University of Andorra and Université de Toulouse Jean Jaurès sign four‑year cooperation pact

The University of Andorra (UdA) and Université de Toulouse Jean Jaurès (UT2J) signed an inter‑university cooperation agreement on 2 December 2025 at UdA’s Sant Julià de Lòria campus. The pact, signed by UdA rector Juli Minoves and UT2J president Emmanuelle Garnier, takes effect in the 2026–2027 academic year and runs initially for four years, with both institutions expressing the intent to build a long‑term partnership.

The agreement aims to strengthen academic ties and promote mobility of students, teaching staff and researchers by creating shared training programmes and coordinated research lines in areas of mutual strategic interest. It covers mobility at bachelor, master and doctoral levels, joint supervision of doctoral theses, collaborative research projects, exchange of scientific and technical documentation, participation in conferences, joint publications, the potential development of joint degree programmes, and exchanges of administrative personnel.

Initial collaboration will focus on business administration, education, computer engineering and tourism. The first concrete measure is a semester of specialisation in Tourism and Development at UT2J’s Centre Universitaire de l’Arieja Robert Naudi in Foix for students enrolled in UdA’s Bachelor of Business Administration; the offer will be available from the 2026–2027 academic year. The Foix centre, located about two hours from Andorra, provides university facilities and student residences and hosts international students.

Under the arrangement, participating students will remain enrolled at their home university and pay only their home tuition fees; they will be exempt from host‑university fees and will have the same access rights to services as local students. UdA will provide mobility support to help cover travel expenses for students undertaking placements in Foix, and UT2J students will likewise be eligible for stays in Andorra. UdA expects a small initial cohort, with numbers likely to grow over time.

Both signatories emphasised designing cooperation that adapts qualitatively to each university’s curricula and needs and warned against unequal partnerships. Garnier described the initiative as “mobility without moving,” highlighting the short travel distance — roughly two hours — between the institutions. Minoves said the agreement formalises and consolidates collaborations that until now had often been carried out on an individual basis through cross‑border programmes such as POCTEFA.

UT2J, which enrolls around 33,000 students and hosts a significant international cohort, views the pact as a way to strengthen its presence in the Pyrenean area. For UdA, the agreement extends its network of international partnerships, broadens academic offerings, supports knowledge transfer and deepens research collaboration between Andorra and France.

The new framework will act as an umbrella to coordinate existing bilateral projects and to explore additional fields of cooperation over time. Both institutions expect student and staff exchanges to increase gradually in the coming years.