There are several reasons this project is significant. Firstly, it is implemented within the framework of our partnership with the EUniWell Alliance, which we joined in 2022. Two-thirds of the consortium members are universities from this Alliance. Secondly, this is a unique experience: it may be the first Erasmus+ academic project that does not focus on students or faculty, but on developing the skills of administrative staff. This underscores our strategic approach to strengthening the University’s presence in international project activities.

The primary challenge is that, traditionally, the development of project-based activities has not been a priority in Ukrainian higher education due to a lack of internal funding. We have always relied on external grants, but we face a shortage of personnel who are familiar with the rules of European funding programmes. Opportunities for Ukraine have increased today; however, in the context of a wartime crisis, it is critically important for us to take advantage of them – not merely to ‘preserve ourselves’, but to improve and be prepared for the recovery phase. The participation of KNU in the EU-GaNoM project is specifically aimed at overcoming this lack of expertise.

In European practice, these areas are often managed by different, non-overlapping departments. However, the concept of our project is to emphasize the common features of both programmes at the management level: the project lifecycle, drawing project proposals, and financial management all follow a similar pattern. We seek to develop transversal skills in our specialists – universal skills for managing European projects. Doing so will make individuals flexible: they will be able to work equally effectively on both academic and research projects.

First and foremost is the ability to identify an idea and correlate it with a specific project call. We have many talented people, but they don’t always know how to turn an idea into a project. A grant advisor is a navigator turning an idea into a real project. The second skill is practical project management, which involves understanding a project as a set of activities with a well-defined purpose, constrained by the time and resources of a specific institution.

The goal of the project is to develop a methodological framework and supporting materials that the University can use independently. Each University partner is a co-author of these training materials, and they belong to the institution, not to individual people. This will allow us to scale up our experience: the project office will be able to conduct regular training sessions for faculty representatives using these resources. Although programme requirements may change, the methodology we have established will remain a stable foundation.

This will be a very high-level training week, whose programme has brought together the ‘cream of the crop’ of international project activity in terms of both content and speakers. In addition to the basic topics of the project lifecycle, we will delve into highly specific issues, for instance, financial management of European projects with a lump-sum grant, for which there is still little reporting experience. A unique game-based session is also planned: through gamification and simulations, participants will learn how to form consortia, assess risks, and develop project development scenarios. This will allow them to gain practical experience at an accelerated pace.

Undoubtedly. Our priority is to create relevant certification programmes. We aim to develop a flexible framework with several modules, so each staff member can choose exactly what corresponds to their needs. This is what will ensure the project’s sustainability and provide tangible added value for the University, even after funding ends.