Europaeum

The Europaeum
Formation	1992
Location	Oxford, United Kingdom;
Membership	17 Catholic University of Portugal; Central European University; Charles University in Prague; Complutense University of Madrid; Freie Universität Berlin ; Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies; University of Helsinki; Jagiellonian University; Leiden University; Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich; Pompeu Fabra University; University of Bologna; University of Copenhagen; University of Luxembourg; University of Oxford; University of St Andrews; University of Tartu;
Executive Director	Anthony Teasdale
Director of Scholars' Programme	Dr Tracey Sowerby
Director of Core Programme	Dr Miles Pattenden
Chief Administrator	Sasha Panagiotidis
Main organ	Trustees, Academic Council, Executive Committee
Website	www.europaeum.org//

The Europaeum is a network of leading universities in Europe. Founded in 1992 by three universities - Bologna, Leiden and Oxford - it currently has 17 member universities operating in 15 countries. The Europaeum is based administratively at St Antony's College, Oxford.

Background

The Europaeum is a unique multinational initiative that brings together not only some of the finest academic institutions in Europe, but some of the continent’s best and brightest young minds, connecting them across disciplines, cultures and countries. It promotes collaboration between students and faculty throughout Europe, mainly in the humanities and social sciences.

The distinctiveness of what the Europaeum offers lies in its focus on the potential of students as individuals and the desire to help them make a difference in their future lives. This is reflected in the Europaeum’s clear and attractive central mission, which is to bring together talented young people - to think, learn, work and develop skills together - as they, in the words of the organisation’s founding mandate, emerge as ‘future leaders for a new Europe’ and help ‘shape the future of Europe for the better’.

The Europaeum is committed to promoting multi-disciplinary study and learning, to addressing cross-cutting issues - past, present and future - and to working at the interface of academia and policy practice. It seeks to overcome intellectual silos and to ‘decompartmentalise’ thinking, so that students can maximise their potential, contribution and impact, whether they pursue academic or non-academic careers in their later lives. In short, the Europaeum aims to help produce better leaders and better policy for the future of Europe.

The Europaeum differs from other university alliances or networks in Europe in that it is not a lobbying organisation, it does not act as a framework for joint applications for research funding, and it does not award joint degrees. Its focus instead is on the development of critical thinking, analytical and practical skills, and a deeper knowledge of contemporary issues and challenges on the part of those students who take part in its programmes.

Mission

The founding mission of the Europaeum, dating from 1992, is:

to train and educate future leaders for a new Europe;
to promote excellence in academic research and teaching collaboration between the partner universities;
to develop a 'pool of talent' to carry out research and inquiry into problems confronting Europe;
to act as an open academic network linking partners and other bodies in the joint pursuit of study;
to provide opportunities for the joint undertaking of new pan-European initiatives;
to explore new ways for universities to fulfil their many roles in the new age of learning.

Europaeum activities and method

Operationally, the Europaeum organises in-person seminars, training sessions and policy events for postgraduate students from member universities, with a primary (but not exclusive) focus on study of the humanities and social sciences. The main themes of its current work are: (i) European history and culture, (ii) European policy-making, and (iii) liberal democracy and citizen engagement.

The Europaeum’s two principal vehicles to deliver this product are its twin Scholars’ Programme and Core Programme, which together constitute a very special European public good. Together, they help equip students for both academic and non-academic careers, in a way that supplements what the individual universities might otherwise be able to provide.

Scholars’ Programme

Now in its fourth two-year cycle, the Europaeum’s flagship Scholars’ Programme gives 30 plus of Europe’s most outstanding doctoral students, drawn from the member universities, the opportunity to develop new cross cutting skills together and to work in small, multi-disciplinary teams to develop proposals for European policy initiatives.

Based on a rigorous selection process, the Europaeum chooses students who, in addition to being individuals of outstanding academic merit, demonstrate integrity, value trust, and are strongly committed to the European values of freedom, democracy and the rule of law.

Taking the programme alongside pursuing their doctorates in their home universities, the Europaeum Scholars attend eight, one-week residential ‘modules’ held over the two-year period, rotating around member universities in Europe. They are exposed to multiple viewpoints and trained in the skills required to form policy and to lead.

Concretely, the participating students receive about 80 talks, roundtables or training sessions on a wide range of policy topics and professional skills, adding up to around 300 hours of work. Specific skills training includes policy analysis, drafting of policy papers, speech-making, negotiation techniques, and the handling of both social and conventional media. For reference, doctoral committees are recommended to treat the Scholars’ Programme as equivalent to 13 credits under the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS).

