Universität Innsbruck

Strategically International: Internationalisation Certificate for Admin Staff

The Internationalisation Certificate fosters intercultural and international skills of administrative staff, contributing systemically to a university-wide culture of internationalisation.

The presentation of the first internationalisation certificates for administrative staff.

Objectives

With the Internationalisation Certificate for Administrative Staff, the University of Innsbruck aims to structurally embed internationalisation at all levels of the institution. This initiative targets a group often underrepresented in internationalisation processes: the administrative staff. This group plays a central role within the university community, as they frequently interact with international students, researchers, or guests in their daily work and increasingly require intercultural competence and confidence in their actions. The programme enables participants to specifically enhance their intercultural and international skills. It strengthens linguistic proficiency, intercultural understanding, sensitivity to diversity, and knowledge of international higher education structures. Additionally, it encourages and reflects on concrete mobility experiences. As such, the certificate also serves as an incentive to participate in Erasmus+ Staff Mobility for Training and to make these experiences visible in terms of institutional recognition. A particular focus is placed on integrating content related to the Aurora European University Alliance. This aligns with the strategic goal of expanding European University activities more broadly within the university and deliberately strengthening the network between partner institutions. The certificate is modular in structure, allowing participants to set individual priorities. It is directly embedded in the university's human resources development strategy and supports the goals of the institutional internationalisation strategy as well as the following aims of HMIS2030: - Aim 1: Promote an all-encompassing culture of internationalisation at higher education institutions - Aim 2: Promote mobility for all members of higher education institutions - Aim 4: Effective skills improvement and institutional learning

Background

Internationalisation of higher education institutions has long been primarily focused on students and academic staff. Administrative staff, however, has often been overlooked, despite playing a central role in shaping an open, service-oriented university. In the light of the growing internationalisation of research, teaching, and administration, the University of Innsbruck recognised the need to specifically prepare administrative staff for intercultural contexts. As a result, the Internationalisation Certificate for Administrative Staff was introduced in 2024. The project was jointly developed by the Human Resources Development Office, International Services, and the Aurora European University Office. It is institutionally well-supported and forms part of the university's development plan. The foundation of the initiative lies in its strategic integration into the European Erasmus+ project SUCTI (Systemic University Change Towards Internationalisation), which has been anchored at the University of Innsbruck since 2022. Four trained SUCTI trainers have been actively involved since then, bringing international content, interactive methods, and a systemic approach to internationalisation into the programme. Thanks to its modular structure, the programme allows participants to set individual priorities. The targeted promotion of internationalisation "at home" as well as abroad (via Erasmus+ mobility) gives the programme a high degree of innovation. Additionally, active membership in the Aurora European University Alliance enables international peer learning and exchange formats.

(Implemented) Activities

The certificate programme consists of three modules: - Intercultural and International Competence - International Exchange - Language Proficiency Within the "Intercultural and International Competence" module, the foundational training "Uni Innsbruck International – What, How, Why?" based on the SUCTI model is mandatory. The integration of the programme with the SUCTI approach ensures European compatibility, pedagogical quality, and a strategically grounded methodology. Participants have the opportunity to set individual priorities within the modules, allowing them to address diverse job profiles. The targeted promotion of internationalisation "at home" as well as through international experiences (e.g., Erasmus+ mobility) adds significant innovative value to the programme. Additionally, sustainable learning processes are fostered through peer exchange. All content required to obtain the certificate can be completed continuously, free of charge, and during working hours. The programme is accompanied by regular evaluations, the visibility of certificate awards, and networking events. Thanks to the combination of internationally recognised approaches (such as SUCTI), individualized modularisation, and strategic integration, internationalisation is established as an integral part of everyday professional life, and administrative staff are empowered as long-term change agents.

Results

Since its introduction, over 40 staff members have completed the SUCTI foundational module and are currently active in one of the module pathways. By June 2025, the first two staff members successfully completed the certificate programme. Evaluation results show that participants have gained greater confidence in interacting with international target groups and are increasingly applying for Erasmus+ mobility opportunities. The Aurora universities, as partner organisations, play a crucial role in this regard, and the Internationalisation Certificate also contributes to fostering stronger connections within the Aurora European University Alliance. The systemic approach to internationalisation, the strong practical relevance, and the opportunity to incorporate personal experiences are particularly appreciated. Participants report increased self-confidence in communicating with international colleagues and students, as well as a stronger sense of identification with the university. A key element has proven to be the collegial learning implemented within the certificate programme, as it promotes knowledge exchange and collaboration by enabling colleagues to share their experiences, best practices, and perspectives. It is characterized by a strong practical relevance and encourages self-reflection, while its informal and low-threshold approach helps to reduce barriers. Furthermore, collegial learning supports the development of networks within the organization and fosters sustainable learning processes through exchange, which have a lasting impact. In the long term, the programme contributes to the sustainable establishment of an open and inclusive university culture and is being discussed as a strategic best-practice model across Austria. To date, the certificate programme remains a nationally unique initiative specifically tailored to general university staff.

Lessons learned

A key takeaway is that the development of international competencies is only effective when it is workplace-oriented, participatory, and strategically embedded. The combination of voluntariness, individualised focus areas, and institutional recognition has proven to be a critical success factor. The challenges during the development phase included demonstrating the added value of the Internationalisation Certificate for administrative staff to: - Leadership and management, - Organisational units and institutes, - The employee's council for administrative staff. Initial concerns were successfully addressed through targeted communication, awareness-raising among leadership, and low-threshold introductory modules. As a result, not only were reservations alleviated, but the acquisition of the certificate is now widely supported and actively promoted. This underscores the importance of accompanying communication measures and institutional visibility. Furthermore, the peer-to-peer approach has proven to be particularly effective and supportive for the various offerings within the Internationalisation certificate programme.

Participants of the certificate module "Uni Innsbruck International - what, how, why?"

Internationalisation Award 2025

1. place in category Mobilitätsförderung und Kompetenzentwicklung für Lehrende und allgemeines Hochschulpersonal

Further links