Inspirational, fun, rewarding – this is just some of the feedback from participants at the Staff Days for members of Circle U.’s professional networks Communities of Practice, which took place at Aarhus University on 5-6 October.
At the moment, there are 10 different Communities of Practice in the alliance. In the CoPs, administrative and academic staff from the alliance universities meet up regularly to share and exchange professional experiences and valuable knowledge on specific topics such as mobility, research support and student recruitment.
New perspectives by meeting in person
Up until now, the CoPs have only met up online, so the Staff Days event at Aarhus University was the first time members got to see each other in person. This added a valuable layer to the online meetings, says Marija Jovanović from the University of Belgrade and the coordinator of the CoP for Career Guidance and Counselling:
“Members of our CoP agree that participating in the programme for the past year has helped them expand their network and feel part of a professional community beyond their own universities. Many also state that they will apply what they have learned from others in their own practices. By meeting in person, we got to know each other even better, gain new perspectives and learn more about specific practices across organisations.”
Getting the most out of your CoP
During the Staff Days, each CoP was given dedicated time to focus on its own theme. However, the Staff Days also allowed time for shared inspiration between the CoPs and reflections and tips on how to make the communities work in practice, says Lotte Skovborg from Aarhus University - one of the organisers of the CoP programme and the Staff Days:
“As for any online community, it can take time and effort to build up a Community of Practice where everyone benefits equally. At the Staff Days, we really wanted to give CoPs the opportunity to learn from each other – and as organisers, we also learnt a lot from the CoPs. The many interesting discussions gave us a lot of valuable insight into how to expand and support our CoPs even further in the future.”
According to Lotte, there are now plans to make more resources available to the CoPs – such as a CoP handbook – and repeat the Staff Days next year.
Current CoPs
- Career Guidance and Counselling (Lead university: University of Belgrade)
- Education and Pedagogical Development (Lead university: UClouvain)
- International Student Recruitment and Internationalisation (Lead university: University of Oslo)
- Internal & External Communication (Lead university: University of Vienna)
- Public Engagement and Community Outreach (Lead university: Paris Cité and Humboldt)
- Research Support (Lead university: Paris Cité)
- Summer Schools Working Group (Lead university: University of Oslo)
- Welcome Services and Onboarding of International Staff (Lead university: University of Vienna)
- Mobility (Lead university: To be decided)
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (Lead university: Humboldt)
