Going global: new partner universities in France and Turkey

Some of our students seize the opportunity to complete their international semester at one of the numerous partner universities abroad. An exciting and educational time awaits all students who are drawn to faraway places.

Students spending the international semester at the MCI | The Entrepreneurial School^® can also look forward to an exciting and informative time with many English-speaking lecturers.

During the international semester, we also welcome students from other foreign universities to our master's program in Social Work, Social Policy & Management.

 Partner university in France: Institut Social de Lille

About the city

Lille is situated in northern France, near the border with Belgium. It has 227,000 inhabitants. A former major mechanical, food industry and textile manufacturing center as well as a retail and finance center, Lille forms the heart of a larger conurbation, regrouping Lille, Roubaix, Tourcoing and Villeneuve d'Ascq, which is France's fourth-largest urban conglomeration with a 1999 population of over 1.1 million.

About the university

Founded in 1875, and unique in France, the Université Catholique de Lille is a multidisciplinary institution which combines five faculties, 20 schools, institutes, and Grandes Ecoles as well as a hospital group. France’s largest private, non-profit university offers approximately 300 degree programs in six areas of study. MCI collaborates with three institutes: IÉSEG, JUNIA and ISL.

ISL is the Social Institute of Lille is also a member of the Université Catholique de Lille preparing its students for future careers in the fields of Social Work, Sociology and Health.

Year of foundation: 1875
Approx. number of students Université Catholique de Lille: ca. 38.500
Approx. number of students Institut Social de Lille (ISL): ca. 550
MCI partner university since: 2023

 Partner university in Turkey: Istanbul Kent University

About the city

Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey with a population of 12.6 million. Istanbul is the cultural and financial center of Turkey. It is located on the Bosphorus Strait and encompasses the natural harbor known as the Golden Horn, in the northwest of the country. It extends both on the Europe (Thrace) and on the Asia (Anatolia) side of the Bosphorus, and is thereby the only metropolis in the world that is situated on two continents. The city was chosen as joint European Capital of Culture for 2010.

About the university

The Istanbul Kent University was founded by the UnimpededEducation Foundation (ENEV) in 2016 and is located on the European side of Istanbul, in Thrace, the very center of the Istanbul, near numerous famous cultural sights. Its four faculties,  two vocational Schools and one graduate school offer a diverse range of programs in the fields of humanities and social sciences, health sciences, dentistry, art and design as well as justice.

Year of foundation: 2016
Approx. number of students: 4,000
MCI partner university since: 2023

At MCI | The Entrepreneurial School®, students have three opportunities to experience international outreach:

• The international semester can be spent at the MCI, in which case courses are enriched by lecturers from partner universities and incoming students from all over the world.
• An exchange semester can be spent at partner universities selected by the MCI and recognized by the state (with a corresponding program for the respective degree program).
• Furthermore, a freemover option is possible through independent organization of the semester abroad at universities that are not partners of the MCI by the students themselves if a specific university is targeted (prerequisite: coordination of the study content with the MCI).