Conference "Projects as an opportunity for the development of the University"
More than 150 representatives from twenty universities from all over Poland take part in the conference "Projects as an opportunity for the development of the University". The event takes place at the Education and Congress Centre of the Silesian University of Technology.
During the two days of the meeting, participants will discuss project management, their functionalities and impact on the university’s activities. The conference was inaugurated by Rector-Elect Professor Marek Pawełczyk.
“Today, universities can no longer function without projects, because on the one hand they are an important source of financing the university’s activities, and on the other, a very important element in the career development of researchers. Projects motivate them to think about the topics they want to work on, make new contacts, declare specific goals, and then settle them. However, in order to implement these plans, they must fit into a certain formal and legal system. Therefore, a well-organized administrative service is needed, which also faces various problems related to changing law. Such conferences are needed because one can share their concerns, conclusions, comments, or work on common topics. It is also an opportunity to establish a broader cooperation, which will then transfer to scientists “– said Prof. Marek Pawełczyk.
As emphasized by prof. Anna Chrobok, Vice-Rector-Elect, people employed in Project Management Centres support scientific and teaching staff, inspire, and help in acquiring and implementing projects. – “There would not be such a modern, highly specialized education and innovative scientific research at the Silesian University of Technology, if not for projects.” – emphasized Prof Anna Chrobok
The implementation of projects is one of the key aspects of the university’s activity – mainly in the research dimension, but also in the didactic or infrastructural dimension. Moreover, due to the way higher education is financed, the demand for projects financed from external sources is increasing, and their number and quality affect the amount of funding and the image of the university.
– “During the conference we will talk about how projects translate into the activities of the university, what profits it has from it and why we should obtain them. Because the meeting is attended by administrators and managers of these projects, there will be no shortage of topics related to the problem we face every day. For example, one of the panels will concern personnel costs in projects” – said Katarzyna Markiewicz-Śliwa, Head of the International Projects Service Office at the Project Management Centre at the Silesian University of Technology.
– “We want people who deal with administrative projects at universities to be more visible and their voice to be more audible, especially since it is a substantive voice” – said Dr Hab Katarzyna Górak-Sosnowska, Prof SGH, President of the Academic Administration Forum. – “Usually, the scientist is the project manager, and people who deal with administration, preparations from the formal side or budget, are invisible and their work is not always appreciated.” – added the professor Górak-Sosnowska.
There is a lot of interest in the conference, with representatives of twenty universities from all over Poland taking part in it. While conferences and seminars for academic and teaching staff on the art of project management are natural, similar initiatives for staff involved in the management and operation of these projects in universities are basically absent, if there are, they are trainings in the field of individual programs or sources of funding. And the range of issues and problems faced by project management employees is wide. - “These are changing conditions of financing, changing requirements for projects, and thus knowledge how to prepare applications for co-financing and how to implement them later in order to meet these requirements,” said Lidia Tomaszewska from the Academic Administration Forum.
The conference is also attended by universities associated in European universities, similar to the EURECA-PRO consortium, of which the Silesian University of Technology is a member. “European universities are still a pioneering type of project. Each consortium develops its own policy, the European Commission has not given us any guidelines, so everyone goes their own way. We will want to gather all these experiences here, talk about how the strength of these consortia can be translated into solutions across Europe. It is about issues related to, among others, the European Degree (European Diploma) or the European Student Card “– said Dr Eng. Marcin Górski, prof. SUT, director of the Project Management Centre at the Silesian University of Technology.
The organizers of the conference "Projects as an opportunity for the development of the University" are Project Management Centre of the Silesian University of Technology, Academic Administration Forum (FAA) and Forum of Technical University Project Management Offices (TUPMO Forum).
