The Holistic Mobility Support Center (HMSC) of the European University Alliance EUonAIR is a novel hybrid (virtual, blended and physical) mobility-at-career supporting structure that unites existing and new structures of the respective partner universities’ international and career offices (see Chart 1). It has also coordination office at a coordinating university.
Chart 1 General concept of Holistic Mobility Support Center (HMSC)
International Office → helps to go abroad
Career Office → helps to find a job
Together at HMSC:
→ Support before, during, and after mobility
→ Connect mobility with career plans and pathways
→ Help skills to grow for the future
The HMSC is designed to increase transnational mobility (virtual, blended, physical) and enhance and personalize the international mobility experience in careers of students, faculty and staff. It addresses all stages of mobility cycle: from considering mobility, pre-departure preparations, during mobility, after return and considering going abroad again. HMSC is an inherent part of MyAI University- virtual and immersive university environment (starting in Spring 2026) and one of five flagship pillars of European University Alliance EUonAIR: AI in Curricula, Smart UniverCity and (Return) Mobility.
Objectives of Holistic Mobility Support Center
Objective 1. To increase virtual, blended, and physical mobility between EUonAIR partners through active and functional mobility agreements among all institutions, as well as through collaborative educational activities and holistic (career-oriented) mobility services.
Objective 2. To use AI-assisted tools for increasing, sense-making and enhancing holistic mobility (career-at-mobility oriented) services in an ethical, collaborative and responsible way.
Objective 3. To use AI-assisted tools for increasing, sense-making and enhancing mobility-at-career in an ethical, collaborative and responsible way.
Components of Holistic Mobility Support Center
Component 1. Hybrid (virtual, blended and physical collaboration) structure of HMSC bridging international office and career office at every partner institution (e.g. one dedicated person at international office in a dyad with a career officer).
Component 2. Allocated space on the main EUonAIR website for HMSC including contact details of the designated staff.
Component 3. My Mobility Assessment Tool as a holistic (mobility-at-career-oriented) mobility assessment and supporting tool.
Component 4. Return Mobility Assessment Unit within HMSC.
Component 5. HMSC embedded at virtual MyAI University with AI-assisted tools.
Method of work of Holistic Mobility Support Center
HMSC is not a top-down given structure but bottom up approach, transnationally enhanced. It uses dialogue among partner universities, collaborative method of work with partners and constant exchanges of activities and experiences. HMSC supports and enhances various forms of transnational mobility (virtual, blended, physical), mostly between EUonAIR partners, at various stages of mobility cycle: considering mobility, pre-departure, during mobility, return and eventually going abroad again.
Virtual mobility within the EUonAIR alliance refers to structured, international, and collaborative learning or training experiences that are implemented entirely online through Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). It enables students, faculty, and staff to participate in cross-border educational activities without physical relocation, fostering global engagement, academic cooperation, and intercultural competencies. Virtual mobility formats include, but are not limited to, joint online courses, digital teamwork, virtual seminars, co-supervised assignments, and international e-learning modules. A central methodology in this context is Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL), which brings together students and educators from different countries in digitally supported learning environments to engage in co-created academic tasks, intercultural exchange, and collaborative problem-solving[1] (cf. EUonAIR’s Mobility Operational Guide).
Blended mobility within the EUonAIR alliance refers to integrated mobility experiences that combine both virtual and physical components to enhance transnational learning, teaching, and cooperation. It enables students, faculty, and staff to engage in partially online and partially in-person academic activities, leveraging the flexibility of digital technologies alongside the immersive benefits of face-to-face interaction. A key format of blended mobility is the Blended Intensive Programme (BIP), which brings together participants from multiple countries for short-term physical mobility, combined with compulsory virtual collaboration before and/or after the physical component. BIPs facilitate multidisciplinary, cross-cultural learning and foster collaboration between EUonAIR partners. Other examples include hybrid summer/winter schools, co-supervised blended courses, joint project weeks, and collaborative research training programs. These formats aim to promote academic excellence, intercultural understanding, strategic institutional collaboration and the possibility of a more diverse and specialized academic offer
Physical mobility refers to full cross-border relocation for study, teaching, or training purposes and remains a cornerstone of the EUonAIR alliance’s approach to internationalization. This includes both short-term and long-term Erasmus+ mobility for students, researchers, academic, and administrative staff. Short-term mobility may include traineeships, visiting lectureships, research stays for thesis writing (e.g. for BA/MA) or staff training weeks, while long-term mobility typically involves semester or year-long study periods, research stays, and teaching assignments. Physical mobility strengthens inter-institutional ties, supports knowledge transfer, and deepens participants’ academic, cultural, and professional competencies.
