info@arqus-alliance.eu

Apply by 15 January 2026!

Nominations for the 5th Arqus Teaching Excellence Award

The Arqus Alliance is thrilled to announce the launch of the fifth Arqus Teaching Excellence Award contest. This award seeks to recognise educators who exemplify innovation and excellence in their pedagogical practices, fostering a culture of learning that transcends disciplinary boundaries and empowers students from diverse backgrounds to thrive in inclusive, community-based and dynamic learning environments.

In line with our mission to promote collaborative and inclusive education, the Arqus Teaching Excellence Award will honour teaching initiatives and projects that are based on research-informed teaching and learning approaches and prioritise the integral development and empowerment of students. 

Teaching initiatives and projects implemented from the start of the academic year 2024/2025 will be considered for this award.

As we embark on this journey to celebrate teaching excellence, we invite nominations that embody the following core criteria:

  1. Student-Centred Teaching: Consistent use of student-centred approaches that cater to the diverse needs of learners, fostering inclusive education practices.
  2. Assessment that drives students’ learning: Consistent use of assessment strategies and feedback methods that support learning and development, encouraging meta-reflection on and facilitating dialogue about learning processes.
  3. Research-informed teaching and learning approaches: Use of research-informed didactical approaches to enhance learning outcomes.
  4. Integration of the international perspective: Incorporation of an international perspective to enrich the learning experience and foster cross-cultural understanding. This may include, but is not limited to, integrating international case studies, collaborating with international partners or experts, facilitating cross-cultural exchanges or discussions, incorporating global issues and perspectives into the curriculum or other activities that prepare future graduates to thrive in a globalised world.
  5. Transferability and adaptability: Development of teaching initiatives that are transferable and adaptable to further educational contexts, promoting scalability and sustainability of the initiative.
  6. Relevance and impact: Reflection by the teacher on the relevance and impact of the project on students‘ learning, demonstrating its significance in enhancing teaching and learning practices.

Nomination process

Nominations should include a comprehensive description of the teaching initiative, highlighting its alignment with the criteria outlined above. The extent to which criteria are met will be based using this rubric. Please note that not all criteria need to be met to apply or win; initiatives demonstrating exceptional achievement in a limited number of areas may still be eligible for recognition. Supporting materials such as course syllabi, student feedback, and evidence of impact are highly valued.

In the initial step of the selection process, each partner university will internally select the three best applications. These applications will then be forwarded to the Arqus Jury, consisting of experts in teaching and learning from all partner universities, as well as three students, who will carefully evaluate them and, by 1 April 2026, select two winners from among the finalists.

Deadline

Interested individuals or teams of teachers are encouraged to submit nominations for the Arqus Teaching Excellence Awards by 15 January 2026.

Awards ceremony

The Award will be presented at the Arqus Annual Conference in Maynooth University (8 and 9 July 2026). The award winners will be invited to participate in the conference to give a guest lecture or workshop for teachers of the Arqus Alliance.

Prize

As a token of appreciation for their dedication and innovation, winners of the Arqus Teaching Excellence Award will receive a prize of 5,000 EUR to further advance their teaching initiatives and promote excellence in higher education.

Please note that the number of winners and the prize amount may be subject to change based on the number of exceptional applications received.

Read information about the winners of the previous editions of the Arqus Excellence Award here.

Call published on 10 Nov 2025
Newsletter

Don’t miss any news, calls or opportunities from Arqus.
Subscribe now! The future begins today.

    Subscribe


    You can change your mind at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in the footer of any email you receive from us.

    We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By clicking below to subscribe, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing. Learn more about Mailchimp's privacy practices here.

    Controller: University of Granada (as Coordinator of the Arqus European University Alliance). Legal basis: Arqus is entitled to process your data under the provisions of Article 6.1. (a) of the GDPR: “the data subject has given consent to the processing of his or her personal data for one or more specific purposes”. Purpose: to manage your subscription to mailing lists and to periodically send you the requested information by electronic means. Recipients: Mailchimp. Rights: access, object, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing, data portability. Additional information here.

    Select our profile:

    Apart from the general information, what specific news would you like to receive from Arqus?

    Controller: University of Granada (as Coordinator of the Arqus European University Alliance). Legal basis: Arqus is entitled to process your data under the provisions of Article 6.1. (a) of the GDPR: “the data subject has given consent to the processing of his or her personal data for one or more specific purposes”. Purpose: to manage your subscription to mailing lists and to periodically send you the requested information by electronic means. Recipients: Mailchimp. Rights: access, object, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing, data portability. Additional information here.

    Arqus
    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.