Overcoming physical boundaries in international cooperation: a multidisciplinary ICT & Business and Media design international project as an online design charrette

Abstract

A new experience in International Cooperation was launched by Fontys University of Applied Sciences, School of ICT, Netherlands in the form of an Interdisciplinary ICT & Business and Media Design International Project, involving Bachelor third-year students and teachers from several Higher Education Institutions (HEI) partners. The main project objectives are international cooperation and cultural awareness, demonstrating entrepreneurial behaviour and an interdisciplinary vision. This kind of International Cooperation overcomes the problems often found in other mobility actions’ applications under the Erasmus+ Programme framework, where high quality standards, rigid schemes of functioning and other selection criteria may hamper the possibilities for recognition and funding. This paper describes the Interdisciplinary ICT & Business and Media Design International project, supervised by the authors and held as an online design charette, aiming to develop innovative Business IT and Media Design solutions under the central sports related topic “Reshaping fan experience in the new reality of the changing world as a consequence of COVID-19”. The project, led by Fontys School of ICT, was developed in a full remote way and involved students and advisor teachers from several HEIs with ICT and business and media design backgrounds. The work of the project student teams is overall described, the methodology and outcomes assessed, and lessons learnt are highlighted. The results of the assessment, conducted to measure both learning outcomes and student satisfaction with and opinions of the project, are included along with a summary of the experience gained by students and teachers while taking part in the project. The paper aims to share implementation and assessment of such a project as an opportunity for HEIs to acknowledge new ways of international cooperation, for entrepreneurship educators to learn from others' experiences, and to contribute to the entrepreneurship education literature.