The Hellenic Mediterranean University hosted its main international event in Chania, Greece

This month Department of Electronic Engineering of the Hellenic Mediterranean University (HMU) in Chania, Crete, hosted its 10th international week. The objective of this event is to meet colleagues from abroad and discuss new pathways of collaboration, as well as good policies on topics targeting the internationalization of higher education.

The 10^th international week’s main topic was the development of soft & research skills. The latter are considered the essential competences for the sustainability and development of our graduate students within the market but also the skills that will stand out in the machine era we are entering.  The innovative character of this year’s event included the following:

• The physical part of an blended intensive program which engaged the participation of 65 students from Greece, Israel, Portugal, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Poland.
• The participation of 20^th trainers that delivered lectures and workshops in soft and research skills.
• The organization of a round table in the Internationalization of Higher Education delivered by academic experts and ESN International students.
• The organization of ten invited lectures in the level of popular science in topics linked to the Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Deep Learning, the Computer Vision, the social impact of AI, the Design Thinking & Scrum in Higher Education and the importance of Virtual Exchange as a promoter of more mobilities.
• The organization of a university fair where 20 Institutions discussed with the 220 participants (without counting the Greek participants) their internationalization activities /actions.

The event took place in collaboration with the ATHENA European University Alliance. One of the highlights was the participation of 30 students and 20 academics from the alliance network.

HMU categorizes internalization as a high priority. It encourages student & staff mobility, double and joint degrees (undergraduate and postgraduate), international mobility, blended intensive programs (BIPs) and online international activities. Internationalization activities are very important for the university as they promote programs and research, provide more learning opportunities for students, facilitate the cooperation of researchers and academic staff with within the international network.

The next ATHENA Alliance international event will take place in Sitia from the 25^th – 29^th of September, 2023 (1^st ATHENA Technology Forum).