UNIVERSITY OF GRONINGEN
The University of Groningen (RUG) (1614) is a research university with a global outlook. Quality has had top priority for four hundred years: the RUG is in the top 100 of the most influential ranking lists. It holds currently 30.000 students and 5.500 staff members from home and abroad. Talent is nurtured, enabling the University to bridge the gap between science and society. The RUG is committed to actively collaborating with the social partners, with a special focus on the research themes Healthy Aging, Energy and Sustainable Society. It is distinguished by the close link the University has forged between research and teaching, a bond that does justice to their interdependence. Students from every continent prepare themselves in Groningen for their international career paths.
As an institution facilitating academic research and teaching, the RUG works at the forefront in its respective fields. The University undertakes its cooperative relationships on the basis of openness and equality. In these relationships, the RUG is socially involved, purposeful and creative. The RUG stimulates current debate on scientific, social and cultural issues and is clear and convincing in such debates. It houses the International Tuning Academy which results from the Tuning Educational Structures in the World projects launched in 2000. Tuning has drawn attention to the importance of involving all stakeholders, including employers and graduates, in the process of curriculum design and implementation.
The RUG is – together with the University of Deusto, Bilbao, Spain, co-ordinator of the Tuning projects and co-founder of the International Tuning Academy. The Academy has initiated a ground braking EU supported project about the measuring of outcomes of learning, CALOHEE (2016-2018), in which one of the four competency strands to develop is Civic, Social and Cultural Engagement. It was also a partner in the DARE+ project together with EDIW in which the recognition of non-formal learning is the focal point, and it runs the Knowledge Alliance Project, IEWEXHE, which intends to develop easily applicable models for traineeships, placements and entrepreneurships.