This year, eleven exchange projects from Leiden University received an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility education grant. The total award of almost €510.000 enables 98 students and staff members to go on exchange.
The grants will be used for study, teaching and research projects. The Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility programme (ICM) facilitates collaboration with universities outside the European Union. In the exchange projects awarded in 2024, Leiden University works together with partner universities in 12 different countries for a period of three years: Australia, Bhutan, Canada, Georgia, Iraq, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Suriname, United States, and Uzbekistan.
We talked to three coordinators about their projects.
Old languages and writings of the Middle-East
Caroline Waerzeggers, Assistant Professor in Assyriology, received the ICM grant for a cooperation project with Sulaimani University in Iraqi Kurdistan. Both staff members and students will go on exchange in the field of old languages and writings of the Middle-East.
What is the goal of the exchange programme with Sulaimani University?
'In our Bachelor and (Res)Master programmes, we focus on old languages and writings from the Middle East, in particular the cuneiform script that was used for over 3,000 years in the region that now constitutes Iraq, Syria, Türkiye, and Iran.
Sulaimani University hosts excellent study programmes in the field of Kurdistan languages, cultures and archaeology. Until today, this region used to be at the center of networks and routes between West and Central Asia. The University is involved in excavations in the surrounding area, and the museum of Suleimani is a testimony of the large Kurdistan inheritance. Leiden University is an interesting partner for staff and students from Suleimani, since our knowledge infrastructure within this field is well established and since we offer study programmes with many different possibilities to further specialize. The Faculty of Archaeology and the Middle Eastern Studies programme at the Faculty of Humanities will play a role in this cooperation project as well, allowing Iraqi students to benefit from the unique expertise of Leiden University in these different fields.'
Which activities do you wish to carry out with the awarded ICM grant?
'Thanks to the ICM grant, we are able to set up a long-term cooperation with Sulaimani University. In Suleimani, our students will have the possibility to gain hands-on experience, for example by taking part in excavations or by doing an internship at the museum. This cooperation will also allow us to pilot outgoing student exchanges to Iraq. Conversely, we are looking forward to welcome students and staff from Suleimani during our lectures and to organising scientific workships and masterclasses.'
Why is international cooperation so important within your field of expertise?
'With this exchange project, we not only want to share our teaching and research methods, but also critically evaluate them. In an 'international class room', you not only get to know others, but also yourself.'
Internship in Biomedical Sciences
In her project, Jolanda van der Zee, Programme Director of the Master Biomedical Sciences, focuses on the exchange of Leiden University students. With the ICM grant, research master students are able to do an internship at the Wistar Institute in Philadelphia.
What is the goal of the exchange programme with the Wistar Institute?
'We want to give master students in Biomedical Sciences the opportunity to broaden their horizons and do research at in internationally leading research institute. Not only will they be able to gain important experience in doing research, but also will they get to know other working methods and cultural contexts that are different from what they are used to. This provides them with the unique opportunity to further develop themselves both as researchers and young professionals.'
Which activities do you wish to carry out with the awarded ICM grant?
'As part of the two-year programme of the research master Biomedical Sciences, students have to do a long research internship during their second year. Yearly, the ICM grant will provide two students with financial support to do their internships at the Wistar Institute in Philadelphia. Since studying in the United States is very expensive, the ICM grant is important to enable internships at Wistar.'
Why is international cooperation so important within your field of expertise?
'Research in the Life Sciences is done all over the world. We are observing that important developments in this field of expertise are arise through international collaboration. The Leiden BioScience Park is a good example of this, as there are major international players looking for cooperation with Leiden University.
For many students, their second research internship is an important step towards a PhD. Sending our students to the Wistar Institute, we also aim to foster cooperation between researchers from the LUMC and Wistar. We will then be able to work on the development of a joint PhD programme.
Apart from that, we will try to intensify our cooperation with the education programmes by giving lectures and (online) workshops. By doing so, not only the ICM students going to the United States will benefit from the cooperation, but also many other master students.'
International and cross-cultural exchange in teaching and learning methods
Caroline Archambault, Assistant Professor in Anthropology and Development, will use the ICM grant for cooperation with three different Kenyan partner universities: Kenyatta University, Maasai Mara University and University of Nairobi. Her project is exclusively about the exchange of staff members.
What is the goal of the exchange programme with your three partner universities?
'At Leiden University College (LUC) The Hague, I am not only working as a teacher, but also as Global Citizenship Coordinator. Central to this ICM project is my interest and work on the Ethics of Engagement (in research and teaching).
I want to explore and identify central principles of fair partnership and equal exchange in cross-cultural teaching and learning, and pilot some different forms of exchange.'
Which activities do you wish to carry out with the awarded ICM grant?
'We will carry out 4 workshops: 2 in the Netherlands and 2 in Kenya. These aim at exploring partnerships and developing and disseminating a strategy for reciprocating international, cross-cultural teaching experiences relevant to any Institute and any region. In addition, we will pilot educational innovation exchange as a form of reciprocity. For example, we will explore co-creation of Learning Mindset interventions that facilitate autonomous learning.'
Why is international cooperation so important within your field of expertise?
'Leiden University's aim to increase its strategic collaborations and partnerships, especially with partners in the Global South, requires that it takes principles of fair partnerships and equal exchange very seriously. Teachers, researchers, and students are undertaking many innovative approaches to reciprocating these learning opportunities. We want to bring these together to extract fundamental principles and share best practices to strengthen ethics in Global Citizenship education.'
