Introducing the Una Europa Student Congress
The Una Europa Student Congress is an annual, in-person event bringing students from across our partner universities together to connect, learn new skills, and bring their visions to Una Europa.
The goal of the Student Congress is to give students a space to engage directly with our alliance’s mission and bring the student perspective to the forefront, allowing students to develop their ideas, work together, and explore Una Europa.
Every year a different Una Europa university hosts the Congress. The theme also changes every year – previous editions have explored storytelling as community building, reimagining universities, and staying human in a digital world.
Students participating in the Una.Fair at the 2023 Student Congress in Helsinki.
Group photo at the Helsinki University Library at the 2023 Student Congress in Helsinki.
Storytelling café during the 2023 Student Congress in Helsinki.
Why participate in the Una Europa Student Congress?
The Student Congress provides a platform for connecting with, learning from, and participating in the Una Europa student community.
While each Congress has a theme and aims to give all participants the opportunity to learn and develop, we also want you to feel part of a bigger community of students, meet people from other backgrounds and cultures, and really learn from each other.
" The Student Congress, a melting pot of different university cultures, is the perfect opportunity for students to learn from and about each other. The relationships formed will last far beyond the duration of the Congress – participants are given the opportunity network and form friendships that could last for the rest of their lives. "
Sara Korjus, student at Helsingin yliopisto/Helsingfors universitet, reflecting on the 2023 Student Congress in Helsinki.
What can I expect from the Una Europa Student Congress?
The Student Congress puts students at its centre. In collaboration with students, we deliver a dynamic programme to enable you to develop your own skills and help shape Una Europa student opportunities. This is done through a range of ever-developing formats such as student-led and external-led workshops, micro-challenges, panel discussions, expert groups, social & cultural activities, and different types of engagement with the local community.
By the end of the Congress, we want all students to leave with new knowledge, connections, ideas, and plans for activities and initiatives to be developed within their own universities or together with students from other Una Europa universities.
" Students were able to gain an insight into not only their diverse experiences as students, but also their aspirations for the future of higher education. The Student Congress enabled me and my fellow students to not only engage in dialogue, but also both self- and communal reflection of the theme of the Congress. "
Aoife Joy Keogh, student at University College Dublin/An Coláiste Ollscoile Baile Átha Cliath, reflecting on the 2024 Student Congress at Freie Universität Berlin.
Want to learn more?
Read, watch and listen to previous participants' Student Congress experience:
- Blog post | Katie O'Sullivan (University College Dublin) at the Una Europa Student Congress 2024 at Freie Universität Berlin
- Blog post | Highlight of the year: Takeaways from the Una Europa Student Congress 2023 at Helsingin yliopisto/Helsingfors universitet
- About the Una Europa Student Congress 2024 at Freie Universität Berlin
- About the Una Europa Student Congress 2023 at Helsingin yliopisto/Helsingfors universitet
- Reflections on the Una Europa Student Congress 2022 at Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie
- Una Europa Podcast | Episode 8 on the Student Congress
Countdown to the Una Europa Student Congress 2025
The next Una Europa Student Congress will take place from 25–28 November, hosted by Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. Applications are open now!
To stay up to the date with the latest updates on the next Una Europa Student Congress, we recommend subscribing to our monthly newsletter andfollowing us on Instagram.
The Una Europa Student Congress is part of our work to empower students across our alliance, initiated under the 1Europe project and developed under the Una.Futura project.
