EU Awards Quality Seal to Joint Master’s Program

The Universitat de Barcelona (UB) led a master’s program in Global Challenges for Sustainability, delivered by nine European universities, that received the first Joint European Degree Label from the European Commission. The Commission intends to recognize qualifications from European alliances to facilitate a catalog of European degrees and student mobility. Currently, approximately 75 such alliances exist, involving 64 Spanish institutions.

The new quality seal aims to increase transparency and recognition for jointly-designed programs. The Global Challenges master’s program, launched in 2021, currently has around 80 students rotating through at least two European campuses and focuses on challenge-based learning. The program will expand to 120 credits in the 2026-2027 academic year.

AQU Catalunya evaluated the program and became the first European quality agency to award the new label. The Commission’s next funding round will provide 7.2 million euros per alliance, supporting 20 alliances with Spanish university participation.