ENGAGE.EU Staff Week "AI in Higher Education Administration"
From 20 to 24 April 2026, the International Office and the ENGAGE.EU team of Toulouse Capitole University hosted 35 administrative staff members from 8 partner universities of the ENGAGE.EU alliance of European universities for a week-long staff training week on Artificial Intelligence in higher education administration.
Organised as a ‘Blended Intensive Programme’ funded by the Erasmus+ programme, the training began on 9 April with a virtual session during which participants met the programme organisers and speakers and discussed, in small groups, their past experiences and questions regarding AI in higher education administration, as well as their expectations for the staff week.
On Monday 24 April, the participants met in person for the first time for the Staff Week Welcome Coffee, where they were welcomed by Loïc Demeester, Head of the European and International Relations Office at Toulouse Capitole University.
On Monday 24 April, the participants met in person for the first time for the Staff Week Welcome Coffee, where they were welcomed by Loïc Demeester, Head of the European and International Relations Office at Toulouse Capitole University.
Throughout the week, administrative staff members took part in a programme involving theoretical sessions on the history and fundamentals of AI, as well as its legal and ethical implications; presentations on concrete examples of AI integration and use within ENGAGE.EU member universities; and practical exercises.
The sessions were facilitated by researchers and administrative staff members from Toulouse and from several ENGAGE.EU partner universities:
- Discovering AI – Julien Aligon (Toulouse Capitole University)
- From AI Strategy to Practice: The Tilburg University Approach – Lea Nockemann and Matthijs van Gils (Tilburg University)
- WU’s Pro-AI Project – Sophia Pircher (WU Vienna)
- Legal Issues surrounding AI in Higher Education Administration – Ronan Pons (PhD in Law and researcher in AI Law)
- Supporting Administrative Staff in the Use of Generative AI: A Toulouse Initiative – Élodie Guillon (Toulouse Capitole University) and Jean-Arnaud Grimal (ANITI)
These sessions enabled participants not only to expand their knowledge but also to discuss the evolving role of AI in higher education administration, to share their experiences and best practices for integrating AI in a meaningful and responsible way into their daily work, and to consider the most relevant approaches for implementing AI technologies within ENGAGE.EU universities.
In addition to the lectures and workshops, participants explored Toulouse through a cultural programme that included guided tours of Toulouse city centre, Toulouse Capitole University, and the Airbus A350 assembly line.
By taking part in the ‘ENGAGE.EU Networking Coffee’, the administrative staff in attendance were able to learn more about ENGAGE.EU’s activities and how they can get involved. By fostering an exchange of knowledge and best practices among administrative staff from ENGAGE.EU member universities, this training week helped to strengthen and sustain the Alliance’s efforts to bring communities together at all levels of our institutions, with the aim of driving innovation and sustainable transformation.
This staff training week highlighted the crucial role played by administrative staff in addressing the challenges faced by higher education institutions. This first attempt to organise a staff week in the form of a Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) at UT Capitole also confirms the relevance of the BIP format to strengthen collaboration and mutual learning between administrative staff of UT Capitole and its partner institutions.
You are a lecturer or researcher at UT Capitole and you are interested in organising a Blended Intensive Programme (BIP)? Do not hesitate to contact the International Office at internationalisation@ut-capitole.fr
