Welcome to charm-eu

SHAPING The future of European universities

We are an European University alliance of 9 prestigious universities. Together, we are building a transformative, inclusive, and challenge-driven university model inspired by European values, the Green Deal, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Explore CHARM-EU to unlock unique opportunities: joint programmes, transformative courses, groundbreaking research clusters, inspiring events, and seamless mobility across Europe.

Let’s shape a brighter, sustainable future together

GET TO KNOW US

Alliance highlights

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Applications are Open!

Master’s in Global Challenges for Sustainability

Applications are open
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CHARM-EU Winter School 2026

CHARM-EU Winter School 2026

Citizen Science in Action: Skills, Tools, and Community Engagement for Early-Career Researchers
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TOL-CALL-for-students

Call for Students - New TOL Catalogue

Call for Students - New TOL Catalogue

Check it here!
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CHARM ON #3: Citizen Science in Action

CHARM ON #3: citizen science in action

One-hour conversation on how CHARM-EU turns ideas into practice
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micro-credentials (1)

Micro-credentials & free online courses

Micro-credentials and free online courses

These high-quality, innovative micro-credentials and free online courses are delivered by CHARM-EU partners. Aligned with CHARM-EU educational principles they engage learners to address real-world challenges.
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The latest

Group picture of the Graduation 4th cohort at the Paraninf at the University of Barcelona.

CHARM-EU Celebrates the Graduation of Its 4th Cohort of the Master’s in Global Challenges for Sustainability in Barcelona
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CHARM-EU and Capstone Collaboration: Turning Academic Learning into Regional Impact
Photo group of the Polyglot group at the University of Barcelona.

Lingua Franca Tandems: Practicing English through Virtual Exchange

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upcoming events

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CHARM-EU in figures

Pioneer universities
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Overall students*
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Overall staff members*
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Overall faculties, institutes and schools*
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Associate partners
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*Data from 2023/2024

DISCOVER CHARM-EU IMPACT

CHARM-EU is the Challenge-driven, Accessible,
Research-Based and Mobile European University alliance.

The Alliance is made up of the University of Barcelona (coordinator), Trinity College Dublin, Utrecht University, the University of Montpellier, Eötvös Loránd University Budapest, Åbo Akademi University, Julius-Maximilians-University Würzburg, Ruhr West University of Applied Sciences and the University of Bergen. 

“CHARM-EU programme has boosted my employability and prepared me to work in interdisciplinary environments”

Itziar Salazar

  • CHARM-EU Alumna and current Manager of the Hub for Global Sustainability at UB
Itziar Salazar

“The Master’s programme in Global Challenges for Sustainability is a springboard to endless possibilities: it opens doors to international careers in sustainability and sustainable development, from policy opportunities to private sector innovation”

Alisia Gahabka

  • Bluebook Trainee at the European Environment Agency
Alicia

“Our mission is to contribute to shape a more competitive Europe through Higher Education.“

Meritxell Chaves

  • Secretary General
  • CHARM-EU
Meritxell Chaves

Through tackling sustainability challenges together with societal actors: government, organisations, business and civil society, CHARM-EU students will acquire knowledge and skills that are crucial for their future careers.

Marjanneke Vijge

  • Academic Director
  • CHARM-EU & Utrecht University
marjanneke vijge

“CHARM-EU enables students to pursue a highly personalised and ambitious learning journey. A key innovation of the programme is the integration of traineeship mobility to extra-academic partners, providing students with invaluable international professional experiences that enhance the overall value of their education”

Luca Alexa Erdei

  • International Coordinator of CHARM-EU Mobility Work Package
Luca Erdei

“The challenge-based educational approach is the engine powering CHARM European University”.

Ferenc Takó

  • CHARM-EU Director at Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest
Ferenc

“CHARM-EU contributes to a new generation of professionals that are deeply committed to address societal challenges through collaborative teams, and who stand firmly on sustainability to make this world a better place”.

Núria Casamitjana

  • Chair of the CHARM-EU Academic Council
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“With the CHARM-EU master’s programme, students can experience the kind of work they might actually do in the future, for example, in the public or food sector. It’s a great way to put academic knowledge into real-life practice.”

Alba Graells

  • Government of Catalonia, Agriculture Department
Alba Graells, profile picture

University of Montpellier

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Created in 2015 through the merger of University Montpellier 1 and University Montpellier 2, the University of Montpellier (UM) draws from the excellence and synergy of these two institutions. It is reminiscent of the multi-disciplinary approach taken by the first university established in Montpellier in 1289 as a secular and international university. For eight centuries, renowned scholars and scientists, from François Rabelais and Jacques Curie, to Théophraste Renaudot, Jean-Antoine Chaptal and Alexandre Grothendieck, have been shaping this open university. It is deeply embedded into the life of the city and committed to the key challenges of its time. Today, the University of Montpellier brings together an extensive community of knowledge from science, technology, medicine and environmental sciences to educational sciences, economics, management, law and political science. It is involved in a strategic global initiative aiming at making Montpellier one of the European capitals for Health and Agro-environment.

University of Barcelona

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Since its foundation in 1450, the University of Barcelona (UB) has been a leading center of education, science, and critical thought. The quality of its teaching and research has earned recognition nationally and internationally, complementing the UB’s commitment to serving society. The UB offers a wide range of bachelor’s, master’s, and postgraduate courses in humanities, health sciences, social sciences, experimental sciences, and engineering. UB’s strong international dimension is reflected in its academic and research activities, including various mobility and exchange programs. As a research institution, UB is among the top European universities in major international rankings and it is the top Spanish university in most of them. Its international leadership is evident in networks like LERU and as the CHARM-EU coordinator. UB plays a predominant role in achieving scientific, technological, intellectual, and cultural progress in Catalonia, and the work of its researchers can be read in the most prestigious publications in the scientific community.

