IHEI aims to increase the International Relations (IRR) capacities of Iranian HEIs to increase their potential to be more open and reduce barriers for fluid international (int´l) exchanges. The consortium, 3 EU HEIs + 6 Iranian HEIs with geographical balance (5 admin regions of the Islamic Republic of Iran), will work on strengthening the int´l dimension of the Iranian HE System via transfer of know-how, management capacities & good practices; plus develop a network to harmonise internationalisation practices at a national level.Specifically the project aims to:• Modernise IROs of 6 Iranian HEIs via updating of IT syst. & capacity building (“train the trainer” workshops + visits to EU IRR structures). Partners will disseminate project results in each region generating national level impact;• Draft 2 important documents for impact at macro and micro level: • “White Paper for credit recognition & int´l HE mobility in the Islamic Republic of Iran”, addressing one of the main difficulties for internationalisation of Iranian HE; • “IRO Management Guide in the Islamic Republic of Iran”, for the harmonisation of int´l practices at institutional level.• Set-up the 1st National Network in International Relations in HE in the Islamic Republic of Iran;• Promote national level dialogue to increase awareness of the importance of IRR & develop strategies for its development, esp. regarding credit recognition and student mobility.IHEI will have strong impact on• Increased national level awareness on challenges & existing initiatives in internationalisation of HE• Enhanced human, organisational & technical capacities at institutional levels to promote efficient internationalisation & create a pool of qualified human resources to effectively implement reforms, using modern tools & methodologies• Sustainably strengthened international institutional capacities, through development of int´l strategic action plans & joint strategies for efficient management of IROs.

According to the survey of World Economic Forum [tinyurl.com/jzlr5le], Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is the one of the top technological drivers of change for future of jobs, employment, skills and workforce strategy in the 4th Industrial Revolution. According to Forbes prediction, embedded smart sensors, remote monitoring systems, big data, data analytics, and machine learning will be considered as the top 5 engineering skills in 2020 [tinyurl.com/jajppcp]. In order to prepare the society for such an enormous diversity, modernising Higher Education (HE) towards integrating IIoT skills for engineers is an extreme requirement.The main goal of the IoTRAIN project is to achieve the modernization and internationalization of higher education in Iran and Iraq, taking into account the huge changes introduced by Internet technologies in society and business, and to design, develop and enact teaching, peer-production and continuous improvement processes. IoTRAIN is particularly designed to target the growing demand of professional IIoT skills by enhancing the IIoT-related trainings in Iranian and Iraqis HE institutions (HEI). In this regard, IoTRAIN covers a careful analysis of existing and future technological gaps in IIoT and provides required trainings towards improving competitiveness of future Iranian and Iraqis engineers. IoTRAIN delivers an IIoT competence model consisting of the state-of-the-art skills in IIoT at the European and international standard levels. The provided model adopts up-to-date training materials of the European partners of the project and provides necessary high-level training with the aim of improving competitiveness of future Iranian and Iraqi. Furthermore, IoTRAIN delivers a Digital Engineering competence model consisting of the state-of-the-art skills in digitalization for engineers and experts following European and international standards.

UNI-TEL has the aim to modernise Engineering and STEM curricula in the PC HEIs involved in the project thanks to the development and implementation of an innovative pedagogical methodology that promotes computer-supported collaborative learning approaches. The main idea is to put together EU HEIs which possess and supply cutting-edge developments, innovative learning practices and extensive international experience and HEIs from Iran which need and demand the same developments, practices and experience for the sake of Harmonisation of the HE systems. The consortium combines the expertise of 3 EU HEIs in IT, FI and PT and 1 company in GR, as well as 7 HEIs and 1 company in IR. The following key results will be achieved:1. A more flexible accessibility to training opportunities thanks to ICT-based approaches, innovative tools and systems (virtual labs, e-tivities etc.) and self-assessment procedures2. Training and assistance to lecturers and instructional designers in pedagogical scripts and instructional scaffolding to enhance self-directed and collaborative learning, integrating methodology and contents that would equip them with transversal and key competences for their active inclusion in the global digital learning space3. Modernised University curricula in Engineering and STEM studies where the contemporary TEL approaches and contents are integrated4. Implementing a quality based approach for quality assurance of TEL courses according to standard accreditation practices at PC HEIsUNI-TEL is expected to create short/long-term benefits for HE, business and society through:- enhancement of the inter-cultural dialog among the participating countries;- inspiring the supply of open accessible and free of cost educational resources;- provision of a common framework for the exchange and synthesis of experiences and best practices gained through collaboration of experts from different sectors of EU and Iran;- fostering the link: education-business-society.