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Current geopolitical situation creates a challenge for national and international security systems. A constant growing number of armed conflicts, as well as an escalation of political disputes justify an increased role of defense education.In the ensuing situation, in order to meet the current security demands and challenges, the EU member states put a particular emphasis on a modification of military education systems.The key activity is focused on a standardization of curricula and their implementation during the international semester as part of the 1st cycle military studies. Unification of the didactic process would allow students to choose and follow study programmes in an international environment, which further prepare them to efficiently cooperate within a framework of European military units built to strengthen safe and secure EU.A significant support is required in order to sustain development and provide equal opportunities for military education. Currently, military students constitute a specific group that is “discriminated” as concerns mobility opportunities of Erasmus+ programme. It is not the case, however, of an intentional or institutional discrimination, but a result of internal legal regulations of military academies, which, according to the national laws, are obliged to fulfil requirements of both ministries of defense and higher education. One of the effects of such situation is the 20% increase of mandatory number of hours prescribed to satisfy the accreditation demands. Furthermore, as part of their basic military education, cadets must complete their vocational training interwoven with academic instructions, which takes place in training centers and military units. These requirements exhaust time that could be used for student mobility, and create problems with recognition of qualifications earned abroad.The need of standardization of the officer preparation programs that gives an opportunity to conduct part of the education within the framework of the international semesters, demands from the partner institutions a systemic approach in modification of their study programs in order to fill the gap in cadets’ education by activation of so-called “mobility windows”, that not collide with their required military training.The innovative character of the proposed project was based on the situation that, despite of growing importance of defense and security affairs within the EU’s policy, there is still lack of initiatives that support and promote common education and international exchange of military students. Moreover, the project consists of a pioneered product – the education program of international military semester.The partner academies reached the assumed goal by executing the following tasks:1. Defining common programs content and its implementation to the international semester. Nine courses/modules were defined and the course cards were prepared and presented to the international group of evaluators in order to receive accreditation. This was achieved after completing a process of securing Common Module recognition for all nine courses confirmed by the EU Implementation Group and European Defense and Security College. 2. Developing comprehensive education program for the 1st level studies, conducted during the so-called “mobility windows” (30 ECTS).3. Developing material and tools supporting the international semester’s education program. All of them constitute the package enabling any institution responsible for education of future officers in EU and NATO, to implement and start the international semester. All developed material (programs, course cards, e-books, e-learning content, and support material) was peer-reviewed, tested and updated where applicable, and made available to interested parties.4. Implementing international semester program –a pilot phase throughout the project in the form of blended mobility. In the summer semester of 2017, cadets from five partner academies and universities, as well as additional cadets from Italy and the US, took part in activities designed to test the contents and structure of the international semester.Additionally, in accordance with the overall idea, the proposed project included organization of side activities aimed at promotion and proliferation of an intellectual work effects and the overall ideas of the project.The credibility of the strategic partnership based on their long-lasting cooperation within multilateral programs such as the Erasmus+ Program, common international education projects, and constant mutual research and didactic events.The implementation of the project has positively affected the development of cooperation between military education institutions of the EU countries, especially in the area of common initiatives aimed at consolidation of higher education systems, which would help to satisfy popular demands for more secure EU.
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