The student assembly elections held by UNITA represent a key democratic process in shaping the future of European higher education. In an increasingly interconnected Europe, fostering active participation and representation among students across borders is essential to the success of educational initiatives.
Eligo is proud to have contributed to this goal by supporting UNITA – Universitas Montium in organizing its Student Assembly elections across 12 universities in 7 countries. This initiative allowed students from approximately 250,000 learners to engage in a democratic and transparent voting process. By providing a secure, accessible, and fully digital voting platform, Eligo ensured a smooth and inclusive election, reinforcing the importance of student involvement in shaping the future of European higher education.
What is UNITA?
UNITA is one of the European University Alliances funded by the European Commission as part of the European Universities Initiative. The initiative aims to bring together higher education institutions across Europe to foster innovation, cooperation, and the creation of a true European Education Area.
As part of the European Universities Initiative, student assembly elections play a crucial role in fostering active participation among students across the alliance. If you’re interested in how universities can implement secure digital voting, check out student elections with online voting in universities.
UNITA’s commitment to multilingualism, sustainability, inclusion, and community connections highlights the core values of the alliance, which serves as a powerful model for cross-border academic collaboration.
The UNITA alliance includes universities from seven countries, forming a diverse yet unified educational network:
- Portugal: Universidade da Beira Interior, Instituto Politécnico da Guarda
- Spain: Universidad de Zaragoza, Universidad Pública de Navarra
- France: Université de Pau et des Pays de l’Adour, Université Savoie Mont Blanc
- Italy: Università degli Studi di Torino, Università degli Studi di Brescia
- Romania: Universitatea de Vest din Timișoara, Universitatea Transilvania din Brașov
- Switzerland (Associated Partner): Haute École Spécialisée de Suisse Occidentale
- Ukraine (Associated Partner): Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University
The importance of the Student Assembly
The Student Assembly is a key governance body within UNITA, offering a platform for students to actively shape the direction of the alliance. Composed of student representatives from all member universities, the Assembly ensures that students have a voice in decision-making processes, influencing important initiatives, including exchange programs and joint research projects. The Assembly plays a vital role in integrating student feedback into the broader governance framework, providing a channel for collaboration between students, faculty, and administrative staff.
With its diverse membership of 250,000 students, the Student Assembly reflects the democratic values that lie at the heart of the alliance. It ensures that student perspectives are represented and that their engagement in academic, cultural, and political activities is central to the future of higher education across Europe.
The student assembly elections ensure that students from all participating universities have a say in the governance of the alliance. Learn more about how universities manage these processes with universities election management platforms.
A shared, inclusive electoral process
To ensure that every student had the opportunity to participate, Eligo helped organize a unified voting process across multiple universities. The elections used one shared ballot for all institutions, with candidate lists defined through local participatory mechanisms involving coordinating committees at each university. This approach helped reinforce a sense of a shared European identity while respecting the unique needs and autonomy of each member institution. By organizing student assembly elections across multiple institutions, UNITA promotes a shared democratic experience for all students.
The results of the election show the varied levels of participation across different universities, demonstrating the success of the process while highlighting areas for improvement.
Voting results:
- Universitatea de Vest din Timișoara: 1,536 voters (9.22% turnout)
- Instituto Politécnico da Guarda: 40 voters (1.28% turnout)
- Universidad Pública de Navarra: 231 voters (2.06% turnout)
- Universidad de Zaragoza: 189 voters (0.59% turnout)
- Transilvania University of Brașov: 275 voters (1.31% turnout)
- Università degli Studi di Brescia: 411 voters (2.30% turnout)
- Università degli Studi di Torino: 13,192 voters (14.95% turnout)
What Eligo delivered
Eligo provided a complete, end-to-end digital voting solution tailored to the needs of UNITA’s diverse, multilingual population. The platform was designed to ensure:
- Multilingual support to accommodate the different languages spoken across the alliance
- GDPR compliance and adherence to European digital standards
- Accessibility to guarantee that every eligible student could participate
- Transparency and verifiability to ensure the integrity of the election process
Eligo provided a platform to ensure secure, accessible, and transparent student assembly elections, empowering students across Europe to make informed choices. Learn more about the importance of accessibility in digital voting systems with European Accessibility Act and digital accessibility.
By leveraging secure digital technology, Eligo made it possible for students to vote from anywhere, fostering inclusivity and engagement regardless of geographical barriers.
Why this initiative matters
The Student Assembly elections are much more than just a voting process; they symbolize the active role that students play in the shaping of European higher education. This initiative promotes democratic participation, cross-border collaboration, and student engagement, all of which are essential for building a truly European Education Area.
By facilitating a seamless and trustworthy election process, Eligo helped ensure that the voices of students were heard loud and clear across borders. The elections not only empowered students to make decisions about their representatives but also reinforced the broader mission of UNITA to foster cooperation and shared governance in higher education.
The success of the student assembly elections reinforces the democratic foundations of European higher education and fosters cross-border collaboration. For more insights on student engagement, read about student engagement in higher education.
The success of this initiative also underscores the potential of digital tools in enhancing governance across international educational networks. By supporting a transparent, inclusive, and participatory process, this election sets a valuable precedent for future democratic initiatives within academic institutions.