Digital Universities Europe, 10-12 March, 2025 in Wrocław
Digital Universities Europe 2025 took place on 10-12 March, 2025 in Wrocław, Poland, and brought together higher education, industry and policy leaders working to accelerate change in teaching and learning, assessment, administration and the student experience, as digital technologies reveal new possibilities. There were more than 30 sessions, more than 80 speakers and more than 300 participants. Attendees participated through keynotes, interactive panel discussions, practical workshops, networking and much more. One of the sessions, entitled EU student mobility: Enabling student movement across European universities, gathered two panelists, Janina Mincer-Daszkiewicz and Tor Fridell. Janina and Tor touched the following questions and issues:
- The current state of the initiatives enabling student movement between European universities.
- Successfully sharing Erasmus+ student data in a secure and reliable way.
- How are EWP and EMREX related to other digital initiatives like DC4EU, OOTS, personal wallets, blockchains etc.?
- What are the biggest obstacles to achieve a smooth digital process?
- What will be the landscape five years from now?
- How to facilitate online access to information, administrative procedures and assistance services that EU citizens and businesses may need in other EU countries?
Istvan Vilmos Kovacs (moderator), Janina Mincer-Daszkiewicz and Tor Fridell (panelists) at Digital Universities Europe 2025
6th Projectathon OOTS, 11-12 March, 2025 in Brussels
From June 11 to 12, 2025, the sixth Projectathon OOTS took place in Brussels. DUO participated on behalf of EMREX, and RINIS was present to host the EMREX-OOTS bridge. Projectathons are intensive two-day testing events with peer-to-peer interoperability tests in a structured environment. The event is organized by the European Commission (EC). Technical connections are established to exchange (test) credentials between various Member States in order to test the development and implementation of components of the OOTS. DUO and RINIS successfully tested the bridge function between EMREX and OOTS and exchanged the first data through this bridge. The EC, DG Grow, presents awards at each Projectathon to countries that have made a special contribution in some way. This time, the award went to the Netherlands for boosting a related system bridge in education. On behalf of DUO/EMREX, Jan-Joost Norder accepted the award. The next Once-Only event will take place on September 25 and 26 in Lisbon. DUO and RINIS have set the goal of going live with the bridge during that event. It will be an exciting challenge, but both parties are optimistic. In the long term, the aim is for more EMREX countries to make use of the bridge.
Award presented to the Netherlands for boosting an EMREX-OOTS bridge in education
Nordforum meeting, 14-15 May, 2025 in Tatru
The 2025 NordForum collaboration meeting was held in Tartu, Estonia, on May 14–15, 2025. NordForum is an informal collaboration initiative between organizations responsible for Student Information Systems (SIS). What unites the group is that all members are national SIS providers, representing the majority of universities in their respective countries. It serves as a platform for exchanging experiences and ideas, and for identifying opportunities for both short- and long-term cooperation. Participants come from Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden. Below are some highlights from the participating countries since the previous meeting.
Denmark
Denmark is implementing the EU’s Single Digital Gateway Regulation through close collaboration between national and municipal authorities. The goal is to enable smooth access for both citizens and businesses, with minimal migration effort required from the authorities. Additionally, the form engine (Blanketmotoren) supports the rapid digitalization of administrative processes. Denmark is actively involved in the European Universities Initiative, with seven full partners and two associate partners across seven alliances. The country is also preparing to take a leading role in chairing negotiations for the next Erasmus+ budget. The new 4EU+ MICI project aims to develop a standardized and flexible system for designing, issuing, and recognizing micro-credentials. Implementation of the AI Act is underway, alongside efforts to map current and anticipated uses of AI in higher education institutions.
Estonia
Estonia is working to establish more structured collaboration between universities. While EMREX is supported, its usage is still limited.
