U-Collaborate in Education launched: collaborating in education with external partners
The U-Collaborate in Education programme is officially launched on 25 March 2022 during the Dies Natalis. In line with the theme of this festive day, Curious Collaborations, U-Collaborate in Education (UCE) inspires, connects and facilitates transdisciplinary education at Utrecht University. By working together with societal and business partners on solutions to complex issues, UU adds value to society.
UU education is increasingly cooperating with external parties, such as other educational institutions, societal partners and the business community. UU wants to cherish and nurture these great initiatives. However, there is no natural coordination between the initiatives within the UU, which means that external partners are either approached frequently or do not know where to find the right initiative. Therefore, UCE wants to create connection by making the activities and initiatives transparent and available. Transdisciplinary education fits perfectly with the UU's motto to work together on tomorrow's solutions with an open mind, an open attitude and an open science. The fact that the UU is becoming ever more directly involved in society - crossing boundaries - will increasingly strengthen UU education,
says Rector Henk Kummeling.
Transdisciplinary education
In transdisciplinary education, the starting point is an actual problem or challenge that a non-academic partner brings in and works on together. With the baggage of their (disciplinary) background, students learn to build bridges to the outside world and become aware of different starting points and interests, they learn to connect ideas and to see and bridge gaps between different groups. Transdisciplinary education helps students to learn problem-solving skills with their (disciplinary) background as a starting point. In addition, external organisations seeking cooperation with UU are often looking for a specific topic or expertise for an issue and want to make use of UU's knowledge and expertise. UCE can refer external organisations seeking contact with the UU to relevant parts of the UU with the knowledge and expertise that can help these organisations further. And UCE can put lecturers or education support staff who want to work with the outside world in their teaching into contact with external organisations with which the UU already has connections and, if required, support them with practical matters.
Working on complex issues with external partners
There are already various transdisciplinary cooperation initiatives within the UU, and they are growing in number. They often transcend faculties, sometimes from a hub or strategic theme, sometimes from a USO project or at the level of the University Administration. In the past decade, education has also increasingly sought connections with the outside world. Initiatives such as community engaged learning and challenge based learning often involve societal partners, but also business partners. Companies are also important partners in entrepreneurship education. Education that is organised together with external partners is referred to as transdisciplinary education.
UCE inspires, connects, and provides practical support to UU staff who develop and ceate education in close relationship with society and business.
Brokers in education with the outside world
From their own role in a number of these initiatives, programme managers Sabine Uijl and Jan Haarhuis saw a similar need arise in various places: to support lecturers who are involved in transdisciplinary education. Some initiatives are quite similar, but have a different approach or a different target group. As a result, not everything is equally visible and accessible to everyone. These observations and a shared need gave rise to U-Collaborate in Education,
explains Sabine Uijl. Jan Haarhuis adds: U-Collaborate in Education does not organise education itself, but is an umbrella programme where initiatives relating to transdisciplinary education can go if there is a need. We are a kind of broker who likes to bring parties together to strengthen education. If parties prefer to do that themselves, that is also fine. We do not want to take the place of other programmes or initiatives. We only want to connect them and support them in order to strengthen education at UU.
Partner in the CAT
As a partner in the Centre for Academic Teaching and Learning (CAT), U-Collaborate in Education has a connecting role in showcasing transdisciplinary education, linking initiatives and supporting them where necessary. The programme creates an efficient and effective connection between the various components of the internal educational organisation and external alliances, networks, societal organisations and companies. The UCE programme provides service to lecturers who want to organise their education in close cooperation with external stakeholders. This includes individual lecturers, educational programmes, strategic themes, Labs and Hubs as well as strategic alliances and networks. For this purpose, facilities are created that support UU colleagues on the one hand and enable external organisations to quickly find their way to our experts at the faculties on the other.
Do you have questions or ideas about the cooperation of your education with external partners? Please contact us at UCE@uu.nl or visit our website: U-Collaborate in Education.