Utrecht University

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Utrecht University is a wide-range, international research university of high standing. We have a strong connection to the city of Utrecht and our roots lie deep in the past (1636). Our interdisciplinary research targets four themes: Life Sciences, Pathways to Sustainability, Dynamics of Youth and Institutions for Open Societies. We are a trailblazer in the field of modernising educational concepts. Our student pass rate is high. The educational model at Utrecht University stands for personal and energising education, flexibility and freedom of choice for students, and continuous professional development for lecturers. Our teaching and research are strongly connected. We work together in tight communities. We believe diversity is important. All this provides us with a solid base from which to work with others around the globe on the societal issues of the future. We do this by researching complex issues beyond the borders of disciplines. We put thinkers in contact with doers, so new insights can be applied.

Trinity College Dublin

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At Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin, we provide a liberal environment where independence of thought is highly valued and all are encouraged to achieve their potential. We promote a diverse, interdisciplinary, inclusive environment which nurtures ground-breaking research, innovation, and creativity through engaging with issues of global significance. Located in a beautiful campus in the heart of Dublin’s city centre, Trinity is Ireland’s highest ranked university. It is home to 22,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students across all the major disciplines in the arts and humanities, and in business, law, engineering, science, and health sciences. Trinity’s tradition of independent intellectual inquiry has produced some of the world’s finest, most original minds including the writers Oscar Wilde and Samuel Beckett (Nobel laureate), the scientists William Rowan Hamilton and Ernest Walton (Nobel laureate), the political thinker Edmund Burke, and the former President of Ireland and UNHCR Mary Robinson. This tradition finds expression today in a campus culture of scholarship, innovation, creativity, entrepreneurship and dedication to societal reform.

Eötvös Loránd University

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Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) – in terms of student and staff number, quality of education and research, and its international relations – is a prestigious institution of public higher education in Hungary, operating continuously since its establishment in 1635. As a top-ranked research university, it is the most popular higher education institution among applicants as well as alma mater of five Nobel laureates and leading figures in technology, public policy, and culture in the country. ELTE has widespread international relations. It holds bilateral agreements for cooperation and exchange with top-ranked higher education institutions worldwide and is an active member of prestigious international university networks.

University of Bergen

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The University of Bergen (UiB) is an international research university with long academic traditions. Since the foundation in 1946, UiB has been a classical knowledge- and culture-bearing institution founded on European university values, anchored in a European university tradition. Long-term and basic research of high international quality and research-based education form the foundation of all the university’s activities. UiB holds national responsibility for hosting and developing a wide range of academic disciplines, ensuring a broad span of academic research, which includes scientific and artistic methods. The broad academic scope provides unique opportunities for mobilisation, specialisation, and collaboration across disciplines in the face of known and unknown future challenges. UiB’s greatest strength is the people; the 19 845 students and 4222 employees who shares a mutual set of values based on trust, participation, and inclusion. Located in the heart of Bergen, UiB is an integrated part of the city, the culture, and the business sector. UiB makes targeted efforts to promote and develop both the city of Bergen and the region as an international centre of gravity for science, art, and culture. The university’s research spans over a wide range of fields and contributes to fundamental understanding and to addressing the challenges of the future.

University of Würzburg

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Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU) was founded in 1402 and today is one of Germany’s largest universities with over 28,000 students in ten faculties. True to its motto ‘Science for Society’, JMU is committed to advancing research and teaching in fields that are relevant for the future. The University offers more than 200 study programs in fields like humanities and social sciences, the natural and life sciences, including English degree programmes. So far, 14 Nobel laureates have conducted their research here. JMU is one of the leading research universities in Germany, fostering a worldwide network of research collaborations and student exchange programs. JMU boasts numerous collaborative and interdisciplinary research centres, graduate schools, and research groups. In 2022 JMU joined the EU-funded European University Alliance “CHARM-EU” to advance its internationalisation and develop with the alliance partners an innovative university model ready to meet society’s challenges.

Åbo Akademi University

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Åbo Akademi University (ÅAU), founded in 1918, is the Swedish-language multidisciplinary academic university in Finland. ÅAU activities are steered by the values of academic tradition in terms of the freedom of research and education as well as ethical responsibility. ÅAU endeavours to enhance diversity, inclusion, equality, and sustainability. There are about 5,900 students at ÅAU, with 1,200 staff, chiefly divided on two campuses in Turku and Vaasa. Åbo Akademi University offers internationally renowned research and education, and through cross-border collaboration, ÅAU serves as the gateway to Finland for the Nordic countries. As a multidisciplinary university ÅAU offers a broad range of programs and degrees, within all major fields of knowledge and scientific disciplines. ÅAU has established four different strategic research profiles, drawing upon the university’s own strengths, traditions, and position. They are Minority Research, Technologies for a Sustainable Future, Solutions for Health, and The Sea.

Ruhr West University of Applied Sciences

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Ruhr West University of Applied Sciences (HRW) is a public university offering high-quality bachelor’s and master’s programs in computer science, engineering and business administration. All of their innovative programs have a strong emphasis on practice and real-world application, giving students the opportunity to gain practical experience by working with one of their many local and regional industry partners. With three new, state-of-the-art campuses in the cities of Muelheim an der Ruhr and Bottrop, HRW is located in the heart of the Ruhr area, one of the world’s foremost industrial regions with a population of about 5.3 million. The HRW motto \”Never stop growing!\” reflects the founding mission of the young university to advance structural change in the Ruhr region. In times of a shortage of skilled workers, not least with excellently trained graduates who are optimally prepared for the challenges in the economy of the future. With a practice-oriented education and the ability to set priorities in interdisciplinary and intercultural teams.