🌍 2030: The Great Challenge of International Recruitment Can international development save European schools?

November 9, 2026 • 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM CET (Paris time) / Live B2B

L’EXPRESS × DUOLINGO ENGLISH TEST

Language: English

Declining demographics, tight budgets, global competition: for many European schools, recruiting international students has become a strategic priority, and sometimes a matter of survival.

But the map of student mobility is being redrawn.

New source countries are emerging, cost and visa barriers still shut many talented students out, and welcoming international students can spark public debate.

At the same time, artificial intelligence is transforming the way applicants’ skills are assessed, bringing new promise… and new questions about reliability, integrity and fairness.

This raises the real question: Can international development save European schools? And can AI be trusted to assess the skills of tomorrow’s students?

To explore this, L’Express, in partnership with the Duolingo English Test, is hosting a live conversation with Alina von Davier, Global Chief of Assessment at the Duolingo English Test, and Hélène Duranton, Head of Languages at Montpellier Business School, moderated by journalist Philippine Dolbeau.

The aim: to give institution leaders, admissions and international relations teams practical insights to meet the challenge of international recruitment by 2030.

🎯 Agenda:

🌍 The redistribution of international student mobility

Cost, geography, visas: who gets left behind? How can schools recruit in new source countries without rethinking how applications are evaluated? And how can they balance international growth with public trust?

🤖 AI and the future of skills assessment

What makes AI assessment trustworthy, beyond the hype: the measurement science behind it. Security and integrity in the generative-AI era. And AI as an equalizer, or a new risk of bias?

🔓 Accessibility and inclusion in language testing

Barriers beyond cost: geography, disability and logistics. Remote and digital assessment: where institutional confidence holds up, and where it breaks down. Making testing a gateway, not a gatekeeper.

🎤 Speakers:

• Alina von Davier: Global Chief of Assessment, Duolingo English Test
• Hélène Duranton: Head of Languages, Montpellier Business School – Member of the DET European Advisory Board
• Moderator: Philippine Dolbeau, Journalist

Alina von Davier is a world-leading expert in assessment and psychometrics. Her internationally recognized career in research and leadership has focused in particular on AI, machine learning and computational psychometrics.

Hélène Duranton heads the languages department at Montpellier Business School and is the French member of the Duolingo English Test European Advisory Board. She brings a school’s perspective on language requirements and international recruitment.

Why attend?

Because by 2030, the schools that recruit more widely, assess more fairly and open their doors to new profiles will be one step ahead.

This live session will provide practical insights to:

• Understand how international student mobility is being redistributed, and what it means for your recruitment strategy
• Know what it takes for AI-based skills assessment to be reliable, secure and fair
• Turn your language requirements into a driver of inclusion rather than a screening tool

📅 November 9, 2026 • 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM CET (Paris time)

Register to receive the access link and join the live conversation.