Making friends and influencing policy in Europe

Anne Mette Holt, head of international relations at the Technical University of Denmark, has run the university’s strategic partnerships for more than a decade, including setting up the EuroTech Universities alliance. She explains what’s involved.

Working with international networks is a very important part of the Technical University of Denmark’s (DTU) strategy as it helps boost the university’s international visibility and competitiveness.

Our researchers publish in high-impact journals, so in terms of hard metrics the university does well. However, reputation is a factor in international rankings and sometimes we come out on a lower level in this respect. To make ourselves more competitive in terms of international funding, we set out to collaborate with some of the best universities in the world. The DTU board initiated this strategy and I’ve put the process into operation.