FuturesComp

The question of how higher education institutions can prepare students for an increasingly unpredictable and dynamic future is becoming ever more important. With the FuturesComp, a new framework has been established in Austria to support higher education institutions in systematically integrating futures literacy into their study programmes and teaching. 

The reference framework was developed on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Women, Science and Research (BMFWF) – with significant input from the UNESCO Chair in Learning and Teaching Futures Literacy in the Anthropocene at the University of Education Lower Austria. Under the leadership of the UNESCO Chair in Futures Capability for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at MCI | The Entrepreneurial University^®, the University of Education Lower Austria contributes its expertise, particularly in the field of higher education pedagogy and teacher training.

At the heart of FuturesComp lies the promotion of skills that enable individuals to deal with open-ended questions about the future, reflect on different development possibilities, and act responsibly, with foresight and courage. The reference framework structures these competencies around five key competencies: exploration, co-responsibility, shaping, self-development and participation in relation to POLY futures. To transfer these competencies into everyday university life, they are supplemented by learning objectives, learning outcomes, guidelines for action, and examples of best practice for university teaching. The reference framework is based on systematic literature reviews of other reference and competency frameworks, as well as interviews and focus group workshops with national and international experts. Edda Polz, Vice-Rector of the University of Education Lower Austria, emphasises: "This FuturesComp opens up, enables and promotes the future-oriented approach to higher education demanded by society for teacher training colleges, universities of applied sciences and universities – in addition to higher education research and education, all educational institutions benefit indirectly from this." For UNESCO Chair Carmen Sippl, the FuturesComp "gives higher education didactics a boost of innovation: creating visions of the future establishes the connection to the real world that is so important for all learning – regardless of the disciplines: it can be used in a transdisciplinary manner."

With the FuturesComp, the University of Teacher Education Lower Austria is making an important contribution to the further development of higher education in Austria. The aim is nonly to prepare students for future challenges, but also to empower them to actively and reflectively help shape social developments.

To the press release

21. April 2026 | Forschung | International | PH NÖ