University alliances as laboratories for future learning systems: designing scalable transversal skills frameworks

Purpose This paper proposes a system-level educational innovation: a modular, competence-based framework designed to align curricula, learning pathways and credentials around transversal skills that support adaptability, employability and lifelong learning. Using the European University Alliance for Global Health (EUGLOH) as an implementation testbed, the study examines how such a framework can be co-designed and operationalised across multiple institutions, suggesting its potential as a transferable model for further testing through iterative implementation in real learning environments. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a co-creation approach as a method of educational innovation, engaging multiple universities in the joint design of a shared transversal skills framework. Its structure enables alignment with existing reference models while remaining flexible enough to support local adaptation. The framework was iteratively refined and context-tested through implementation in real learning environments, using pilot Living Labs. Findings This study demonstrates how a transversal skills framework can function as a transferable competence architecture that appears implementable across multiple institutions under similar conditions. Originality/value By mapping the framework to the ESCO classification, the model supports system interoperability between curricula, labour-market intelligence and credentialing mechanisms. This interoperability enables the design of micro-credentials and flexible learning trajectories that place greater agency with learners, allowing them to navigate personalised pathways across institutions and learning formats. By specifying ESCO-aligned mappings and a modular competence structure, the paper sets out a pathway architecture that could connect learning outcomes, competence claims and credential metadata; the contribution is primarily conceptual and supported by design-validation evidence, not a demonstration of system-wide effects.