Description of the project

In 2014, the Portuguese Government issued the report "A strategy for the Internationalisation of the Portuguese higher education” proposing a global strategy for internationalization of higher education that goes beyond the efforts and actions already taken individually by the institutions. This report clearly highlights the importance of adopting a more pro-active approach in terms of the internationalization process of institutions as well as transversal initiatives and of establishing strategic partnerships for a greater impact. It gives a special focus on teaching, scientific research but also on the need to ensure the transfer of knowledge to the society and to the economic sector. The report sets forth a series of recommendations that inspire a call for action for the internationalisation of higher education. In fact, despite the excellent results and the evolution achieved in the academic quality of the training provided by the Portuguese Universities, this has not yet attained the desired results in terms of transfer of knowledge to the economy and to the economic sector.

 

WORK+

The WORK+ consortium is a result of this call for action and is built on institutional trust, an outcome of the excellent cooperation links established among its partners and developed during the last years. In fact, all partner institutions have worked together within the EU funded programmes and also in the framework of several national projects which allowed the decision to join together for this new project. The purpose is to benefit from the specific know-how gathered by each University and allow the development of innovative approaches linked with practical training and its relevance for the involved individuals and institutions at a larger scale.

International mobility has a significant relevance in the modernisation of education and the development of the European Higher Education Area as it is an instrument towards the reinforcement of the quality of the education. Consequently, it plays a crucial role in the Universities’ internationalisation strategy and represents an area of significant investment of the institutions. At a more personal level, it is clear its support to the individuals’ professional, social and intercultural skills’ development and it has also a positive impact in their employability.

In a more institutional perspective it is important to acknowledge that among the challenges HEIs currently face, (un)employment and the professional future of its graduates holds a position of great relevance, particularly for its strong academic, social, economic and cultural repercussions. Having recognized it, the WORK+ Consortium partners are prepared to find new opportunities that bring relevant knowledge to their students, teachers and staff in line with the actual needs of the labour market. By doing it Universities are fulfilling their basic mission: being driving forces of knowledge and contributing to the development of our society, economy and culture.

Through a total of 394 scholarships to support mobility of students and graduates for internships and of academic and administrative staff, the WORK+ project seeks to:

  1. provide new opportunities for training and international experience;
  2. improve students and graduates’ employability easing their entry into the labour market;
  3. bring more awareness to the staff (academic and administrative) on the importance of the professional training to the fulfilment of the HEIs’ mission;
  4. reinforce the (inter)national cooperation of the involved HEIs;
  5. increase the visibility and international recognition of the quality of the training provided by the Portuguese HEIs;
  6. allow the exchange of experiences and views of the several partners so as to extend the impact of the project beyond the foreseen mobility flows.

 

EACEA - Privacy Statement

If candidates/applicants are selected (proposed for a scholarship/fellowship, put on the reserve list or enrolled on a self-paying basis) their data may be used for the purposes of evaluating the programmes, efficiently manage the projects, and producing statistics. Data could be made available to the EACEA, the European Commission, the European External Action Service staff, as well as to other stakeholders of the Erasmus+ programme, such as Erasmus+ National Agencies, National Erasmus+ Offices and the Erasmus Mundus Student and Alumni Association.