Erasmus Policy Statement
The University of Central Lancashire, Cyprus (UCLan Cyprus) is located in the bicommunal town of Pyla, in the district of Larnaka. It commenced operations on 2 October 2012. It is an autonomous private University officially registered in the Registry of Private Universities maintained by the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Cyprus. It has full financial and legal autonomy as a private University. All programmes of study are evaluated and approved by the Evaluation Committee of Private Universities (ECPU) of Cyprus, but also meet the standards required by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) of the UK. Hence, UCLan Cyprus can offer joint degrees award from both UCLan Cyprus and UCLan in the UK. This arrangement facilitates the mobility of students between those courses offered at both UCLan Cyprus and UCLan in the UK.
UCLan Cyprus is committed to an international experience for its students, and encourages them to study in another country as part of their studies. It also actively markets its courses outside Cyprus to attract international students to contribute to this culture. It encourages its staff and students to participate in the Lifelong Learning Programme (LLP) to support the development of the European Union as an advanced knowledge society with sustainable economic development, through the production of international qualifications, such as its joint degrees.
UCLan Cyprus is committed to Erasmus activities as a part of its International Strategy. The University will encourage students to take part in an Erasmus exchange with another University or overseas work placement whilst studying at UCLan Cyprus. The University offers foreign language courses for all students and staff as well as English as a Foreign Language for incoming students. Academic staff at UCLan Cyprus are encouraged to make use of the Erasmus teaching mobility that is available to them. Active participation in these activities plays an essential role in bringing the University and Europe closer to the University. Academic staff are advised on opportunities to apply for multilateral and thematic networks and UClan Cyprus promotes joint curriculum development with overseas partner institutions. UCLan Cyprus encourages the development of courses and modules which have an International dimension.
UCLan Cyprus is fostering international partnerships with reputable universities worldwide to enable staff and student exchanges, collaborative research projects, joint and dual programmes and awards, knowledge transfer partnerships and other joint project ventures. It is a member of the European Office Cyprus partnership, and has submitted a number of collaborative Europe-wide 7th Framework Partnership proposals. It is these partners in Italy, Finland, Germany and the UK that are our priorities for development of partnerships in the third cycle. A European emphasis also prevails throughout its international strategy for the first and second cycles, but UCLan Cyprus is also currently building partnerships for undergraduate provision with Universities and Colleges in China, Russia and Oman.
International exchanges will feature in all undergraduate programmes, and there is input through current staff secondments and digitally streamed teaching sessions from staff and researchers at UCLan in the UK into all courses delivered at UCLan Cyprus. The modern IT infrastructure of UCLan Cyprus is designed to facilitate streaming of live and interactive teaching sessions and research seminars between Cyprus and other partners. In the third cycle, all doctoral students are expected to include mobility periods or collaborative projects with an international element in their degrees.
UClan Cyprus chooses its Erasmus partners to meet the needs of its students and staff. When establishing a new Erasmus partnership, we ensure the curriculum to be offered will be appropriate for the student’s course of studies, so that full academic recognition (including that awarded by any relevant professional body) can be given and that students meet the same learning outcomes they would receive if they were to stay at UCLan Cyprus. Consideration is also given to the key aspects of the potential partner, in terms of what they can offer regarding cultural experience, learning and language skills, facilities for students on and off campus, and academic support, and of course student safety and well-being. Apart from the joint degrees that have been developed with the close partner UCLan in the UK, the focus is on dual awards with other Universities, such that only defined elements of the programmes offered at each partner count towards the final award, to simplify matters around quality assurance and academic responsibilities.
ERASMUS CHARTER FOR UCLAN CYPRUS
