“Study in Greece”- Promotion of Greek Programmes abroad

Athens,Greece.- Study in Greece (https://studyingreece.edu.gr/) is the national organisation promoting the internationalisation of Greek universities, founded in 2023 by the 24 higher education institutions of the country, under the auspices of the Ministries of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports, Foreign Affairs, Culture and Tourism. Its mission is to support the internationalisation of public universities through the international promotion of their academic programs and thus to promote Greece as an educational destination for international students, in line with the current priorities of the Greek state and the universities themselves.

In recent years, Greece has been implementing an extroversion and internationalisation strategy, through which higher education is gaining a new orientation and the capacity to establish the country as an educational hub in South-Eastern Europe, attracting students, scientists and investments from other countries.

Right now, we are faced with a great opportunity to work on making our universities centres of soft power, international hubs of excellence to contribute to our national reconstruction, forging a new national self-confidence and unity.

In order for the strategy of extroversion to be implemented and bear fruit, visibility, recognition and presence of the Greek universities on the international academic map are crucial factors.

Study in Greece is working towards this goal with a wide range of initiatives such as:

• development and management of a multi-functional digital information platform for the international public
• utilization of new technologies for the promotion of the work of the academic community
• participation in international educational exhibitions, fairs and information campaigns
• promotion and support of strategic partnerships with universities abroad
• advisory services to support the academic community
• organization of summer schools for foreigners and promotion of courses in Greek language and culture.

In order to achieve its goal, Study in Greece cooperates closely with international organisations and Greek diplomatic authorities abroad, all of which contribute greatly.

Furthermore, in response to the contemporary data and the needs of the international market, Study in Greece moves along two additional directions:

1. the creation of an environment that will encourage cooperation and synergies between universities and industry,

and

2. the interconnection of education with the labour market and the needs of the private sector.

NATIONAL INTERNATIONALIZATION STRATEGY

Our main objective is the extroversion of Greek universities through:

• the creation of programmes taught in foreign languages, mainly English;
• the establishment of synergies with foreign universities, including the creation of joint and double undergraduate and postgraduate programmes;
• the organisation of summer schools, which cultivate Greek language skills and familiarity with our cultural heritage on the one hand and with contemporary Greek culture on the other;
• the exchange of students, academics and researchers;
• the exchange of good practices with organisations and universities abroad

It is worth noting that Greek universities currently offer a total of 12 foreign-language undergraduate programmes and around 200 foreign-language postgraduate programmes. Four of the 12 undergraduate programmes are medical programmes taught in English at the Universities of Athens, Thessaloniki, Crete and Thessaly. The first undergraduate degree programme in English, in Classical Studies, History and Archaeology, started in the academic year 2020-2021 at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.

THE DEMOGRAPHIC PROBLEM

Serious studies have described the decline in births and the pessimistic demographic tendencies for Greece over the next 30 years.

The problem was further exacerbated during the crisis due to migratory outflows.  Therefore, given the problem of low birth rates, support measures should not only include calls for the return of expatriates, but also measures for Greece’s transition to a knowledge-intensive economy, to which Greek universities can make a substantial contribution if they act systematically and strategically as a pole of attraction for international students and researchers. This transition could be facilitated through targeted investment in education, research and technological innovation. Furthermore, the internationalisation of Greek higher education in a difficult period of restructuring and mergers of many university departments around the world, especially in the humanities, can be a catalyst for the survival of Greek universities.

COLLABORATIONS WITH OTHER COUNTRIES

In the context of internationalisation, with the support of the Ministry of Education, Study in Greece promotes and enhances synergies with universities in countries within and outside Europe. We are already at an advanced stage of cooperation between Greek and prominent American universities, with the contribution of the US Embassy in Athens, the United States Institute of International Education (IIE), College Year in Athens and other American institutions. The framework for Greek-American academic cooperation aims to strengthen collaboration between Greek and American universities in order to foster long-term educational and research synergies, which the institutions themselves co-decide and develop.

Meanwhile, synergies are developing between Greek and British universities, with the contribution of the British Council and the British Embassy in Athens, as well as between Greek and Chinese universities with the aid of the China Education Association for International Exchange.

Recently, we have been exploring the possibilities of educational cooperation with India, with the participation of the Embassy of Greece in New Delhi and the Embassy of India in Athens, a model which is expected to be applied to promote cooperation with South Korea.

Within the European area, Study in Greece cooperates with similar institutions of traditional forces in the field of higher education, such as: France (Institut Français Grèce), Germany (DAAD), Italy (UniItalia), while the landmark European initiative “European Universities” is evolving, in which more than ten Greek universities are actively participating.

HUMAN RESOURCES OF GREEK UNIVERSITIES

The catalysts for successful efforts and innovative partnerships are the people who make them happen. Greek universities can take pride in their human resources and their exceptional potential.

The decade of crisis brought many hardships, including the well-known brain drain. Thousands of young people left Greece and started a new life abroad. The young people who left, the vast majority of whom were scientists, graduates of Greek universities, met the demands of the international market and many of them stood out for their distinguished performance in their professional field, following in the footsteps of the Diaspora of earlier periods.  The successes of all of them constitute a reliable testimony in favour of Greek universities. The loss of this valuable human resource from the country is certainly irreplaceable. At the same time, however, it proves that those who left had in their baggage the necessary knowledge and skills to succeed and excel in a foreign, demanding environment. Such knowledge, such skills are the assets they obtained by studying at Greek universities.

DIASPORA

STRATEGIC PLAN FOR THE EXPATRIATE HELLENISM

The country’s policy on Hellenism Abroad, which constitutes one of Greece’s significant comparative advantages in international competition, is in line with the contemporary data of countries with a strong Diaspora and is reflected in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ “Strategic Plan for Greeks Abroad”, with a four-year plan (2024-2027).

Key objectives of the Strategic Plan related to education include the preservation of the Hellenic elements by strengthening the Greek language, tradition and culture, with emphasis on the new generation and the strengthening of bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the field of education.

The promotion of cultural and scientific knowledge is a key priority for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and is part of the vital field of cultural diplomacy.

At this time, we have a unique opportunity to work towards making our universities a soft power, international centres of excellence that will contribute to our national reconstruction, forging a new national confidence and unity. In this journey of redefinition, we rely on the support of Greeks everywhere.

We aim to create a favourable environment for the participation of the Diaspora in the development of the Greek homeland and the creation of sustainable links between the Diaspora and Greece.

Greek expatriates, who express in every way their deep desire to participate in Greek education, could not be absent from this effort. Starting from language learning and reaching higher education, Greeks abroad can contribute substantially to the internationalisation of higher education in our country and can also constitute a pool from which a large number of students can come to Greece.

It is both visible and commendable that the will of the Greeks in the Diaspora is to engage in economic, cultural and social cooperation with their country of origin, as well as their willingness to contribute through the transfer of knowledge and know-how.

Therefore, it is necessary to develop partnerships with expatriate and domestic organisations in order to create an environment conducive for cooperation. Our universities, having demonstrated their international and outward-looking orientation in practice, will be among the leading figures of the new era. The potential of Greek universities offers new opportunities and opens up new prospects for cooperation with Hellenism in the Diaspora. Let us make use of them by strengthening the bridges between Greeks, wherever they may be.