With the U4 lectures the four network partners aim to promote teaching mobility within the U4 network by organizing top-level guest lectures on a regular basis.
The U4 lectures fit into the concept of a studium generale. They are conceived as lectures with an academic character covering a scientific subject with human, cultural or social relevance, yet approached from a broad or multidisciplinary point of view, and accessible for a broad audience including non-specialists.
The U4 lectures should offer students, staff and alumni the opportunity to broaden their horizon in an international perspective and to get acquainted with themes outside of their own discipline, unfolded by top lecturers, researchers or ambassadors from one of the U4 partners.
Ghent and Groningen took the initiative to set up a tentative programme in 2012, with Douwe Draaisma lecturing in Ghent on 'Memory' (29 Febr. 2012) and Mels Van Driel on 'male disfunction' (27 June 2012), as well as Hendrik Vos lecturing in Groningen on 'EU politics' (17 Oct. 2012).
In addition to the own pooling of top lecturers in the U4 framework, lectures by eminent world-class scientists and ambassadors, such as the Nobel lectures, Richard Dawkins' lecture on occasion of the opening of Linnaeusborg in Groningen (12 Jan. 2012) etc., have also been broadcast (via streaming).
