Project duration: 01 January 2018 – 31 December 2020

Objective

EXplORE aims to create an MSc programme in exploration involving AGH, LTU, Oulu and TU BAF together with the exploration industry. Exploration geoscientists will be educated in how to create exploration businesses and in understanding market conditions. By adding the necessary components of entrepreneurship in exploration and student and teacher exchange, we will provide students with the knowledge and skills required to boost exploration in Europe.

The solution (technology)

Europe is highly dependent on foreign imports  when it comes to metals and raw materials. While we consume over 20% of the global metals and minerals produced, we only supply around 3-4% from domestic mining. Furthermore, the share of global expenditure on exploration is small compared to other parts of the world, such as Australia, Canada, and South America. Contrary to popular belief, the geological potential for discovery of mineral deposits is very good and many parts of Europe are considered “underexplored” by international standards. Importantly, we are lacking in investments into exploration, and around Europe we see a declining trend in young people going into the raw materials industry. If this trend is not reversed, this will further increase import dependence and provoke a supply risk to European industry downstream – posing a serious risk to industry and society alike.

The EXplORE MSc-programme has the ambition to prepare skilled T-shaped professionals for the European exploration industry. We are doing this by pooling programmes from four of the leading resource universities in Europe, AGH in Poland, LTU in Sweden, University of Oulu in Finland and TU BAF in Germany, and by adding entrepreneurial components to their existing programmes. We will also establish a teachers’ mobility scheme to further the attractiveness of the programme to European as well as non-European students. An industrial advisory board to the programme will ascertain that all modules are state-of-the-art and in line with expectations from industry. We will furthermore enhance interaction with professionals from industry and elaborate on a scheme to include teachers from industry. Furthermore, we aim to to align internships and thesis work within industry in order to secure first hand working experience on an individual basis.

Partnership

For more information, please visit the project web page.