Founded in 1872, the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU), comprises 15 departments and four service centres in and around Vienna. BOKU has about 12,000 students (20% international), about 700 scientists employed on a project basis, about 74 full professors and about 130 associate professors. BOKU is a unique Austrian research and teaching organisation with strong focus on soil and terrestrial ecosystems, biotechnology, resources and societal dynamics, water-atmosphere-environment, living space and landscape, renewable raw materials, food-nutrition-health and nano sciences.

Ghent University was founded in 1817. Currently, it has 11 Faculties and attracts 50,000 students, with a foreign student population of about 15%. Annually, the university receives about 7,000 international students. Ghent University is currently ranked 74th in the Shanghai Ranking of World Universities and 96th in the Times Higher Education Ranking, and the university is one of the fastest growing European universities in terms of research capacity and productivity.

Aarhus University is a young, modern university established in 1928. It has grown to become a leading public research university with international reach covering the entire research spectrum. Around 4000 of the total student population at Aarhus University of 33.000 students are international, representing more than 100 nationalities. The university is consistently ranked as one of the world’s top universities. It is ranked 69th in the Shanghai Ranking of World Universities. Denmark is widely cited as one of the world’s most liveable places.

The University of Göttingen is an internationally renown research university. Founded in 1737 in the Age of Enlightenment, the University is committed to the values of social responsibility of science, democracy, tolerance and justice. It offers a comprehensive range of subjects across 13 faculties: in the natural sciences, humanities, social sciences and medicine. With over 30,000 students and offering up to 200 degree programmes, the university is one of the largest in Germany.