[1] This definition aligns with the frameworks and priorities outlined in the Erasmus+ Programme Guide 2025 (v2), the Digital Education Action Plan, and initiatives such as MILETUS, TRAINING2000, and other European virtual mobility platforms under the Culture and Creativity and Youth policies of the European Commission. (cf. Erasmus+ Programme Guide 2025 v2; Digital Education Action Plan; Culture and Creativity – European Commission; youth.europa.eu and virtual mobility project platforms; MILETUS and TRAINING2000 initiatives) Combined sources: Erasmus+ programme guide 2025 v2 youth.europa.eu+13lnx.training2000.it+13miletus.mnau.edu.ua+13
In this context, mobility is defined as the movement of both students, faculty and staff, encompassing inbound and outbound flows that contribute to the exchange of academic ideas, best practices in teaching and management and to institutional cooperation. EUonAIR places a strategic focus on promoting, supporting and enhancing these forms of mobility between EUonAIR partners, reinforcing sustainable international cooperation, excellence in higher education, and capacity building across the alliance.
The mobility cycle in EUonAIR is a comprehensive process that begins with the phase of considering international mobility, where individuals explore their options and receive guidance to make informed choices. It continues with the pre-departure phase, which includes planning, counselling, and preparation for the experience abroad. The next stage is during mobility, when students or staff engage in study, training, or teaching in another country, supported throughout their stay. After returning, the cycle includes reflection and assessment of the knowledge, skills, and experiences gained. Finally, the cycle encourages re-mobility, offering opportunities to go abroad again and continue building on previous experiences. This approach treats mobility as an ongoing journey that supports learning, inclusion, and personal growth.
General model of the Holistic Mobility Support Center for replications
The model/prototype of the HMSC is designed as a collaborative virtual or physical space (if required, although the provision of a physical space is not obligatory) that fosters interaction between the International Office and Career Office at each EUonAIR partner institution.
Return Mobility Assessment Unit
The Return Mobility Assessment Unit of Holistic Mobility Support Center plays a key role in supporting students, researchers and staff as they reintegrate into their home institutions after completing a mobility period abroad. Its main goal is to ensure that the skills, knowledge, and networks gained during international experiences are effectively transferred and used to benefit both the individual and their institution. The unit provides tailored guidance, including mentoring, career planning, and access to institutional resources, while also assessing the long-term impact of mobility on personal development and institutional growth. A central tool in this process is My Mobility Assessment Tool, which allows returnees to track their skills development. It serves as a digital hub for reflection, planning, and support, helping to turn temporary mobility into lasting value.
Chart 1 Embeddedness of RMAU into HMSC
Career Office International Office
+———————————————–+
| HOLISTIC MOBILITY SUPPORT CENTER (HMSC) |
| ★ RETURN MOBILITY ASSESSMENT UNIT (RMAU) ★ |
| – Supports reintegration – |
| – Assesses mobility outcomes – |
| – Links skills to career paths – |
| – Validates informal learning – |
+———————————————–+
The RMAU is designed to measure and evaluate the competencies, ideas, and values (EUonAIR and Erasmus) acquired during a student’s, staff’s, or faculty member’s mobility experience (physical, blended, or virtual). It ensures that the benefits of mobility extend beyond the individual and feed back into universities and communities.
The RMAU functions as a comprehensive mechanism within the HMSC by tracking and assessing new or enhanced skills and knowledge, including AI literacy and digital competencies, acquired during transnational mobility experiences; evaluating the transfer of European values such as equality, civic engagement gained abroad; providing structured feedback to guide participants’ career planning and personal development upon return, career services, and internationalization strategies to maximize the long-term impact of mobility.
In short, the RMAU ensures that mobility is not just an outward experience but a cycle, where returning participants bring back added values for themselves, their institutions, and European society.
Chart 2 Mobility cycle with special focus on RETURN
Considering International Mobility
↓
Pre-departure
↓
During Mobility
↓
AFTER RETURN
↓
Re-mobility (Going Again)
Objectives of Return Mobility Assessment Unit linked to objectives of Holistic Mobility Support Center
Objective 1. Recognize and validate the knowledge, skills, and competences acquired during mobility (virtual, blended, or physical) upon return mobility, with a special focus on AI and digital skills.
Objective 2. Ensure reintegration of mobility outcomes into participants’ academic, professional, and personal development pathways upon return.
