Types of alliances

At the UOC, we engage in alliances with international bodies and multilateral institutions to strengthen and ensure recognition for online education as a quality higher education model.

We strategically promote specialized knowledge transfer, institutional capacity building and professional training in digital environments, in line with the social, economic and educational challenges of each region.

We strive to broaden access to online higher education by offering study grants and collaborating on initiatives that influence public policies, reference frameworks, and practices focused on quality assurance and the continuous improvement of higher education systems in various settings.

Microcredentials are digital certificates that validate specific professional competencies and provide employers with clear, shareable evidence of your skills. They are earned through specialized courses with a flexible format, worth a maximum of six credits and designed to be the fastest path to professional development.

They are a key tool for improving employability and for reskilling/upskilling for future roles. Ultimately, they ensure that your competencies remain aligned with labour market demands and current social challenges.

At the UOC, we promote virtual mobility in partnership with education institutions and university networks around the world. The aim is to expand students' options to gain international experience and acquire global skills.

Virtual mobility programmes encourage the exchange of academic experiences with students and teachers from all over the world. These experiences enrich your CV and reinforce global, social and digital skills that will be essential in future professional roles.

Virtual mobility programmes, conducted in collaboration with another higher education institution or within a network, are educational experiences that allow students from universities around the world to take one or more courses in the virtual classrooms of the host university. Once successfully completed, they are recognized in the student's academic record at their home university.  They can be INBOUND (at the UOC) or OUTBOUND (the UOC is the home university).

The UOC's academic gateways are a structured mobility mechanism whereby students from another institution undertake part of their programme directly on the UOC's Virtual Campus.

Experience and value

Students fully integrate into the UOC's classrooms, experiencing its unique methodology alongside the rest of the UOC community. This immersion encourages direct cultural exchange and reinforces the acquisition of global skills. In addition, it provides an opportunity for academic cooperation between institutions in which academic peers also engage in this international experience.

Recognition and qualification

The home university fully recognizes the credits earned at the UOC, in accordance with the table agreed upon by the academic peers of both institutions.

Internships are a key training activity where students contribute their knowledge and talent to your organization. This allows them to round out their academic training and acquire essential skills and abilities to boost their career.

Modes available:

• Curricular: these internships form part of the programme of study and are mandatory to obtain the degree.
• Non-curricular: these are voluntary internships designed to enhance students' professional experience and employability.

We support institutions in improving the skills of their teams through training. We offer flexible solutions for companies, administrations, education institutions and the third sector with the aim of reinforcing the key knowledge and profiles of each organization.

Types of support and training:

• Open training (UOC portfolio): access to specialized UOC programmes (master's degrees, expert diplomas, open courses, etc.), with students joining the UOC's regular classes.
• Bespoke training: design of personalized programmes for your organization, focused on specific skills.
• Specific sessions: webinars, seminars and meetings with UOC experts.

Drawing on our knowledge and experience, we support governments, institutions and teaching communities around the world in different areas of knowledge.

For the digital transformation of education, we support education institutions in analysing their current situation and developing their own online educational model. In recent years, we have supported a number of international institutions.

We collaborate with those seeking to integrate aspects of online learning into their educational models through knowledge transfer, analysis of different contexts, specialized training in education and ICT, and quality assurance in higher education. 

The Industrial Doctorates Plan is a programme run by the Government of Catalonia to encourage doctoral students to produce strategic research projects in companies, while undertaking research training at a university to support their doctoral thesis.

Industrial doctorates allow companies to tackle strategic challenges with the support of a UOC research team and a doctoral candidate who is fully dedicated to the work. This formula facilitates the recruitment of highly qualified talent, promotes R&I projects aligned with the needs of the organization, and reduces costs and risks thanks to public co-financing and scientific support from the university.

The UOC provides companies with a portfolio of protected R&I results (intellectual and industrial property) that can be licensed for use and exploitation. This includes software and digital platforms, methodologies and protocols, educational content and technological resources developed within research projects.

Welcome programme for refugees and asylum seekers

Collaborate with the programme to guarantee refugees' access to quality, inclusive and equitable education, through study grants, psychosocial services or legal advice. 

Global justice projects

We spearhead transformative projects for global justice to strengthen university development cooperation through critical research, innovative teaching and community action. We cultivate the academic community's critical awareness and active involvement in the global context by integrating academic knowledge and social practice. We also generate synergies with other institutions, organizations and third sector bodies, as well as Latin American universities and other educational institutions in countries in the Global South. 

Sustainability and health projects

In collaboration with organizations and institutions, we promote healthier, more sustainable spaces and participatory activities, integrating a commitment to the environment, social harmony, well-being, and community and planetary health into our university culture.

The European Association of Distance Teaching Universities (EADTU) is a network of European online and distance-learning universities whose mission is to influence public policy relating to online and distance learning, while also raising funds for innovation in the area of e-learning. 

With more than 850 members from 48 different countries, the European Universities Association (EUA) is Europe's largest representative body of universities. Its objectives include influencing European public policies in relation to higher education, research and innovation, and serving as a forum for collaboration between member universities.

