Long-running Erasmus programme in humanitarian action will be honoured
Lars Löfquist. Photo: Tobias Sterner.
Hi there Lars Löfquist, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Theology and Programme coordinator. Your Master’s programme will receive an award “for outstanding contributions to the success of the Erasmus Mundus programme”.
The Master’s Programme in International Humanitarian Action is one of the five oldest Erasmus Mundus programmes that are still running. The European Commission will honour the programme with this award during the conference “Beyond Borders and Boundaries: 20 years of Erasmus Mundus” to be held on 27–28 May 2024 in Brussels.
How have the programme’s team managed to maintain such a high level of excellence for such a long time?
“The answer is partly because humanitarian work continues to be an important issue in the world; it’s an issue that has never really become irrelevant. But we have also managed to create a strong identity. We work at different universities but all see ourselves as part of the Network on Humanitarian Action (NOHA). That goes for those of us who are currently working within the programme, some of whom have been working in it for over 20 years, as well as the students."
NOHA is made up of the universities in nine European countries that jointly run the Master’s Degree Programme. The programme has been awarded Erasmus status four times, which means the possibility of scholarships and is also a quality stamp.
How important is that quality stamp for recruiting students?
“Very important. Students know that this joint programme does more than programmes run by just one university. This programme involves long-term cooperation between different actors at a high level."
How do you keep in touch with so many alumni?
“On the one hand, there is a Facebook group that is quite active and essentially alumni-driven. For example, it is sometimes used to find students for various internships or placements. In addition, we invite our alumni to lecture in the programme. The best form of recruitment is a student who completes the programme, goes out to work and then comes back and shares their experiences in various ways, as a visiting lecturer for example.”
Finally, what does this award mean for your work with the programme moving forward?
“Well, we celebrated 30 years of NOHA earlier this year – we’ve been around since 1994. But the job never ends, so we will probably be around for at least another 20 years!”
Johan Ahlenius
Facts
Erasmus Mundus was the EU’s initiative for Joint Master’s Degree Programmes offered in international partnerships with the aim of attracting students from all over the world to Europe.
The Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s Degree Programme in International Humanitarian Action is a two-year Master’s programme (120 credits) delivered by universities in France, Malta, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Ireland, Poland, Lithuania and Sweden. Together, they form the Network on Humanitarian Action (NOHA). Uppsala University joined NOHA in 1997.
A typical programme class at Uppsala University has 20 students and in total there are up to 150 students who start each autumn at the various universities involved in the programme. The programme also has over 4,000 alumni.