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The project ULEAD4ALL is an initiative of european organisations supported by the Erasmus+ programme. We aim to enable more equitable, diverse and inclusive leadership in higher education institutions.

We intend to equip aspiring higher education leaders with the mind and skillsets needed to succeed in this challenging yet thrilling scenario, where we can expect a wealth of new opportunities to generate and exchange knowdedge and ideas that are fuelled by different genders, cultures, backgrounds and experiences.

WHY

While equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) have led to more diverse student participation in higher education, leadership roles still lag behind.
Most university executive roles are still held by white men, and women hold less than a quarter of top positions. These gaps widen further when considering intersecting characteristics such as ethnicity, religion, disability, sexuality, or socio-economic background.

WHAT

ULEAD4ALL is an Erasmus+ funded initiative aiming to enable more equitable, diverse and inclusive leadership in universities in Europe​.

HOW

Through the design and delivery of training programmes, ULEAD4ALL aims to:
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ENABLE Current university leaders to become changemakers in their institutions.

EMPOWER Aspiring leaders from under-represented groups with the tools  and cultural capital to reach their career ambitions
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ESTABLISH a mentorship community between both groups.

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As a result of policy interventions such as affirmative action, quotas, and flexible working arrangements, women, ethnic minorities, people with a disability and people from lower socio-economic backgrounds have seen greater participation in HE than ever before (EUA, 2019). However, there is less progress in the diversity of leadership positions at universities, where most executives and top management are white and male, and women make up less than 25% of HEI heads (EC, 2022; InsideHigherEd, 2020).
Though the proportion of women rectors has increased by 73% since 2014 (EUA, 2022), reports from the EC show that women represent less than 25% of HEI heads (EC, 2022). Similarly in 2021, HESA reported that fewer than 1% of the professors employed at universities in the UK are black and only a few UK universities employ more than one or two black professors (HESA, 2021).
Marginalised groups are at a disadvantage when pursuing more senior positions due to specific national cultural contexts and welfare systems, as well as different social, legal and institutional constraints e.g., lack of appropriate role models and networking opportunities, gendered perceptions of leadership styles, implicit bias in performance assessment, lower success rate in funding applications, pressures for women to fulfil domestic care work alongside paid employment (OECD, 2020; EC, 2018; Estavez-Abe et al., 2001; Khan et al., 2019).

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​Project number: 2023-1-NL01-KA220-HED-000161645
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.