European Competition for Best Innovations in University Outreach and Public Engagement
As part of the EC-funded ULab project, the Oxford Internet Institute at the University of Oxford is organizing an online competition to identify the most innovative outreach and public engagement activities carried out by European Universities. Both individuals and groups may apply for awards.
Competition submissions must be for an activity that has been initiated and sustained at any university or higher education institution within the 27 EU member states, including projects that might have involved collaboration with institutions outside the EU. The entry can be from one or a number of cooperating universities.
The three winning entries will each receive a 5000 EUR prize for their institution as well as funding for a representative to attend the award ceremony at the University of Oxford on 8 June 2012.
Criteria
Entries will be judged on the following equally weighted criteria:
- Clarity of purpose: Clear definition of the objectives of the initiative; awareness of, and strategies to meet, the needs of different target audiences (25%).
- Impact: Reporting and evaluation of the impact of the initiative; making use of quantitative measures (such as attendance rates, web traffic, surveys) and / or qualitative ones (such as interviews, focus groups) (25%).
- Originality: Evidence of creativity and originality, including innovative ways of measuring impact (25%).
- Sustainability: Evidence of sustainability for future use of the initiative by your own institution or by others (e.g. through open access, open licencing) (25%).
Application Procedure
Entries should be submitted online at http://www.engageawards.org by 15 March 2012.
For each entry, please submit:
- 1,000 word description and evaluation (in English) of your outreach and public engagement initiative, making sure you address all of the assessment criteria (listed above), including links to any relevant information (which can be in any European language).
- 150 word abstract in English.
- A letter from your host institution, indicating their agreement for the case to be submitted to the competition.
The three winning entries will be announced on the 23rd of April 2012.
The competition is open to anyone from any European university or higher education institution. Awards will be made to institutions (or units) rather than to individuals. All entries will be made public on the website, forming part of an online repository of good practice in outreach.
More information
For more information about the judges and the awards ceremony see www.engageawards.org. For specific enquiries please email engageawards@oii.ox.ac.uk.
ULab is an innovative think-tank of five leading Technical and Research-intensive European Universities: the Technical University of Madrid, the Polytechnic University of Turin, the Technical University of Munich, the Paris Institute of Technology and the University of Oxford. It is a two year project funded by the EC http://www.ulab-fp7.eu/
Stewart, yes, online education is certainly a key form of university outreach. And you are exactly right that there is a growing set of students who do not wish to follow traditional educational routes, taking 3-4 years out to do a degree, and would prefer to work on a degree while staying in the workplace.
I have observed that online diploma is getting favorite because getting your college degree online has turned into a popular alternative for many people. A lot of people have definitely not had a chance to attend a conventional college or university yet seek the increased earning possibilities and career advancement that a Bachelors Degree offers. Still others might have a degree in one field but would wish to pursue one thing they already have an interest in.