About ECIU University

European consortium of innovative universities – ECIU

The European Consortium of Innovative Universities (ECIU) is a network of universities united by a common profile of shared beliefs, interests, and mutual trust. It was founded in 1997, the name underlines the European dimension of a selected group of entrepreneurial universities. The consortium remains dedicated to ensure a culture of innovation in all partnering institutions, and to provide a catalytic role for innovation in business and society at scale. Kaunas University of Technology joined the Consortium in 2016 and is the only Lithuanian university in the network.

ECIU University

ECIU University brings together students, businesses, teachers, researchers, organisations and communities to address real-life problems and contribute to meaningful change – all while developing future-proof skills and laying the foundations for their careers.

ECIU University was one of the first alliances to join the flagship European Universities Alliances initiative in 2019. Co-funded by the EU, the initiative now encompasses 73 alliances with almost 650 higher education institutions of all types, from all across Europe.

Pilot project phase (ECIUn, 2019–2022)

In the first years of ECIU University, the alliance piloted the challenge-based learning approach, where multi-disciplinary teams worked on real-life challenges and co-developed ideas and solutions. The results of ECIU University’s three-year pilot phase can be found here: https://www.eciu.eu/deliverables

Second project phase (ECIUn+, 2022–2026)

The second phase of ECIU University focused on educational innovation based on personalised, flexible learning pathways, with micro-credentials recognising learners’ achievements. This phase has resulted in five main transformative achievements (figures collected in March 2026):

• Innovative education. ECIU University has revolutionised education with challenge-based learning and flexible learning pathways. Over 5,300 students took part in ECIU University learning opportunities, collectively completing more than 9,300 challenges and micro-modules and earning a micro-credential for each successful completion. More than 580 learning opportunities were published. Students collaborated with more than 180 external organisations to address real-life problems, develop interpersonal skills and learn new languages. Through these experiences, they also developed a stronger sense of European identity.
• Micro-credential leadership. ECIU University stands at the forefront of micro-credentialing in Europe. Work on policy development, as well as the technical implementation of micro-credentials, integrated with the EDCI system, resulted in 3,500+ e-sealed micro-credentials issued within a year.
• Digital experience platform. The digital ecosystem platform integrates 12 project partners and is pivotal to many processes at ECIU University: from education delivery to administrative workflows to participants connecting through their dedicated hubs.
• Vibrant community. A thriving ECIU University community brings together thousands of students from diverse nationalities through events, mobilities, and collaborative learning experiences.
• Sustainable service structure. A robust service framework underpins ECIU University’s operations, ensuring high-quality support across education, IT, mobility, marketing and communication.

All ECIU University opportunities for students, teachers and staff, including the recent updates, can be found here: https://university.eciu.eu/

List of participants:
University of Aveiro (PT), Autonomous University of Barcelona (ES), Dublin City University (IE), Hamburg University of Technology (DE), Kaunas University of Technology (LT), Linköping University (SE), Lodz University of Technology (PL), INSA Group (FR), University of Stavanger (NO), Tampere University (FI), University of Trento (IT), University of Twente (NL).

Third phase (ECIUn+2, 2026–2028)

With EU co-funding secured, the Alliance is set to continue building the digital campus and pursuing innovation in higher education to build the European University of the future.

Learn more: https://university.eciu.eu/success-stories/funding-for-the-next-eciu-university-phase-announced-building-a-higher-education-system-of-tomorrow

The vision for 2030

In 2020, the ECIU Council approved the long-term vision of the ECIU University for 2030. The core of the vision is to create an ECIU University ecosystem and introduce a sustainable funding model. The ecosystem would bring together study, lifelong learning, research and innovation activities across the 11 ECIU members and would allow the sharing of resources and the development of a virtual European campus (VR Campus), and the creation of a strong community of learners, teachers, researchers and administrative employees.

Contacts

For inquiries please write by email to:
eciu-university@ktu.lt

or

Viktorija Kazlauskienė, Head of ECIU Centre
viktorija.kazlauskiene@ktu.lt

The activities of the ECIU University are focused on solving the challenges of higher education in Lithuania and Europe, and the implemented actions are in line with the 2021-2025 KTU Strategy, the priorities of the Lithuanian Government Programme and the vision of the future of Lithuania “Lithuania 2050”.