Episode 4: Teaming up for higher education’s societal impact

Listen to this episode from HigherEd in Practice on Spotify. An interview with Frederik De Decker from Ghent University on learning and teaching-related cooperations with non-university actors such as organisations and city administrations in order to serve society and reflect its realities and challenges.   More information about Ghent University’s Call for Challenges, the Stadsacademie and the ENLIGHT Regional Academies is available on the initiatives’ websites. Speakers Frederik De Decker is currently the Head of the International Relations Office at his alma mater Ghent University (Belgium). He also started his professional career in internationalisation there, almost 30 years ago, triggered by his own study abroad experiences in The Netherlands and Poland. Previously he had different responsibilities related to internationalisation and educational policy in various Belgian higher education institutions. He participates regularly as an expert in international projects, mainly dealing with internationalisation, educational development, qualifications frameworks and quality assurance. His special interests are the concept of (international/intercultural) learning outcomes/competences; micro-credentials; inclusive mobility and sustainable internationalisation. Maria Kelo is the director of the Institutional Development Unit, which focuses on issues related to higher education learning and teaching, recognition and quality assurance. Before joining EUA in January 2022, Maria was for over a decade the Director of ENQA, the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education as well as member of the EQAR Executive Board in 2013-2020. She took part in European policy making processes within the Bologna Process and through cooperation with the European Commission. Prior to joining ENQA, Maria worked for nine years in the field of international higher education in different European organisations and as a private consultant and has gained significant experiences on issues such as quality assurance, international higher education, and higher education reform. Maria is a graduate of University College London and the London School of Economics.