Objective 3. Capture and promote EUonAIR and Erasmus values such as equality, civic engagement, and civic responsibility gained during mobility and reinforce them upon return.
Objective 4. Provide evidence-based assessment tools (such as My Mobility Assessment Tool) to capture an impact of mobility on careers and institutional development.
Objective 5. Strengthen institutional learning by feeding aggregated and anonymized mobility insights back into internationalization strategies and career services, in full compliance with GDPR requirements.
Objective 6. Increase the long-term impact of mobility by transforming individual experiences into collective benefits for universities, communities, and the wider European Education Area.
International mobility programs like Erasmus+ have significantly shaped higher education and youth development in Europe, providing opportunities for students and young professionals to study, train, or volunteer abroad. These experiences are widely recognized for fostering intercultural understanding, academic growth, and professional development. However, one critical phase of the mobility cycle remains largely overlooked: return mobility.
Return mobility as a missing piece
Return mobility stage refers to the period after an individual and completes their international stay and returns to their home country. This phase involves reintegrating into local academic, social, and professional systems, and ideally, applying the skills and knowledge gained abroad[1]. While Erasmus+ and other international mobility frameworks have addressed formally key aspects of the return by academic recognition through ECTS, the Erasmus Charter, and tools like the European Diploma Supplement, the recognition and structured support of broader mobility related achievements upon return remain limited.
The Erasmus+ program focuses primarily on the outward journey and the experience abroad, with substantial support provided in the preparation and mobility phases. However, there is minimal institutional support or structured guidance upon return[2] European Commission, 2020). This omission often leaves returnees without resources to reflect on their experiences, transfer their learning, or manage the challenges of reintegration.
Challenges of reintegration
Returning home is not a simple reversal of departure. Many returnees face reverse culture shock, identity dissonance, or a disconnect between their newly acquired perspectives and the realities of their local context3. Others struggle to translate their international experience into employability or academic capital, particularly when institutions and employers fail to recognize the informal and tacit skills developed abroad3. Without proper reintegration structures, these challenges can lead to underutilization of international experience, or even further migration in search of better recognition or opportunities.
The value of global (tacit) skills
A significant yet undervalued outcome of international exchanges is the acquisition of tacit skills knowledge that is learned through experience, often subconsciously, and is difficult to codify[3].
These include:
- Intercultural sensitivity
- Problem-solving in unfamiliar environments
- Adaptability and resilience
- Empathy and nuanced communication
- Informal leadership and independence.
Such skills are crucial in both academic and professional settings but are rarely captured in formal assessments or recognized by returnees’ home institutions. The absence of mechanisms to identify and validate tacit learning contributes to the undervaluation of the Erasmus+ experience once the participant returns home.
The need for an Erasmus Return Mobility Framework
Despite the documented long-term benefits of international mobility3, Erasmus+ lacks a dedicated framework to support returnees.
There are no widespread strategies for:
- Debriefing and reflexivity
- Recognition of informal learning
- Reintegration into local education or job markets
- Leveraging returnees as ambassadors of global citizenship
As a result, return mobility remains an unstructured and unsupported phase, missing an opportunity to maximize the impact of the Erasmus+ investment.
Toward a more inclusive and complete the Mobility Cycle
To address these gaps, Erasmus+ and other international exchange programs are required to formally recognize return mobility as a key component of the mobility cycle.
This may involve:
- Reintegration/ Reflexive workshops and career guidance
- Validation tools for informal learning
- Local mentorship and alumni networks
- National-level policies and activities to support the recognition of international experience (e.g. collaboration with EURES European Employment Services Network).
Recognizing return mobility would not only benefit individual participants but also enable local institutions and communities to gain from the global experience of their returning members. As internationalization becomes more embedded in education policy, reintegration should no longer be an afterthought, but a strategic priority.
[1] Grabowska, I., Jastrzebowska, A., & Czeranowska, O. (2025). Tacit Skills of Return Migrants to Poland and Lithuania from the UK: Twenty Years After the May 2004 EU Enlargement. Problems of Post-Communism, 72(4), 319-329.
[2] Papatsiba, V. (2005). Student mobility in the European Higher Education Area: An overview. European Journal of Education, 40(4), 377–394. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1465-3435.2005.00229.x
[3] Grabowska, I., & Jastrzebowska, A. (2022). Migration and the transfer of informal human capital: Insights from central Europe and Mexico. Routledge.
