SGroup Membership Policy

Fundamental principles of the SGroup membership policy:

 

1. SGroup is a European-based network but has in practice grown into a global network of HEIs.
2. The SGroup membership policy differentiates between full members and associate members.
3. HEIs from Europe can join SGroup as full members only.
4. HEIs from beyond Europe can join SGroup as associate members only.
5. With regard to reaching out to European HEIs, SGroup intends to focus on universities from European countries not yet represented in SGroup.
6. By recruiting HEIs from beyond Europe, SGroup has attracted a reasonable number of universities from the Americas, Asia, Africa and Oceania without changing the mainly European character of the network.

 

How are members chosen?

The Association is composed of member higher education institutions in Europe and beyond. The two types of membership status available are:

1. Full members: universities from Europe who have meet the membership requirements and have signed the membership contract. Entry to this class of membership is reserved to universities offering the 3 study cycles of HE (BA, MA and PhD) or equivalent degree courses and after endorsement by the Executive Committee and the General Assembly. Full member fee applies.
   
2. Associate members: universities from non-European countries. Entry to this class of membership is decided by the Executive Committee and later endorsed by the General Assembly. Representatives from associate members cannot be members of the Executive Committee or vote on proposed decisions during the meetings of the General Assembly. They may, however, participate in the General Assembly and be heard. Associate member fee applies.

The selection process of new members is mainly handled by the Working Group on Membership and Partnership Policies and Global Outreach (WG MPPGO), initiated by the EC and led by at least one EC member.

Suggestions to approach a HEI for a full or associated membership are developed within the WG MPPGO according to SGroup’s strategic guidelines of the membership policy. In addition, suggestions to the WG MPPGO can also come from any representative of a SGroup member institution. The WG MPPGO lead informs the EC about prospective member institutions in order to seek approval to initiate the recruitment process.

Any higher education institution interested and that may be considered eligible to apply for SGroup membership can show its interest. The WG MPPGO is responsible to assess all manifestations of interest and all applications. The process shall determine if the HEI fulfils the membership criteria and if its application is in line with the SGroup strategic policy for membership and global outreach. All suggestions must be considered by the WG MPPGO before they are presented to the EC for decision. 

HEIs that are interested in joining the SGroup network, should therefore contact the Working Group on Membership and Partnership Policies and Global Outreach (WG MPPGO) through the SGroup Office.

Before any formal application is initiated, the Working Group shall schedule meetings with the management of the candidate member to explain in more detail what such membership entails. 

The membership is decided by the Executive Committee after consulting in writing with all the SG member universities in the same country as the applicant HEI.

The decision of the Executive Committee must be ratified by the General Assembly.

SGroup - Universities in Europe enables its members:

• to network for EU-funded projects in education and research;
• to exchange good practices;
• to share experiences;
• to participate in specialised work groups, seminar and training courses;
• to access first-hand information about educational and research policies in Europe;
• to promote expertise and to increase visibility of its members;
• to identify opportunities for academic collaboration;
• to benefit from tools and information provided by SGroup.