Brussels in brief: Updates on EU developments in education and research

Last week the European Commission launched a new “indicator of innovation output” which aims to measure the extent to which “ideas from innovative sectors are able to reach the market” and will complement the Commission's Innovation Union Scoreboard and Summary Innovation Index which assess the innovation performance of member states and the EU more widely. Meanwhile, the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the EU held a conference on “European Higher Education in the World” and the European Parliament adopted two resolutions in relation to tackling youth unemployment and the implementation of the EU Youth Strategy.
EC launches new Innovation Indicator
The European Commission last week published the "Indicator of Innovation Output" which aims to measure the extent to which “ideas from innovative sectors are able to reach the market, providing better jobs and making Europe more competitive”. The EC noted that the indicator was developed at the request of EU leaders to benchmark national innovation policies, and showed that “significant differences remain between EU countries”. The indicator is designed to complement the Commission's Innovation Union Scoreboard (IUS) and Summary Innovation Index (SII) which assess the innovation performance of member states and the EU more widely, against a broad set of 24 innovation indicators including inputs, throughputs and outputs. More information and background on the indicator can be viewed here.
EU Presidency conference on European Higher Education in the World
Following the recent EC Communication on the internationalisation of higher education, the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of EU recently (5-6 September) organised in Vilnius an international conference on “European Higher Education in the World”. The event brought together HE stakeholders from the EU and beyond, for discussions on internationalisation processes, and on the future place of Europe in the global higher education landscape. EUA’s Michael Gaebel was invited to present the perspective of European universities on the topic of internationalisation following EUA’s recent membership survey on this topic and also the discussions at the last EUA Annual Conference in Ghent. More information and presentations from this event can be found on the conference website.
European Parliament resolutions on youth unemployment/EU Youth Strategy
Members of the European Parliament last week adopted two resolutions in relation to tackling youth unemployment and the implementation of the EU Youth Strategy. The European Parliament highlighted that the “youth guarantee schemes” alone would not suffice to reduce youth unemployment. It also stressed the need for further measures to make it easier for young people to move to jobs or training. According to the Parliament, youth guarantee schemes, which aim to ensure that young people under 25 years are offered a job, training, or a traineeship within four months of their becoming unemployed, should be extended to include graduates under 30 years. In the debate, MEPs also called for better recognition of skills and aptitudes acquired outside formal education, e.g. through traineeships, volunteering or social work. The Parliament also underlined the need for EU support for “good-quality traineeships and apprenticeships” and called on member states to remove all barriers to cross-border traineeships for young EU citizens.