approach. Bottom-up, institutes create their international profiles in the respective
thematic areas as part of their internal strategy workshops. These are aligned every 2-4 years to
overall institutional strategies and goals via the coordination processes within the larger scale
departments (encompassing several institutes).
Graz 2014