Finland
The Digivisio Opin.fi service was launched in April 2025. It aggregates study offerings from 29 higher education institutions, with eight more to be added in autumn 2025. Offerings are automatically transferred from source systems (Sisu/Peppi), tagged, and categorized by theme to improve search and filtering. The EMREX integration in the Sisu system is in production, and usage has steadily increased in both Peppi and Sisu. Twenty-two higher education institutions are participating in an equal number of European university alliances, including one with significant IT investment (ECIU) and one coordinated by Finland (U!REKA). Institutions are also piloting the planning and use of micro-credentials in collaboration with employers. CSC, Tampere University, the University of Jyväskylä, and Metropolia University of Applied Sciences are jointly involved in the Data Space for Skills (DS4Skills) project, with partners in Norway, the Netherlands, and Latvia. The LUMI AI Factory project is coordinated by CSC and includes partners from Denmark, Estonia, Norway, and Poland. The LUMI AI Factory is one of Europe’s largest AI-related investments (€612 million), comprising a supercomputer, service center, and quantum computing platform.
The Netherlands
The use of EMREX has increased, with nine new clients onboarded in 2024. Data is transferred between approximately 50 clients each month. EMREX is being expanded to include Financial Supervision Act certificates and Proof of Enrolment. The use of Mijn diploma’s service has also grown, now offering access to documents such as the Europass Certificate Supplement for vocational education, Financial Supervision Act certificates, and the Citizen Exam certificate. There is ongoing collaboration with SURF on micro-credentials. Currently, micro-credentials are used in secondary vocational education, while higher education institutions use Edubadges.
Norway
In 2025, SIKT has focused on five key areas:
- A simpler organization.
- Economic sustainability.
- Artificial intelligence.
- Clarification of data products.
- Information security and privacy.
There are also plans to use AI in student admissions. While digital certificates are available for domestic applicants, evaluating paper-based applications from international candidates is a bit challenging. The goal is to move from a process that currently takes weeks to one that provides immediate feedback. Micro-credentials are being developed with a strong focus on working life. Key elements include:
- Certificates of competence to highlight continuing education and learning in the workplace. • Industry-related qualification and competence frameworks to systematize and promote lifelong learning.
- Competency points to combine and stack learning outcomes.
Sweden
The LADOK consortium has prioritized information security. LADOK has also passed EDU-API interoperability testing and is awaiting official certification. EDU-API will be integrated into LADOK’s API. The last major higher education institution in Sweden, the Stockholm School of Economics, will join LADOK in February 2026. The transition aims to be smooth, with collaboration focused on mapping and converting data from the old system and reviewing business processes. New features introduced in LADOK include:
- Digital Degree Certificates.
- Documentation of Study Support for Students with Disabilities.
- Individual Study Plans for PhD students.
EUNIS conference, 3-6 June, 2025 in Belfast
This year’s EUNIS annual congress was held in Belfast and hosted by the University of Ulster. The EMREX community was well represented and among other things held a joint panel session with EWP (Erasmus Without Paper). The conference was visited by more than 250 persons. As usual the conference offered presentations and workshops in a diversity of areas. Of course, AI was in focus but there was also presentations and discussions on how to move forward on the issues that lies on top of our minds, like
- University alliances,
- Interoperability,
- Micro credentials,
- Wallet solutions, verifiable credentials.
The EUNIS conference is a very good way to keep updated with current issues in the European digital education area and well worth going to. Some presentations are available afterwards, see the congress web site https://eunis.org/eunis2025/programme/. Next year the conference is planned to beheld on June 2-5 in Timisoara, Romania. The EMREX-EWP panel session title was Journey of member states towards digital Erasmus – challenges and lessons learned. It was a combined session focused on the factors that proved to be good as well as the factors that were a hindrance. Using the EMREX case as an example, we explored key insights, including:
- A clear business need as the starting point: EMREX was developed to facilitate the transfer of credits after mobility periods. The solution was designed to be simple and easily accessible, focusing not on technology itself but on fulfilling the needs of students and institutions.