Working in multidisciplinary teams, the Scholars also produce policy proposals designed ‘to make Europe a better place’. Their two-year cycle ends with a special conference in Brussels, held in the autumn of every second year, at which the students share their policy projects with decision makers and opinion-formers in and around the EU institutions. The programme also involves a personally-tailored mentoring scheme, with students matched to leaders in various policy fields for the sharing of experience and expertise.

The programme’s approach is distinctive. Conventionally, many doctoral students work on their own, within one discipline, and focus on empirical data from the past. The Europaeum seeks to give its Scholars a different, parallel, experience: they work in small teams, combine disciplines and think about future policy. This experience aims to give them new skills and wider horizons, lifting their sense of what they can contribute to society and increasing their commitment to do so.

Core Programme

In parallel, the Europaeum’s Core Programme provides tailored opportunities for any postgraduate students from the member universities to explore issues at the intersection of scholarly and policy concerns. An average of between eight and ten Core Programme events take place each year, rotating among member universities. These include spring, summer and winter schools, as well as an annual Brussels policy seminar each autumn designed to help them explore the EU political system in depth. Core Programme events are residential, lasting three or four days, with between 12 and 45 students participating in each event. Over the year about 160 students from member universities take part in these events. Any Master’s or doctoral student from any member university may apply.

Range of topics covered

To give a flavour of the wide range of topics and issues covered by Europaeum events, the various themes of the modules in the current two-year cycle of the Scholars’ Programme include: Democracy in Europe (held in Budapest), the operation of EU institutions (Brussels), technology and policy (Barcelona), and Europe and global governance (Geneva), as well as skills training (Krakow) and policy project work (Helsinki).

For its part, the 2024 Core Programme included events on media and ambivalence (Lisbon), survivance and survival (Tartu), making sense of turbulent times (Oxford), flourishing (Helsinki), marginalised histories (St Andrews), the impact of elections in 2024 (Brussels), and critical thinking in the classics (Berlin). The 2025 Core Programme includes events on the European Green Deal (Madrid), Europe’s uncertain world (Prague), AI and the digital revolution (Luxembourg), multipolar antiquity (Leiden), strategic autonomy (Brussels) and the ‘future of the past’ (Oxford).

Governance

The Europaeum has three governing bodies:

= The Trustees of the Europaeum are a mixture of academics and practitioners, with three of the member universities represented at Rector level among the Trustees. They constitute the board of the Europaeum - both in its status as a charity and as a not for profit company limited by guarantee - and they usually meet two to three times a year, both in person and online. The chair of the Trustees is currently Dr Andrew Graham, former Master of Balliol College, Oxford.

= The Academic Council represents the member universities of the Europaeum. Each university has two representatives, usually the Rector ex-officio and another leading academic from the institution concerned. The Academic Council discusses the programme of activities and academic needs of Europaeum, usually meeting twice a year. The acting Chair of the Academic Council is currently Professor Wim van den Doel ^[1] of Leiden University.

= The Executive Committee is a small advisory group to the Executive Director, which the latter chairs. It comprises representatives of six member universities, on a rotating basis, and meets quarterly to feed into the planning process and help prepare meetings of the other governing bodies.

In addition, a new International Advisory Council of the Europaeum will be established in the course of 2025.

Short history

In the aftermath of the Fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the Europaeum was conceived by George Weidenfeld, Ronald Grierson and Roy Jenkins, who had recently become Chancellor of the University of Oxford, as a vehicle for promoting the "advancement of education through the encouragement of European studies in the University of Oxford and other European institutions of higher education having links with Oxford." ^[2]

The Europaeum was launched as an international network in 1992 by Oxford, Leiden and Bologna Universities. It soon expanded to include Bonn University in 1996, Paris I (Panthéon-Sorbonne) in 1997, Geneva HEI, now the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, in 1998, and Charles University, Prague in 2001. A range of scholarships for European graduates to come to Oxford were set up, as well as collaborative activities, such as international conferences, summer schools and initiatives to promote academic mobility. A regular Europaeum newsletter and website were established, together with a database to link academics working in European law, politics and economics.

In 2003, Dr Paul Flather was appointed as part-time Secretary-General, with the Europaeum becoming a UK charity (number 1105477) the following year. Administratively, the organisation moved from the university's offices to those of the Voltaire Foundation in Oxford. Two innovative programmes - an MA in European Politics, Culture, History and Institutions, linking Bologna, Leiden and Oxford; and a plan for modular programmes in European Business, Culture, and Institutions, initially to link Leiden and Oxford - were run as pilot projects.

