Iliana Ivanova, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education, and Youth, Visited the Technical University of Sofia

During her visit, European Commissioner Iliana Ivanova was accompanied by the Head of the Representation of the European Commission, Ms. Yordanka Chobanova. Representing TU-Sofia were the Rector of the university, Prof. Dr. Eng. Ivan Kralov, the Vice-Rector for International Affairs and Integration, Prof. Dr. Eng. Lidiya Galabova, and Prof. Dr. Eng. Lyubomir Dimitrov, the Head of the “European University of Technology” project.

Prof. Kralov acquainted Commissioner Ivanova with the university’s achievements, modern infrastructure, and highlighted the close cooperation between the university and businesses. Alongside traditional activities involving joint scientific projects with international companies, new specialties have been developed in recent years.

Prof. Dimitrov presented the work of TU-Sofia as part of the European University of Technology alliance and its collaboration with the other eight partners. Concerning integrated European programs across different campuses, a significant achievement of the EUT+ alliance is the clear focus on enhancing the competitiveness of higher technical education and efforts towards creating a unified European diploma. This initiative allows students from partner universities to study under common curricula and receive a European certificate, recognized by all partners, upon graduation.

The Commissioner also visited the National Center for Mechatronics and Clean Technologies, located in the “Studentski grad” campus, where she got closely acquainted with the center’s activities and the latest scientific projects and developments.

The work of the newly established Centers of Excellence and Competence Centers was also presented, which offer excellent conditions for the professional realization of graduates.

A highlight of the meeting was the country’s unique model of education in the university’s foreign language faculties, where graduates receive dual diplomas. Commissioner Ivanova described this model as aligned with the ambitions to create a common European diploma.