- The role of central/national data repositories: Digital exchange solutions thrive when centralized systems exist, as seen in countries with high adoption rates. In contrast, the absence of central data sources has significantly limited growth in other regions.
- Expanding the target audience: While initial adoption focused on higher education institutions, recruitment companies have emerged as key stakeholders, leading to a significant increase in data exchanges.
- Adapting to evolving digital identity frameworks: When EMREX was launched, there was no common European identity system so we had to build a solution that worked anyhow. The introduction of the European Digital Identity Wallet (eIDAS 2) has changed the landscape, and EMREX has proactively engaged as a partner in large-scale pilot projects.
- Ensuring interoperability through data standards: EMREX originally used the at the time existing European standard, ELMO. With the emergence of the European Learning Model (ELM), a converter was developed to bridge the gap.
- Leveraging European legislation for new opportunities: The EU’s Single Digital Gateway (SDG) regulation provided another avenue for expanding EMREX capabilities. A pilot is currently underway to connect EMREX with SDG technical framework without requiring modifications to existing data nodes
Panel participants, from left to right: Tor Fridell, Geir Vangen, Carmen Díaz, Janina Mincer Daszkiewicz, Peter Leijnse
Belfast is known for shipbuilding and as the place where SS Titanic was built. The gala dinner of the congress was held in the Titanic Museum and the dining hall was a replica of the first-class dining hall of the ship with its characteristic staircase.
EUNIS gala dinner in the dining hall of the Titanic Museum
EMREX Annual Assembly, 14 June, 2025 in Tatru
On the 14th of June the Annual Assembly for EMREX took place at the Tartu University Delta Center in Tartu, Estonia. The meeting started with Dr. Sathyanarayanan from the Council of EU Chamber of Commerce in India as keynote speaker. Dr. Sathyanarayanan explained the plans of India to improve the student mobility towards Europa and as well in Asia. In the past most students were studying in the USA, but recent developments have shown a change in direction. Students are finding their way to other parts of the world. The EU Chamber of Commerce is therefore looking for ways to connect to the EU in order to improve the student mobility. The Executive Commission has agreed to further discuss a cooperation with India during a follow-up.
EMREX Annual Assembly in Tartu, June 2025
After the keynote the committee shared their accomplishments of last year. For example how successful the trial sessions for the OOTS/EMREX bridge were during the Projectathons. The EC is very happy to announce that the European Commission will continue to maintain the bridge software until the end of 2027 of the project. Furthermore, the converter for ELMO and ELM is working both ways. This was a Large Scale Pilot project. Moreover, the digital identity wallet (EUDI) is working. ELMO 2.1 is compliant with the OOTS regulation and the CBDS has created a comprehensive guide on how to connect with EMREX. For the new year, 2025, there are again many projects to work on. For example the new EMREG, the register for EMREX providers and clients. The ELMO-alignment with OOTS. The governance and development for the OOTS/EMREX bridge and many more. Moreover, we have added a new member to the Executive Committee for the next two years: Minna Pylkkönen, from CSC Finland. She replaces Kimmo Rautio. Tor Fridell is elected for one more year as chair of the EC committee. The meeting was as people say in The Netherlands ‘kort maar krachtig’ (short but effective), although this meant for some participants abroad that they completely missed the annual meeting, because of the timezone differences. A good lesson for next years! We’ll meet you again!
New EMREX Governance Strategy
In the February newsletter, the EMREX Executive Committee announced it was working on a new strategy and on improving cooperation among the current full members. In May, the first strategy meeting was held during the annual Nordforum meeting. The participating organizations (DUO, Sikt, CSC, MUCI, and AZVO) all expressed their support. The agreements are being formalized in a Memorandum of Understanding. The final version is currently being completed and is expected to be signed by the end of the summer. The network will be informed in due course about the contents of the MoU and other agreements that have been made.
Get in touch
EMREX portal is available at emrex.eu. To contact us write to info@emrex.eu. To get support write to support@emrex.eu.