In 2003, Complutense University of Madrid joined the network. Helsinki University followed in 2004, and the Jagiellonian University, Kraków, in 2005, bringing the association to its then target of 10 members. In 2004-05, Oxford, Paris and Leiden launched a new jointly-offered Europaeum MA in European History and Civilisation (EHC). Following the death of Roy Jenkins in 2003, a memorial fund was set up to raise funds for European scholarships, which operated from 2004 to 2017.

A new Board of Trustees was established in 2009-10, to assume overall supervisory duties from the Council and engage in fund-raising. The Europaeum Council was converted into an Academic Council, representing the member universities, chaired by Dr Andrew Graham from Oxford. Pompeu-Fabra University (Barcelona) joined in 2012, and Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich in 2015.

A new joint academic programme was launched in 2012 by the Universities of Prague, Leiden and Paris, around the theme of European Politics and Society (EPS), aiming for about 20 graduates spending their second year of study on a two-year graduate programme, at a partner institution. The programme was named in tribute to the late President of the Czech Republic and important human rights activist Vaclav Havel.

From 2016 to 2020, Dr Andrew Graham led a substantial restructuring of the Europaeum. In particular he created and launched the new Europaeum Scholars' Programme. Membership grew from 11 universities in 2016 to 17 in 2024.

New members included the University of St Andrews, the University of Luxembourg, KU Leuven,^[3] Freie Universitat Berlin, the Catholic University of Lisbon, the University of Copenhagen, Bologna (which re-joined) and the University of Tartu.^[4] The Central European University (Budapest/Vienna) was added as a special member for a limited period in recognition and support of their circumstances. (It became a full member university in 2023).

As part of the restructuring process, Dr Graham became Executive Chair and Dr Hartmut Mayer was appointed as Acting Director. Dr Tracey Sowerby was appointed Programme Director to lead the new Scholars' Programme, and an alumni programme was initiated. The Europaeum offices moved to St Antony's College (Oxford) in 2018 and a full-time Director was appointed in 2020. Dr Mayer took on the role of Executive Chair and Dr Graham joined the Board of Trustees.

History of joint MA courses

Over the years, the Europaeum has been involved in three joint MA programmes:

Europaeum Joint MA programmes
Programmes	Overview
MA European History and Civilization (EHC)	Partner universities of the one-year degree MA European History and Civilisation, which ran from 2004 to 2024, were the Leiden University, University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne and the University of Oxford.^[5] Participating students visited each of these universities for one trimester.^[6]
Europaeum Václav Havel Masters Programme (EMAP)	Named after Václav Havel, the late Czech dissident and President, was a two-years Masters Programme in European Society and Politics. This programme was organized by the Leiden University, University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne and the Charles University in Prague.
MA European Politics and Society (EPS)	Offered by Charles University as leading partner (Prague), plus Jagellonian University (Krakow), Leiden University and Pompeu Fabra University (Barcelona), with the help of Erasmus Mundus funding. A two-year programme that starts in Prague and subsequently offers different options.^[7]

Member universities

The Europaeum currently has 17 members universities located in 15 countries. Three countries - Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom - currently have more than one member institution.^[8]

Europaeum member universities
Country	Location	University	Abbreviation
Austria	Vienna	Central European University	CEU
Czech Republic	Prague	Charles University	Charles/Prague
Denmark	Copenhagen	University of Copenhagen	Copenhagen
Finland	Helsinki	University of Helsinki	Helsinki
Germany	Munich	Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich	Munich
Germany	Berlin	Free University of Berlin	FU Berlin
Italy	Bologna	University of Bologna	Bologna
Netherlands	Leiden	Leiden University	Leiden
Luxembourg	Luxembourg	University of Luxembourg	Luxembourg
Poland	Kraków	Jagiellonian University	Jagiellonian/Kraków
Portugal	Lisbon	Catholic University of Portugal	Católica
Spain	Barcelona	Pompeu Fabra University	Pompeu Fabra
Spain	Madrid	Complutense University of Madrid	Complutense/Madrid
Switzerland	Geneva	Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies	IHEID
United Kingdom	Oxford	University of Oxford	Oxford
United Kingdom	St Andrews	University of St Andrews	St Andrews
Estonia	Tartu	University of Tartu	Tartu