Brussels, 21 Nov 2003
The University of the Transmanche, the first UK-French university, is currently putting the finishing touches to its list of courses, ready for the first intake of students in September 2004.
The cross-channel university brings together three Lille universities and the University of the Littoral in France with the UK's University of Kent. The institution will offer Masters degrees in health and medical sciences and ethics, as well as European law and international commerce.
'The Transmanche University is the first of its kind on both sides of the Channel,' said David Melville, Vice Chancellor of the University of Kent. 'We are creating a real transfrontier higher education institution.'
The university will be jointly funded by education departments in both countries as part of a two million euro education agreement signed between UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and French President Jacques Chirac earlier this year.
In addition to postgraduate courses, the university will eventually offer undergraduate programmes, as well as lifelong learning initiatives and professional development programmes.