The "Montpellier University of Excellence" project confirmed
Prime Minister Jean Castex has just confirmed the permanent continuation of the Montpellier University of Excellence I-SITE program, based on the recommendations of the international jury for the Idex-Isite investment program for the future. This is great news for the University of Montpellier, which has been leading this project since 2017 with 15 partners based on the site. This decision confirms the relevance of the strategy defined in 2016 and the quality of the work undertaken collectively to build an internationally recognized university capable of meeting the major challenges of tomorrow.
After a five-year probationary period, a mid-term evaluation at the end of 2019, and an on-site visit at the end of 2021, the evaluation process was completed on January 19 with a hearing by an international jury of the delegation led by Philippe Augé, President of the University of Montpellier, and composed of Antoine Petit, President and CEO of the CNRS, Gilles Bloch, President and CEO of Inserm, Elisabeth Claverie de Saint Martin, President and CEO of CIRAD, and François Pierrot, Executive Director of I-SITE MUSE.
Maintaining this label is essential to establishing the visibility of the University of Montpellier on a national and international scale, based on a unique identity focused on three major global challenges: food security, environmental protection, and human health. This visibility is, of course, essential for the university and its direct partners, but it is now also an asset for the Montpellier metropolitan area and for the entire Occitanie region, with a university that has been awarded a label of excellence that is so highly prized in a globalized knowledge economy.
An unprecedented collective dynamic on the site
The MUSE project has proven its worth and demonstrated its ability to mobilize everyone across the region: local authorities, research organizations, healthcare institutions, partner schools, and businesses around the University of Montpellier.
"Through this project, we have collectively demonstrated our ability to generate unprecedented momentum within our academic and scientific community to create a major university that plays a leading role in its region and has a strong international presence. This is a wonderful reward for the collective work undertaken by all the scientists, Professors, engineers, administrative staff, and students of the MUSE consortium," explains Philippe Augé, president of the UM, who welcomes the government's decision.
This project has had a significant structural impact on the site, as evidenced by the statutory evolution of the University of Montpellier, which has led to better representation of partners in its governing bodies and the integration of the École Supérieure Nationale de Chimie de Montpellier as a component institution of the UM. Organized in this way, the University is able to play a pivotal role in serving students, the pursuit of knowledge, and innovation.
"The State's decision to renew the I-Site Montpellier University of Excellence label rewards the work carried out by the University of Montpellier and all of the project's partners since the label was first awarded in 2017. It is proof of the dynamism and excellence of research in Montpellier and Occitanie. The work carried out within the framework of MUSE on food security, environmental protection, and human health is fundamental to the future of our planet and in line with the Region's strategic priorities. We have a collective duty to deliver on these issues for the younger generations and to create momentum for our regions," emphasizes Carole Delga, President of the Occitanie/Pyrénées-Méditerranée Region.
Building an internationally recognized university
Research advances, scientific publications, educational innovations, collaborations with the socio-economic world, and international appeal... in addition to governance issues, the consortium presented to the international jury all of the actions it has undertaken to build an internationally recognized university. Ranked among the world leaders in ecology according to the Shanghai thematic rankings, climbing 140 places in five years to reach the top 200 in the Shanghai general rankings, UM is also one of the most innovative universities in Europe according to the Reuters rankings. The hosting of the New Africa-France Summit in Montpellier in October 2020, embodied at the University by the "Montpellier Global Days," is an emblematic example of the University's ability to play the role of "European gateway to the South."
To paraphrase Shakespeare, I like to think that being "great" means embracing a great cause. That is what we wanted to do by choosing three global challenges as our horizon. And, with this horizon, by working every day to ensure that excellence is not synonymous with misplaced elitism, but simply the path to follow in order to surpass ourselves, we have laid the foundations for a Great University of Excellence,"says François Pierrot, Executive Director of I-SITE MUSE. "This thematic strategy and demanding approach have led to success for ISITE MUSE, but have also led to others: the ExposUM project obtained as part of the ExcellenceS Future Investment Program (PIA), the SFRI IDIL program promoting interdisciplinarity and internationalization in education, the UM2030 project selected by the PIA IDEES, and the University Innovation Cluster label and the implementation of key challenges for the Occitanie region."
What now?
The definitive continuation of the I-SITE label safeguards the state's funding (€550 million in capital, or €17 million available per year, which will be supplemented by funds from other PIA measures), enables the University of Montpellier to continue its restructuring and maintain its trajectory by launching new support, structuring, and transformation initiatives across all academic fields in order to continue building a large multidisciplinary university.
*The IDEX/ISITE initiative, conceived in 2010 as part of the Investments for the Future Program, aims to establish a limited number of research universities in France at sites with remarkable scientific potential and capable of creating synergy between universities, schools, research organizations, healthcare institutions, and businesses.
More information on the MUSE project website: muse.edu.umontpellier.fr or on umontpellier.fr