Agora Onboarding & Training for University Alliances

Welcome to the Agora Training Event!

This is the first training session to explore how Agora can support collaboration, innovation, and service sharing across European university alliances. This training session is designed to help you understand how to navigate the platform, access key resources, and make the most of the available acceleration services.

For those who were unable to attend the meeting, the recording is now available to watch :

Here is a summary of the Agora Training Session held on April 29, 2025:

Agora Training Session – Summary

Date: April 29, 2025
Time: 10:00 CEST
Duration: ~1 hour
Facilitators: Jesus Alcober, Alba Roma Gomez
Attendees: Representatives from various university alliances, including Unite!, Circle U, Civica, FORTHEM, EU GREEN, UNINOVIS, EUPeace, and UNIC.

Key Topics Discussed

1. Introduction to Agora

• Presented by Jesus Alcober (UPC & aUPaEU Project Coordinator).

• aUPaEU is a five-year EU-funded project (2023–2027) supporting digital transformation in university alliances, by cerating and deploying Agoras.

• • It combines a digital platform with process support to enable collaboration in research and innovation.

  • Based on Odoo, an open-source ERP and CRM system, customized for university needs.

2. Overview of Platform Features

• Access and Login: Users log in via institutional credentials using EduGAIN.

• Modules Available:

  • Course catalogs (student, PhD, staff)

  • Internships

  • Research infrastructures

  • Events management

  • Innovation proposals

  • Showcases, metadata repositories, and expert catalogs

  • CRM-based inquiry management

• Public and internal views allow different levels of access.

3. Onboarding Process

• Presented by Alba Roma (Software Developer and Deployment Lead).

• Process starts with a subdomain setup and identification of a point of contact from the alliance.

• Alliances fill in a predefined Excel sheet to request module access for team members.

• After configuration, users receive onboarding emails and documentation.

• Data and instances are isolated per alliance, with backup and recovery support.

4. Search and Matchmaking

• Users can search for proposals, courses, and infrastructure by topic.

• Subscription to specific tags allows alerts for new relevant proposals.

• Catalog of experts is planned to support individual-level matchmaking based on expertise.

5. Customization, API Access & GDPR

• Alliances can:

  • Customize visual identity and some metadata.

  • Import/export data via CSV or APIs.

  • Request new modules or features.

• GDPR compliance ensured via a standardized user agreement, privacy policy, and T&Cs, already signed by multiple universities.

• Legal documentation will be shared upon request for institutional review.

6. Issues & Feedback

• Some users (e.g., Circle U) reported access errors when validating entries.

• Development team acknowledged and committed to resolving technical bugs.

• Requests for improved documentation and training materials were noted.

Next Steps 

• Next Session: Scheduled for Thursday on 8th May : Link to register

• Follow-up: Recording and materials will be shared through the event platform.

• Ongoing Support: Participants encouraged to request specific module guides and propose new services.

• Agora Support