Welcome to New Modes of Mobility
In the Rome Declaration, of 25 March 2017, EU leaders’ called for’a Union where citizens have new opportunities for cultural and social development and economic growth’ and pledged to work towards ’a Union where young people receive the best education and training and can study and find jobs across the continent’. Therefore, in higher education great emphasis has already been placed on internationalisation in order to develop the transversal skills of students. In contrast, currently widespread methods of mobility reach only a very limited number of students. Especially considering the many social and physically disadvantaged students in Europe, this is an intolerable situation. Moreover, a modern workforce simply requires employees possess interpersonal skills to act as real European citizens. In addition to the international aspects, employers in a globalised world seek graduates with skills related to digitalisation and interdisciplinary competencies.
This is where the European strategic partnership “New Modes of Mobility” (NewM) addresses students, teachers and higher educational institutions. By creating modules and courses with aspects of virtual and hybrid mobility, barriers to gaining experience in internationalisation and digitalisation will be lowered. With this inclusive approach, socioeconomic, financial and health issues can be overcome, and a substantially higher number of students will be able to benefit from a state-of-the-art educational system.