The ETIKETA project, to which the AEC made a modest yet meaningful contribution, was first featured in the April 2023 AEC Newsletter. Two years ago, the European Commission launched a special Erasmus+ call targeting existing European University Alliances. The goal was to develop a Joint European Degree Label, a certification designed to recognise – under the endorsement of the European Union as a ‘higher authority’ – the exceptional quality and advanced learning outcomes of students who completed joint study programs across multiple institutions, countries, and languages.

The pilot projects funded through this initiative were tasked with defining indicators and criteria outlined by the European Commission to evaluate the quality of joint degrees. The goal was to make these degrees more transparent, comparable, and ultimately test their feasibility and applicability. 

One of the select few applications approved for this initiative was ETIKETA, submitted by FilmEU, the only European Universities Alliance at the time focused on arts education. FilmEU, an alliance of film and media higher education institutions (HEIs), aimed to ensure the project’s benefits extended to HEIs from other artistic disciplines. Furthermore, FilmEU engaged closely with AEC from the very beginning, fostering a productive collaboration. With the project concluded in March 2024, it is now an opportune time to reflect on the achievements and next steps.

A Promising Outcome and Future Prospects

The concept of a Joint European Degree Label was widely validated by the pilot projects, which delivered results that reinforced and advanced the idea. Consequently, the decision was made to take this initiative to the next phase, positioning the Joint Degree Label as a cornerstone of a future European Degree. This initiative seeks to enhance Europe’s competitiveness while symbolising a shared European identity.

However, the one-year timeframe for the pilot projects, including ETIKETA, was understandably too short to produce fully developed results. Instead, these projects established crucial groundwork for future efforts. In the case of ETIKETA, the pilot phase not only laid the foundation for continued progress on the Joint European Degree Label but also addressed specific needs and requirements of the higher arts education sector. This groundwork provides a valuable platform for the newly established music-focused European Universities Alliance IN.TUNE to build upon.

ETIKETA’s Key Contributions

During the project period, ETIKETA achieved several notable milestones, including:

  • Mapping Exercise: Conducting a comprehensive overview of existing joint labels, including subject-specific labels and those from other regions worldwide.
  • Concept Development and Testing: Collaborating with students, stakeholders, and partners to conceptualise and test approaches for advancing the Joint European Degree Label beyond the pilot phase.

Detailed information about the ETIKETA project and its design is available on the ETIKETA YouTube channel. Additionally, updates on the project outcomes and future follow-up activities can be accessed on the ETIKETA website.

What is ETIKETA?

ETIKETA is an Erasmus+ policy experimentation pilot project for proposing a joint European degree label promoted by DG Education, Youth, Sport and Culture – Unit B1 Higher Education.

As a pilot project, ETIKETA promoted the design and test of transnational cooperation instruments based on proposed co-created European criteria, for the delivery of a joint European degree label for joint transnational higher education programmes.