Home Activities Partnerships & Collaboration Central European Universities (CE7)

Central European Universities (CE7)

All research universities in Europe face similar challenges affecting all aspects of their intertwined activities - education, research and societal engagement. Those challenges do not only occur within the Western and Southern European quadrants, where LERU universities are located, but also in Central and Eastern Europe.

Therefore, in 2016, a close collaboration was set up between LERU and seven leading Central European Universities (CE7), consisting of Charles University (Prague), Eötvös Loránd University (Budapest), the University of Belgrade, the University of Ljubljana, the University of Tartu, the University of Warsaw, and the University of Zagreb. They joined forces to improve the framework conditions for research and education across a broad front in Europe, to stimulate collaborative research and education between talented people, and to show policymakers that there is more that unites research universities than divides them.

CE7-LERU Collaboration: first meeting in 2016

The Collaboration

The collaboration was originally exclusively based on six-monthly meetings between the rectors of the two university groups, where they exchanged views and shared solutions to the challenges they face. Some of these topics relate to current EU events, such as the Horizon Europe programme and the European Strategy for Universities. Others are more general, such as interdisciplinarity in research and higher education, and how to create opportunities for excellent researchers in CE7 universities (e.g.: every year, highly talented PhD students from the CE7 are also invited to participate in the LERU Doctoral Summer School, joining doctoral candidates from LERU universities).

Since 2020, LERU and CE7 universities also have developed bottom up activities through the organisation of topical seminars, which are of interest for both university groups. They bring the topical experts of both groups together, what of course stimulates further cooperation.

In September 2022, LERU and CE7 signed a Partnership Agreement, renewing and reinforcing their cooperation. They also formulated a list of short term priorities for the EU institutions.

In parallel with the formation of the LERU-CE7 cooperation, several of the member universities have also established bilateral or multilateral agreements, most recently in the framework of the European Commission driven "European Universities" initiative. Examples are the European University Alliance 4EU+, between the universities of Prague (Charles University), Heidelberg, Sorbonne, Copenhagen, Milan, Warsaw and Geneva, and the European University Alliance CHARM-EU, consisting of, among others, Universitat de Barcelona, Trinity College Dublin, Utrecht University, and Eötvös Loránd University.

The CE7 Universities

The seven Central European Universities (CE7) are:

The Rectors' Meetings

A delegation of LERU rectors and the rectors of the CE7 meet every half year to discuss present and emerging research and education policy issues.

Past meetings:

22 & 23 March 2024 at the University of Warsaw, Poland
26 & 27 May 2023 at Charles University (Prague,) Czech Republic
9 & 10 September 2022 at Charles University (Prague,) Czech Republic
11 & 12 March 2022 at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
24 & 25 September 2021 at Charles University (Prague), Czech Republic
30 April 2021, online, hosted by LERU
24 October 2021, online, hosted by the University of Ljubljana
8 & 9 November 2019 at Eötvös Lorand University (Budapest), Hungary
3 & 4 May 2019 at the University of Tartu, Estonia
21 & 22 September 2018 at the University of Warsaw, Poland
4 & 5 May 2018 at the University of Belgrade, Serbia
29 & 30 September 2017 at the University of Zagreb, Croatia
7 & 8 April 2017 at the University of Warsaw, Poland
8 October 2016 at Charles University (Prague), Czech Republic

The LERU - CE7 Seminars

Since 2020, seminars are organised on a regular basis for staff of LERU and CE7 universities, dealing with issues of common interest, and bringing the experts of both university groups together.

Past seminars:

Inclusive Gender Equality Plans in FP10 - 14-15 March 2024 at Charles University (Prague), Czech Republic
Research(er) assessment- 16-17 March 2023 at Charles University (Prague), Czech Republic
Evaluation of Research Output - 25 November 2021 at Charles University (Prague), Czech Republic
Widening participation - 17 June 2021 at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
Student and staff mobility - 10 June 2021, online, hosted by the University of Warsaw
Research Ethics - 22 April 2021, online, hosted by Eötvös Lorand University
Open Science - 12 April 2021 at the University of Zagreb, Croatia
FP9 - 12 January 2017 at KU Leuven, Belgium