Many institutions of higher education combine their resources so that they can share information and resources, coordinate research agendas, and afford each other mutual support.

• International Association of Universities (IAU)
• International Federation of Catholic Universities (IFCU)
• Academic Cooperation Association (ACA)
• Agence universitaire de la Francophonie - Universities in French speaking countries and regions (AUF)
• Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU)
• Mediterranean Universities Union (UNIMED)
• Black Sea Universities Network (BSUN)
• BRICS Universities League
• The Association of Southeast Asian Institutions of Higher Learning (ASAIHL)
• Venice International University (VIU)
• U7 Alliance of World Universities^[1]

Research networks:

• International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU)
• Matariki Network of Universities (MNU)
• PLuS Alliance
• Universitas 21
• Worldwide Universities Network (WUN)
• Global Alliance of Technological Universities
• McDonnell International Scholars Academy (MISA)
• Pacific Rim Research Libraries Alliance (PRRLA)^[2]
• International Association of Scientific and Technological University Libraries (IATUL)

Subject groups:

• International Association of Universities and Colleges of Art, Design and Media (Cumulus)^[3]
• Law Schools Global League (LSGL)
• Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR)
• Quantitative Techniques for Economics and Management (QTEM) ^[4]
• Association of MBAs (AMBA)
• Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)
• Executive MBA Council (EMBAC)
• EFMD Quality Improvement System (EQUIS)
• Graduate Business Forum
• Global Network for Advanced Management
• Global Business School Network (GBSN)^[5]
• Partnership in International Management (PIM)^[6]
• Global Alliance in Management Education (CEMS)
• Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME)^[7]
• Globally Responsible Leadership Initiative (GRLI)
• The Academy of Business in Society (ABIS) ^[8]
• Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA)
• Global Engineering Education Exchange(Global E3)^[9]
• Architecture and Urbanism Student Mobility International Programme (AUSMIP)
• The International Consortium of Universities for the Study of Biodiversity and the Environment (iCUBE)^[10]
• International Institute for Environmental Studies (IIES)^[11]

• Association of African Universities (AAU)
• African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA)

• University of the Arctic (UArctic)

• Association of East Asian Research Universities (AEARU)
• Association of Pacific Rim Universities (also includes universities from the Americas) (APRU)
• Asia-Oceania Top University League on Engineering (AOTULE)
• Asian Science and Technology Pioneering Institutes of Research and Education (Aspire League)^[12]
• Association of Asia-Pacific Business Schools (AAPBS)^[13]
• Asia-Pacific Association of International Education (APAIE)^[14]
• Asian Universities Alliance (AUA)
• Association of the Universities of Asia and the Pacific (AUAP)
• Alliance of Asian Liberal Arts Universities (AALAU)
• ASEAN University Network (AUN)
• University Mobility in Asia and the Pacific (UMAP)

• Universities Australia
• Group of Eight (Australian universities) - A group of Australian tertiary institutions intensive in research and comprehensive in general and professional education
• Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) ^[15][16]
• Australian Technology Network (ATN)
• Innovative Research Universities (IRU)
• Regional Universities Network (RUN)

• Beijing-Hong Kong Universities Alliance
• C9 League
• Cooperation Consortium of Beijing High Technology Universities (Beijing Tech)
• Excellence League
• Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao University Alliance (GHMUA)
• National Alliance of High-level Local Universities (NAHLU)
• Sino-Spanish University Alliance
• Yangtze Delta Universities Alliance

• Institutes of Eminence (IoE)
• Institutes of National Importance (INI)
• Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs)
• National Institutes of Technology (NITs)
• Indian Institutes of Information Technology(IIITs)

• RU11

The European Union has sponsored 64 European Universities alliances (as of 2024^[update]) under the European Universities Initiative of the Erasmus+ programme since 2019.^[17]

• Balkan Universities Network (BAUNAS)
• CESAER
• Coimbra Group (GC)
• Compostela Group of Universities (CGU)
• European Association for International Education (EAIE)
• EUCOR
• EURODOC
• Europaeum
• European Consortium of Innovative Universities (ECIU)
• European University Association (EUA)
• European Universities Linking Society and Technology (EULiST)^[18]
• Euroleague for Life Sciences (ELLS)
• EuroTech Universities Alliance
• Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities (The Guild)
• IDEA League
• International Research Universities Network (IRUN)
• League of European Research Universities (LERU)
• Network of Universities from the Capitals of Europe
• Una Europa
• Universities Informal Liaison Offices Network (UnILiON)^[19]
• Utrecht Network
• Young European Research Universities Network (YERUN)

• Couperin (Consortium unifié des établissements universitaires et de recherche pour l'accès aux publications numériques)

• U15
• TU9 (Germany)

• Conferenza dei Collegi Universitari di Merito [it]

• Xarxa Vives d'Universitats - "Vives Network" - network of Catalan language universities

Representative groups:

• GuildHE
• Universities UK

Research consortia:

• Eastern ARC (research consortium in eastern England)
• G5 (group of research universities in southeast England)
• GW4 (research consortium in southwest England and Wales)
• Midlands Innovation (research consortium in the English Midlands)
• N8 Research Partnership (research consortium in northern England)
• Science and Engineering South (research consortium in southeast England)
• White Rose University Consortium (research consortium in Yorkshire)
• MedCity – collaboration between medical research universities in London

Mission groups:

• Cathedrals Group
• MillionPlus
• Russell Group
• University Alliance

Business incubation, spin-out and research commercialisation:

• Midlands Innovation Commercialisation of Research Accelerator (MICRA) – research commercialisation and innovation consortium in the English midlands^[20]
• Northern Accelerator – research commercialisation and innovation consortium in northern England^[21]
• Northern Gritstone – investment and spin-out consortium in northern England^[22]
• SETsquared – business incubator consortium in southern England

Other:

• Wallace Group – international development consortium
• Chartered Association of Business Schools – consortium of UK business schools^[23]

• Association of American Universities (US and Canada) (AAU)
• Association of Pacific Rim Universities (also includes universities from the Asia–Pacific region) (APRU)

• ANUIES
• AMPEI

• American Council on Education (ACE)
• American Association of Community Colleges (AACC)
• American Educational Research Association (AERA)
• American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU)
• Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB)
• Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU)
• Career Education Colleges and Universities (CECU)
• National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU)
• Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U)
• Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU)
• Great Cities' Universities (GCU)
• Association of Independent Technological Universities (AITU)

Religious:

• Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities
• Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities – An organization made up of Jesuit institutions of higher education in the United States

Subject groups:

• Association of American Law Schools (AALS)
• Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)