Following the success of events on income diversification and full costing for universities, EUA is proud to organise the first Funding Forum, which will take place at the University of Salzburg, Austria, on 11-12 June 2012.

The Forum intends to promote diverse and appropriate solutions for efficient funding models; it will also tackle topics such as the contribution of private income sources (students, employers and philanthropic organisations) to the system and the impact of funding models on the diversity of institutional profiles in higher education. These issues are gaining relevance in the national and European higher education policy agendas. In order to structure the debate, this platform seeks to encourage the involvement of all stakeholders, enhancing their understanding of these issues and fostering the exchange of best practices in order to facilitate the implementation of funding reforms in higher education systems.

We invite contributions from practitioners in higher education institutions, institutional leaders and researchers in the field. The Forum is an excellent opportunity to present current practice or research and test new ideas and to elicit feedback from colleagues and stakeholders. All contributions are expected to stimulate a discussion with forum participants, thus enhancing peer-learning.

The deadline to submit contributions is 31 January 2012.

The papers will be presented and discussed during parallel sessions.

Papers are encouraged to address topics within the following broad areas, highlighting challenges, experiences and good practices:

• Reforms of higher education funding systems
• The role of private contributions / tuition fees in higher education funding systems
• Financial sustainability for universities & higher education systems in times of austerity
  • Allocation of resources at system and at institutional level
  • Financial autonomy (appropriate frameworks)
  • Impact of funding mechanisms on institutional diversity
  • Impact of funding systems on financial management strategies
  • Impact of funding systems on human resources management
  • Impact of funding systems on leadership and governance structures
  • Cost pressures and identification of costs in higher education institutions
  • Funding efficiency mechanisms (performance-based funding)
  • Public-private partnerships
  • European funding programmes
  • “Smart funding incentives"

Other topics related to higher education funding and not listed above may also be considered.

The call for contributions can be found on the EUA Funding Forum webpage.

Contact: funding@eua.be.