BIP: Co-creating University–Industry Collaboration in the Ulysseus Alliance

This Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) combines experts’ inputs with co-creation activities to provide the participants with the knowledge and networks needed to develop effective and sustainable university–industry mobility scheme, in particular aligned with the Ulysseus trans-disciplinary PhD programmes. Working in international teams, participants will contribute to the development of the Ulysseus Inter-sectoral Mobility Pilot Programme.

In addition, participants will identify common research and innovation challenges and translate them into project ideas that can serve as the basis for future COST Actions, MSCA Staff Exchanges (SE), MSCA Doctoral Networks (DN) and other European funding opportunities that support university – business collaboration. The working methodology will be based on design thinking.

Please be aware that your home university may set a different application deadline depending on their internal selection process.

Registration dates 24 September 2026 15 November 2026

Course dates 18 January 2027 22 January 2027

Registration is open

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General Course Information

The BIP is designed as a five-day co-creation workshop combined with capacity building, exchange of experience and best practices. Short expert inputs will introduce the main concepts, best practices, and funding instruments. Most of the programme will be dedicated to facilitated discussion, peer exchange and small-group work.

The BIP aims to:

Strengthen participants’ understanding of university–industry collaboration and inter-sectoral mobility, especially in the context of PhD training;
Identify institutional, organisational and practical barriers to mobility between Universities and companies;
Exchange experience concerning existing mobility schemes and support structures;
Refine the Ulysseus pilot inter-sectoral mobility programme and adapt it to the needs of Ulysseus transdisciplinary PhD programmes;
Identify promising themes for future inter-sectoral collaboration under potential COST Actions and/or MSCA Staff Exchange.

Learning Outcomes

Following this BIP, participants will be able to:

Identify key barriers and success factors in inter-sectoral mobility;
Understand the needs and opportunities of mobility within PhD programmes;
Recognise relevant institutional, regional, national and European support structures for university-business collaboration;
Co-design institutional inter-sectoral mobility programmes;
Understand the scope and expected outcomes of COST Actions, MSCA Staff Exchanges and MSCA Doctoral Networks;
Develop project ideas for future European funding opportunities such as COST Actions, MSCA Staff Exchanges and MSCA Doctoral Networks.

Requirements

Participants should be involved with staff mobility tasks either as member of Ulysseus Task 7.4 or more generally as person interested and/or experienced in staff inter-sectoral mobility and/or interested/experienced in university-business collaborations and/or be leaders of Ulysseus PhD programmes.
Ulysseus Innovation Hub managers, Project Officers, Research managers, academic staff with prior experience in MSCA SE / DN or COST projects are also invited to join.
Researchers interested in one or more Ulysseus Innovation Hubs topics and interested in developing mobility scheme with companies in a PhD programme context.
Associated partners with experience in inter-sectoral mobility will be invited as external guests for the co-creation workshop, at least in an online format, to ensure participatory and design-thinking approach.
English proficiency: minimum B2

Virtual Component

The virtual part will consist of 2 online workshops:

Online workshop – Part I (before physical component):
Participants will get introduced to the Ulysseus transdisciplinary PhD programmes which are under development; review the draft inter-sectoral mobility programme which has been developed and approved by the Ulysseus Mobility Steering Committee (in June 2026); and be informed of the survey results collected during the BIP preparatory stage. This draft programme and survey will ensure that participants arrive with a shared understanding of the objectives of the inter-sectoral Mobility Programme, while keeping it aligned with the Ulysseus PhD programmes.
Online workshop – Part II (after physical component):
Collection of feedback on the Ulysseus inter-sectoral mobility programme implementation plan and to follow the project application plan Timeline: 1st part – 15 December; 2nd part – 15 February 2027

Physical Mobility: agenda

Day 1 (Monday)

Morning | Registration & Welcome

BIP objectives
Participant introductions
Short Expert Input on university – business collaboration modalities and challenges
Introduction to the Ulysseus trans-disciplinary PhD programmes
Associated partners’ inputs on U-I collaboration

Afternoon | Workshop

Understand needs, expectations and challenges of stakeholders involved in university – business collaboration
Identifying opportunities for inter-sectoral mobility

Day 2 (Tuesday)

Morning | Experts Input

Short expert input on best practices in inter-sectoral mobility in EU and beyond
Ulysseus members’ short input of their case studies of U-I collaboration
Review of the pre-BIP survey results
Introduction to the pilot mobility programm

Afternoon | Workshop

Improving the Ulysseus Pilot Programme
Small groups review different components of the draft programme (mobility formats, partner matching, recognition, implementation, support mechanisms).

Day 3 (Wednesday)

Morning

Expert Input on European Funding for university – business mobility and doctoral training
Sharing of experience from COST and MSCA project managers and / or seconded staff on running projects (online)

Afternoon | Ideation Lab

Participants analyse and compare options/schemes: • Ulysseus pilot programme • COST Actions • MSCA Staff Exchanges • MSCA Doctoral Networks
Each group selects the most appropriate pathway for the ideas collected during a preparatory survey / thematic areas related to transdisciplinary PhD programmes and begins developing its concept.

Day 4 (Thursday)

Morning | Workshop

Groups develop their concepts with facilitator support.
Depending on their chosen pathway:
- Ulysseus mobility concept
- COST concept note
- MSCA Staff Exchanges concept
- MSCA Doctoral Network concept

Afternoon | Workshop & Discussion

Groups exchange concept notes and provide structured feedback.
Experts rotate between groups to advise on feasibility, partnerships and funding alignment.

Day 5 (Friday)

Morning

Finalisation of concepts
Presentation & Discussion
Joint discussion on next steps
Development of follow-up & action plans

Afternoon

Closing session

Professors

2 teachers / researchers from across the alliance, as experts on the topics of university – business collaboration; existing EU, national and Ulysseus alliance partners’ support structures for university – industry collaboration; non-EU recognized excellent collaboration models (e.g. US, Japan, China) – to be identified
Representative/s of Ulysseus WP3 Doctoral programmes task and / or specific transdisciplinary PhD programmes
Filip Petrovic, UoM – expert – NCP on COST / MSCA
At least 2 representatives of Associated partners to present their models and views about inter-sectoral mobility and students internship (possible also in online format)
Min. 2 COST / MSCA SE project managers or seconded staff from already approved projects across the alliance (possible also in online format)
Branka Zizic, UoM – Leading the co-creation of inter-sectoral mobility programme
Project officers / design thinking experts from Ulysseus – Mentoring the development of project concepts for COST / MSCA
Min 3 presenters of the partner university context and good practices, among the participants