Grabowska, I., Jastrzebowska, A., & Czeranowska, O. (2024). Tacit Skills of Return Migrants to Poland and Lithuania from the UK: Twenty Years After the May 2004 EU Enlargement. Problems of Post-Communism, 1-11.
A central innovation of the RMAU is its emphasis on identifying and validating global (tacit) skills such as intercultural competence, adaptability, and problem-solving acquired informally during the mobility period. These competencies often remain unarticulated unless supported by specific tools, such as a structured skills framework or skills library, designed to help make them visible and explicit. Here, the My Mobility Assessment Tool (My Mobility) plays a critical role. This online platform serves as a digital companion to the Return Mobility Assessment Unit, providing returnees with guided self-assessment tools, reflexive exercises, skill-mapping resources, and personalized feedback. The portal supports students in making their learning outcomes visible, structured, and shareable, and also enables the issuing of micro-credentials and digital badges that validate their informal learning experiences.
In addition to its assessment function, the RMAU reintegration services to help students manage the academic, social, and emotional transition back to their home institutions. Through individualized counselling, career workshops, and academic support, returnees are guided in connecting their international experiences to local opportunities. The RMAU also issues formal recognition such as Return Mobility Certificates, which students can add to their CVs and professional profiles, ensuring that their global experiences are acknowledged by employers and academic institutions alike. To strengthen the employability relevance of these outcomes, close cooperation with employers from the early stages of implementation is recommended, helping to ensure that the articulated skills translate into tangible and measurable employability value.
To foster peer learning and institutional engagement, the RMAU coordinates several community-driven initiatives. The Welcome Back Point might serve as a dedicated space physical or virtual where returnees are welcomed, informed, and connected to resources. The Erasmus ECHO[1] platform might facilitate digital storytelling and reflection, allowing students to share their mobility narratives. Furthermore, the Mobility Ambassadors program trains experienced returnees to act as mentors, facilitators, and advocates for return mobility support, helping to create a sustainable feedback loop within the institution.
The model is designed for replication across partner universities, with flexible structures that can be adapted to different institutional environments. By integrating platforms like My Mobility Assessment Tool, and fostering collaboration between international and career offices, universities can transform return mobility from a passive phase into an active opportunity for student development, institutional learning, and local impact.
Welcome Back Point
The Welcome Back Point is a dedicated space either physical, digital (from 2026 in MyAI University), or hybrid designed to support students upon their return from international mobility experiences such as Erasmus+. It serves as the first point of contact for returnees and is a core feature of the RMAU within the EUonAIR HMSC model. Its primary goal is to ease the transition back to home institutions by providing personalized guidance, resources, and peer connections tailored to the reintegration phase. Positioned at the intersection of the International Office and Career Office, the Welcome Back Point functions as both an information hub and a reflexive space.
Chart 4 Concept of Welcome Back Point
| WELCOME BACK POINT |
+————————————————————–+
| Format | Physical | Digital | Hybrid |
+———————————————————————–+
| Purpose | Support returnees from Erasmus+ |
| Ease reintegration |
+———————————————————————————–+
| Key Services | – 1:1 Consultations |
| – My Mobility Assessment Tool |
| – Info & referrals |
+————————————————————————————+
| Community | – Peer meet-ups |
| – Debriefing & storytelling |
+————————————————————————-+
| Future Role | Mobility Ambassadors |
| Support internationalization |
+————————————————————————-+
| Integration | In MyAI University (from 2026) |
+———————————————————————+
| Message | ‘Return = New Beginning’ |
+——————————————————–+
Here, returning students are greeted and acknowledged not just as individuals who have completed a journey, but as carriers of new skills, experiences, and perspectives. The space provides information and guidance for returnees on where to find support services, including one-on-one consultations, referrals to local resources, and access to tools like the My Mobility Assessment Tool to help returnees reflect on and articulate what they’ve learned abroad. Importantly, the Welcome Back Point also fosters a sense of community among returnees. It may host informal gatherings, debriefing sessions, or storytelling events where students can share their experiences, support one another, and reconnect with campus life. In many cases, returnees may be invited to become Mobility Ambassadors, mentoring outgoing students or engaging in internationalization activities thus completing the mobility cycle by giving back.
Whether it takes the form of a desk in the International Office, a dedicated online portal, or a series of returnee workshops and with the perspective of future integration into the MyAI University ecosystem the Welcome Back Point conveys a simple but powerful message: the return is not the end of the journey, but a new beginning. It ensures that students’ global experiences are not only acknowledged but meaningfully integrated into their academic, social, and professional futures.
