A-4U to collaborate with universities and centres in India
24/11/2010
One of the objectives of A-4U is to project internationally all academic and research activities carried out by the institutions which make up the alliance. For this reason, India is a strategic area for the internationalisation of Spanish universities thanks to the excellence of its academic and scientific institutions, with which A-4U aspires to establish new synergies by aiming to provide high quality training and research standards in a globalised environment.
The agreements signed in New Delhi will set the bases for academic and scientific collaborations between A-4U universities and its Indian partners. Seven agreements have been signed with the following institutions (academic and scientific fields included in each agreement are added in brackets):
- The Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore (biosciences, engineering and technology)
- International Institute of Information Technology in Bangalore (engineering)
- Indian Institute of Foreign Trade of India (economics, business management and administration, international business)
- Birla Institute of Management Technology (economics)
- Consortium of National Institutes of Technology of India (Co-NIT) (engineering, economics)
- Jaypee Education System (biosciences, engineering, economics)
- Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore (economics, business management and administration)
A-4U is also studying the possibility of reaching agreements with the University of Delhi in the fields of Spanish studies, economics and the humanities, and with the Indian Institute of Technology in the fields of engineering, technology and biotechnology.
The accords signed will permit students from Spain to complete their studies and training in India and vice versa. It will also boost the mobility of teaching staff and enhance research project collaborations between specialists of both countries.
Students will be able to study in India from six months up to one year. The agreements cover exchange programmes for both undergraduate and postgraduate students.
The A-4U delegation will also be visiting other university and research centres in New Delhi and Greater Noida with which they hope to sign agreements in the future. The visit will also give A-4U delegates the chance to present their academic activities to students in India.
An Alliance in Excellence and Internationalisation
The Alliance of 4 Universities (A-4U) was created in 2008 by four leading Spanish public universities. Two are located in Barcelona: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and Universitat Pompeu Fabra, and two in Madrid: Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. All four have an excellent record in scientific research, outstanding academic quality indicators, and a strong commitment to internationalisation.
The main purpose of the Alliance is to enhance international academic excellence through joint actions in the areas related to research projects, academic and international mobility among researchers and faculty, and international relations.
Since the beginning, the four universities have been actively involved in developing international exchange programmes, establishing research collaboration partnerships with universities abroad and reaching a significant proportion of international faculty and students.
One of the aims of A-4U is to promote a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes taught in Spanish, English and both, offered by the universities of A-4U in a variety of academic fields and adapted to the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). Programmes taught in English are in the following subjects:
- Experimental and Health Sciences
- Economics and Business
- Information and Communication Technologies
- Law and Social Sciences
- Humanities
- Translation and Language Studies
Doctoral students enrolled at any of the four universities are eligible for the A-4U postdoctoral scholarships for 2-year postdoctoral research stays at one of the four universities. The objective of this programme is to enhance cooperation among the four universities in academic and research projects.
The four universities have established a joint office in Brussels named OPERA (Office for the Promotion of European Research Activities) which is responsible for promoting high-level European research activities and reasserting the essential role that scientific research has for the four universities, among the best in Europe in terms of scientific excellence.
A study on research productivity in Spanish public universities (University of Granada, 2008), commissioned by the Ministry of Science and Innovation, shows A-4U universities as the top four universities in the global per capita ranking of productivity in research.
More information:
Alliance of 4 Universities