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Higher education student and staff mobility project
Start date: Jun 1, 2014, End date: May 31, 2016 PROJECT  FINISHED 

The aim of the project was to raise knowledge and competences of the students and staff of the University of Economics in Katowice, to help them adapt to working in an intercultural environment, to develop entrepreneurial attitudes, and to provide participants with professional and personal skills that satisfy the demands and expectations of domestic and international labour market. The project consisted of 223 outgoing mobility activities and 201 incoming mobility activities including 130 students and 71 members of staff coming from partner institutions. The number of outgoing activities indicated above covers 130 study abroad stays financed through Erasmus+, Operational Programme Knowledge Education Development PO WER, or EEA Grants/ Norway Grants (Scholarship and Training Fund), 38 traineeships, 46 teaching assignments with 1 visit from a representative of a foreign enterprise, and 9 staff training assignments. The students undertook their study abroad experience in 66 academic institutions located in 20 Programme Countries, while traineeships took place at various enterprises across 18 Programme Countries. The study and training abroad offer was addressed to students of all degree levels and programmes, faculties and modes of study. Collaboration with partner institutions in the year 2014/15 was carried out on the basis of 178 Erasmus+ bilateral agreements. Alongside the individual mobility activities, a number of additional initiatives were implemented within the project, including: - international teaching weeks on “Internet Communication Management” and “New Frontiers in Finance and Accounting”; - training week for administrative staff on “Soft skills in the international setting”, with 2 modules devoted to “Successful communication with students” and “Presentation skills & public speaking”; - events targeting incoming students, such as Orientation Days, Global Village, Christmas Eve Party and Silesia Days; - promotional and information meetings for students and staff, e.g. Student Exchange Fair and Info Day; - monitoring visits in institutions abroad and individual visits by partner representatives at our university. Programme Erasmus+ is coordinated by International Relations in close cooperation with the faculties and with the active support of the Erasmus Student Network. The project has had significant impact on various target groups, its influence well visible on the local, regional, national and international levels. The project results include: - for students: new knowledge and competences impossible or difficult to obtain locally, improved professional and foreign language skills, increased social and intercultural competences, higher degree of sensibility, tolerance and empathy, new entrepreneurial attitudes, release of creative potential, higher degree of self-confidence, improved sense of self-reliability, better stress management, expanded private and professional network; - for teachers: enhanced teaching methods, access to information and international literature, expanded academic and research network instrumental in preparation of international projects and publications, increased linguistic, social and intercultural competences; - for administrative staff: professional development, acquisition of new skills, opportunity to learn from good practices abroad, establishment of new contacts, increased social and intercultural competences, overcoming linguistic barriers in communication, higher degree of self-confidence; - for the university: enhanced relations with international partners, implementation of new initiatives, preparation of new projects (e.g. in the framework of strategic partnerships or capacity building), reorganization of resources (personnel, processes and structures) for the purpose of conducting study programmes in foreign languages and providing support services to international students (also in the context of applying for national and international accreditation), increased competitiveness and improved standing in higher education rankings, higher level of internationalization. Active participation in Erasmus+ contributes significantly to the university’s promotion. Not only does it facilitate the process of acquiring new international partners and entering new projects and ventures, it actually gives the university a perception, both at home and abroad, of an institution that is open to new challenges and able to render high quality education. The wide range of international activities and their accessibility to students of all faculties are often cited to be of key importance in secondary school leavers’ choice of college. Our experience in implementing the Erasmus(+) programme has often been an inspiration to institutions in Poland and abroad. We share those good practices in training sessions with the Silesian Universities Network and IROs Forum, in international conferences (EAIE), and in member meetings of NICE Network, PRIME Networking et al.
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