The international tertiary education landscape has changed drastically over the past decades. Universities now operate in a competitive environment in which they are forced to enhance their profiles and compete for the best students and resources. The increasing mobility of students and teaching staff leads to great diversity and new challenges. In view of society’s transformation into a knowledge society, the demands on tertiary education (particularly in view of rising tuition fees in many countries) and demographic developments, universities must develop specific missions and visions for their teaching, research and further education strategies in order to improve the employability of their graduates.
Working within international research consortia, projects include examining IP management at universities, establishing international cooperation between universities, effective financial management and, above all, the transfer of knowledge from academia to business and society. Research projects also address issues of quality development by scientifically monitoring, analysing and evaluating competence-based teaching and associated curriculum and personnel development systems.