Professor Janet De Wilde, Director of the Queen Mary Academy, has been appointed chair of a new European University Association (EUA) transnational education thematic peer group.
Professor Michael Chai, Queen Mary Director of Joint Programme with Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (BUPT), joins Professor de Wilde in the group.
Representing over 800 universities, the EUA ensures that the independent voice of European universities is heard and provides members with unique opportunities to shape European policies and initiatives affecting higher education, research, and innovation.
The new peer group headed up by Professor De Wilde will look at the challenges and enablers in designing transnational joint education provision. It will take stock of experiences and lessons learned in this area, including joint programmes and curricula, jointly delivered courses and other forms of physical and virtual joint or shared provision.
The group will address several key questions including how universities can define a clear purpose and measurable benefits of joint learning provision, how feasible various models are in terms of long-term sustainability, which partnership models work best, how to support staff who teach on this provision, and the overall impact on the student experience.
Ultimately, based on the exchange of knowledge, experiences and practices, the group will develop a report to be published summarising the conclusions.
Professor Janet De Wilde, Director of the Queen Mary Academy, said: “I am delighted to join this prestigious group and use my extensive experience in higher education to help recommend policies and practices in an area with a great deal of potential.
“With the growing popularity of transnational education, it’s important European universities play a part in shaping its future and I am looking forward to working with colleagues to ensure our voice is heard.”
Professor De Wilde has over 30 years of experience in higher education and first joined Queen Mary in 2014. Since 2020, she has led the Queen Mary Academy, focusing on excellence in education and learning, teaching recognition, and researcher development.
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