IKAS – Intercultural Skills for Administrative Staff in Higher Education – is funded by the Erasmus+ programme (KA220 – Cooperation Partnerships in Higher Education). Coordinated by University of Caen Normandy, the project aims to strengthen the intercultural, linguistic and digital skills of administrative staff working in international higher education environments.
- University of Caen Normandie, France
- University of Lapland, Finland
- University of Valladolid, Spain
- Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, North Macedonia
- University of Pardubice, Czech Republic
- University of Fribourg, Switzerland
Running from October 2025 to September 2028, IKAS brings together the AcrossEU partners to support the professional development of administrative staff who interact with international students, academics and partners.
Project objectives
IKAS seeks to enhance the professional capacities of university administrative staff through four main objectives:
- Strengthen intercultural and linguistic competences, enabling staff to work effectively in multicultural and multilingual environments.
- Promote collaboration and mobility between universities, through a structured framework for staff exchanges and professional development.
- Enhance digital learning opportunities, by developing an online training platform accessible to all participants.
- Ensure long-term impact, by integrating intercultural competence training into institutional staff development programmes.
Training programme
The project will design and implement a comprehensive professional training programme combining language learning, intercultural competence development and practical mobility experiences.
Participants will follow:
- a 20-week professional English training programme (30 hours), focusing on communication in international university administration,
- an 8-week intercultural competence programme (20 hours), addressing intercultural communication, collaboration and conflict management in higher education settings.
These courses will be delivered through blended learning, combining online synchronous sessions, e-learning modules and collaborative activities on a dedicated digital platform.
International mobility and networking
To reinforce the practical application of newly acquired skills, the project will organise international mobility weeks hosted by partner universities. During these short-term mobilities, participants will take part in job shadowing activities, professional exchanges and intercultural collaboration, allowing them to discover new administrative practices and strengthen professional networks.
Impact
Over the three-year project, 120 administrative staff members from the partner universities will participate in the IKAS programme. At the end of the training, participants will receive an IKAS certificate and open badge recognising their newly acquired skills. By strengthening the international competences of university administrative staff, IKAS contributes to the internationalisation of higher education institutions and the improvement of services provided to international students, academics and partners.