Una Europa Student Congress 2025 | Global Minds, Local Impact: Uniting Cultures Through Student Initiatives

This year’s Student Congress focuses on the diversity of student initiatives across our alliance, highlighting the richness of local practices and their impact on the student community. It also aims to identify skills fundamental to effective student engagement, as well as actions that can be scaled up to strengthen connection between students across our partner universities. The interactive programme will explore the theme of student engagement from multiple perspectives and aims to offer insights into the following open questions:

• What does student engagement truly mean, and what impact does it have on universities and society at large?
• How can we better understand and build on the variety of student engagement initiatives within the alliance to develop and share best practices?
• How can Una Europa foster cross-border collaboration and create stronger connections between local student communities and Una Europa partner universities?

The 2025 Student Congress will feature both plenary sessions and small group workshops, allowing each participant to reflect on these key questions and share their own opinions, experiences, and ideas. It will be further enriched by cultural activities and informal meetups with fellow students from across the alliance.

The Una Europa Student Congress is an annual event bringing together students from all our 11 partner institutions to discuss topics and themes relevant to our student communities. Attendees have the opportunity to connect with their classmates across Europe while participating in critical thinking and creative problem-solving as they work together to shape our vision for a truly European University of the Future.

Each year a different Una Europa university hosts the Student Congress, adding their own flavour to the programme with cultural and social events reflecting their diverse yet shared student experience.

Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne combines having a long and illustrious heritage going back to the college founded by Robert de Sorbon in the 13^th century with an innovative multidisciplinary mission. As France's leading university in the humanities and social sciences, since 1971 it has cultivated a unique spirit that combines a demanding scientific approach with the ambition of developing new knowledge to support transforming the world.

Almost 45,000 students are enrolled in the University each year. The university seeks to help students become engaged citizens, capable of critical thinking and analysing the world around them, to participate in devising practical solutions to the new challenges facing our society.

Home to over 168 student associations, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne provides an engaging setting for meaningful discussions on student engagement.

• Travel to Paris and meet new students from across Una Europa’s 11 partner universities.
• Learn more about yourself by engaging with others’ cultures, backgrounds, and ways in which they contribute to their university communities.
• Discover different practices, skills and models of student engagement.
• Gain practical skills in teamwork through workshops and interactive learning formats.
• Make a real impact on Una Europa and help us build a strong foundation for our student community.
• Learn about Una Europa’s other opportunities for students and how you can get involved.

To be eligible to attend the Una Europa Student Congress 2025 you must be:

• Enrolled as a student at one of the 11 Una Europa partner universities.
• Currently studying at bachelor's, master's, or PhD level. We encourage anyone interested to apply, regardless of field or level of study.
• Comfortable communicating in English. There is no expectation of perfect fluency, however the highly interactive programme will be delivered in English. You will need to be able to discuss your own experiences and engage with others' experiences in English.
• Excited to connect with students of all ages, backgrounds, cultural experiences, and levels of expertise!

For your chance to attend the Una Europa Student Congress 2025, please complete this application form:

Please note that there are two application deadlines depending on your home university: Please submit your application accordingly.

Please note: The application form will remain open until the second deadline; however, applications submitted after your specific university deadline will not be accepted.

All successful applicants will be selected and notified by Wednesday 22 October 2025 at the latest.

Your university will cover your travel and accommodation costs; however, the process by which they will do this varies for each institution. Please contact your local Una Europa team if you have any questions on costs related to participation in the Student Congress.

Photo credit: Freie Universität Berlin/Christian Kürten