From Developing Skills to supporting the Community: The Lasting Impact of a RUN-EU Learning Opportunity

In Spring 2025, altogether 32 students from across Europe participated in the Short Advanced Programme (SAP) How to Become a True Ambassador for RUN-EU – 2nd edition at Häme University of Applied Sciences (RUN-EU, 2025a). SAPs are concise international and multidisciplinary intensive courses blending online and in-person learning, earning ECTS and tackling real-world challenges (RUN-EU, 2025b). This article examines the impact of this learning opportunity within the RUN European University (RUN-EU) alliance, which is formed by ten regional higher education institutions across Europe.

This specific SAP focused on the role of RUN-EU student ambassadors ­– whose task is to inspire new students to explore the opportunities that the European University alliance can provide – and on these ambassadors with the planning and implementation of communication related to this role (HAMK, 2025). The participating students were guided by professionals from RUN-EU higher education institutions from Finland, the Netherlands and Austria – who shared their experiences from different fields of communication, such as social media, branding and audiovisuality. All in all, this SAP consisted of four online sessions and one face-to-face week.

Long-lasting impact and discovering one’s inner RUN-EU-er

During this SAP, the students prepared two podcasts, 28 videos, and eight communication plans for promoting RUN-EU among students and local communities. These videos and podcasts have already been used to promote RUN-EU and its opportunities, for example, on the RUN-EU partners’ social media.

A month after the face-to-face week, the students were asked to reflect on the impact of the SAP on their communication skills. This was facilitated by Miro, an interactive workspace, where 22 of the students participating on the course took part in this online reflection session.

More than half of the students indicated that they had gained new skills, such as video editing and filming, working with social media, and recording podcasts. In addition to this, nearly half of the students said that they had already implemented some of the new skills to reach students at their home universities and local communities, for example, via social media.

Based on the students’ experiences, it became apparent that the SAP also supported their journey to becoming RUN-EU ambassadors and helped each participant discover their inner RUN-EU-er. Indeed, over half of the students reported that they learned new aspects of the RUN-EU alliance during the course. Most of the students said that after the course they also better understood what it means to be a RUN-EU Student Ambassador. However, it should be noted that there were 29 responses in total to this question; 24 indicated that they had a clear or a fairly clear idea of the role of a RUN-EU Student Ambassador, and five students indicated that they were unsure about the ambassador role. Hence, the responses may not give an entirely accurate picture since some students provided multiple answers to the question.

A few months after the SAP, a focus group was organised to gather student perspectives on the impact of RUN-EU. One student described the Ambassador SAP as an impactful experience for developing soft skills, such as communication, presentation and teamwork, which they might not have acquired only by participating in their home university’s study programme. In addition, they highlighted that the cultural and social activities that were part of this SAP were essential for team building and gaining a better understanding of what RUN-EU truly means, and what it can offer to students.

To sum up, the SAP equipped students with new skills in communication which they might not have acquired if they had studied only in their home universities. In addition to this, students learned new aspects about the RUN-EU alliance and understood better their role as student ambassadors. Moreover, the SAP helped them to expand their professional networks and make new friends – and overall the course offered opportunities exploring their inner RUN-EU-er.

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