With resources provided by funds from the study environment, Aarhus University, Department of Political Science and Government has just launched a pilot project in which 30 mature students share their experiences from the study life to protégés currently in the second semester. The ambition is to reduce the dropout rate and improve the study environment – and maybe inspire other departments.

Researchers at Aarhus University will soon have the opportunity to collaborate with two of the world's most eminent scholars, the Australian historian Alistair Thomson (Monash University, Melbourne) and the Harvard sociologist Robert D. Putnam. Dr Thomson and Dr Putnam have been appointed distinguished visiting professors (DVP) at AU.

Special Issue of the Journal of European Integration - Edited by Knud Erik Jørgensen, Sebastian Oberthür og Jamal Shahin. The publication presents the first results from the research project EUPERFORM (Measuring the Performance of the European Union in International Institutions), which analyses the European Union as a global actor. The main focus is on the performance of the EU in international institutions.

Aarhus University, Business and Social Sciences has created the first Master's degree programme aimed directly at staff members at research and higher education institutions. The participants will have a share in the latest knowledge in the area and learn to manage development projects.

Sociology does not have a department at Aarhus University, but several fields of research are interested in sociological studies. This manifests itself in CESAU, which is not only an interdisciplinary centre but has also set a new interdisciplinary standard.