The Union of Universities of Latin America and the Caribbean (UDUAL) is a network of higher education institutions that fosters and strengthens relations between member institutions and other international organizations. The UOC is actively involved in redefining the role of universities in the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The Ibero-American University Association for Postgraduate Studies (AUIP) is an international organization that brings together universities from Latin America, Spain and Portugal with the aim of promoting postgraduate and doctoral studies in the region. Its overarching mission is to improve the quality of these programmes and promote the academic mobility of students, faculty members and researchers through grants, collaborative networks, and support for training and advanced research programmes.

The Spanish Association of Universities with Information and Communication Degrees (ATIC) is a non-profit organization created in 2011 to continue the work of the former Conference of Deans. It brings together Spanish universities and faculties that teach undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in the field of ICT. Its primary goal is to improve the quality of these university programmes. To this end, it provides a platform for its members to exchange ideas and experiences. It also establishes links with national and international institutions, organizations, and associations in the sector to promote academic excellence, research, and the social relevance of communication professions.

Established in 1995, the European Law Faculties Association (ELFA) is an international association that brings together more than 150 law faculties from across Europe and other continents, with the overriding aim of improving the quality of legal education and research in the field of European and comparative law. It serves as an inclusive international forum for discussing key topics, collaborating on educational reforms, exchanging good practices and promoting cooperation between universities. It also represents the interests of its members before European institutions, national education bodies, and other associations of legal professionals.

The Interuniversity Network of Postgraduate Studies in Tourism (REDIntur) is an association of Spanish universities that teaches official postgraduate programmes (master's and doctoral degrees) in the field of tourism. Its main objectives include academic collaboration, research and continuous programme improvement. It actively seeks to facilitate experience exchange, promote student and teacher mobility and coordinate RDI projects (such as the SICTUR scientific information platform). These efforts are all aimed at improving the quality of teaching and research in tourism, adapting them to the requirements of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), and collaborating with the tourism industry.

The Ibero-American Network for Mobile Technologies in Health (RITMOS) is an international research and collaboration network supported by the Ibero-American Programme in Science and Technology for Development (CYTED). Led by the UOC, it brings together more than 22 universities, research groups and health organizations from Latin America and Europe. Its main objective is to promote development, research and knowledge transfer in the field of mobile health (mHealth) and to foster the use of mobile devices and technologies to improve care processes, prevention, patient well-being and management of chronic diseases in the Ibero-American region, especially in areas with limited resources.

The Network of Universities for Children and Adolescents (RUIA) is an interdisciplinary collaboration project involving Spanish universities, public authorities and administrations, private entities and Spanish society at large, focusing on childhood and adolescence. Its main purpose is to develop, defend and ensure the rights of children and adolescents through research, innovation, training and the dissemination and transfer of knowledge.

The European Consortium for Political Research (ECPR) is Europe's leading independent academic society. Founded in 1970, it is dedicated to promoting and fostering transnational research, training and collaboration in the field of political science and its subdisciplines on a global scale.

The Conference of Rectors of Spanish Universities (CRUE) is a non-profit association that represents the voices and interests of the majority of universities in Spain (both public and private). Its core mission is to serve as the liaison between higher education institutions and the Government of Spain, while promoting excellence in teaching, research, innovation and knowledge transfer across the Spanish university system.

The Vives Network of Universities brings together 22 universities from Catalan-speaking regions with the aim of creating a common university collaboration forum.

The University Network for Postgraduate Studies and Lifelong Learning (RUEPEP) is an association established under Organic Law 1/2002. Its primary focus is on individuals responsible for postgraduate training and lifelong learning at Spanish universities. The main objective of RUEPEP is to promote contact between Spanish universities on the specific subject of postgraduate studies and lifelong learning, from both an academic and a specialized management point of view.

The Spanish Network of University-Business Foundations (RedFUE) is a non-profit association that brings together foundations created to serve as the strategic link between Spanish universities and companies, with the aim of promoting collaboration, knowledge transfer, innovation and the employability of young talent. It acts as a platform to structure specialized joint training programmes, business practices, entrepreneurship and applied research projects, with a view to ensuring that the relationship between the academic and productive worlds translates into economic and social progress.

The Network of Gender Equality Units for University Excellence (RUIGEU) is an association that brings together all units, offices, observatories, commissions and secretariats that focus on equal opportunities between women and men at Spanish public universities (and some private member universities). Established in 2009, its primary mission is to promote genuine and effective equality within the university sphere. It serves as a collaborative platform for sharing best practices, coordinating common policies, drafting reports and proposals for CRUE and relevant authorities, and defending equality and non-discrimination rights in higher education and research.

The Universities for Diversity Network (RUD) is an association of public and private Spanish universities that work together to promote inclusion, diversity, equality and respect for different sexual orientations, identities and gender expressions within the university environment. Its main objectives are to eradicate discrimination on the grounds of LGTBI-phobia; promote awareness, training and research on affective, sexual and gender diversity; and implement policies and protocols that guarantee a safe and welcoming environment for the entire university community (students, teaching and research staff, and administrative and service staff).