The University of Savoie Mont Blanc (USMB) is an institution that is open to its immediate environment and actively involved in local and regional dynamics.
It enjoys the support of major public players in its area, who have placed their trust in it: the French government, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, the departments of Savoie and Haute-Savoie, and the urban areasof Annecy and Chambéry. It maintains close, constructive relationships with the municipalities where it is located and the CROUS (Regional Center for University and School Works) in terms of student life and the dissemination of knowledge, as well as with many other local stakeholders.
The university's historical ties with local economic players are reflected in the presence of several close partners:
- The USMB Business Club, an association founded in 1991 that works with the university to help students develop professional skills and graduates find employment;
- The USMB Foundation, which has been supporting research and innovation since 2016 through research chairs and exploratory projects related to regional challenges;
- The Formasup Savoie Mont Blanc, Tétras, and ITII vocational training centers in the two Savoie departments.
The USMB has 11 joint research units among its 18 laboratories and maintains excellent relations with major research organizations (CNRS, INRAe, CEA, CERN). It is involved in several competitiveness clusters. It is a founding member of the National Solar Energy Institute (INES) and a partner of the INES-2S Institute for Energy Transition (ITE).
In terms of international relations, USMB is a member of the Network for Exchange and Liaison between French-speaking Higher Education Institutions (RELIEF), which will soon celebrate its 10th anniversary. It has targeted and active partnerships with 400 universities in 60 countries for student and staff mobility.
Finally, USMB is a founding member of the European alliance UNITA, which has 10 partners from 5 countries (Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, and Romania) and two associate partners in Switzerland and Ukraine. All these institutions are located in mountainous and border areas. All use a Romance language. These common characteristics give rise to shared challenges. This makes it all the easier to define the alliance's objectives and work together.