Planning Education in Bulgaria RIGA, March 2003

1
Planning Education in BulgariaRIGA, March 2003

• Vesselina Troeva
• Sofia, BULGARIA
• vtroeva_far_at_uacg.bg

2
Outline

• Introduction
• Common transformations at CEE
• Impact on planning system
• Planning education in Bulgaria
• Follow-up
• Bologna declaration
• Prague declaration
• From Prague to Berlin
• The Challenges for Planning Education
• Conclusions

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Introduction

• Limitations on planning education research
• Limited information even at the AESOP
• A great variety of Education systems in terms of
• educational systems institutions
• degree structure
• access admission
• credit system
• organisation of the academic year
• tuition fees and grants
• Limitations on current presentation
• Planning education in Bulgaria
• Common transformations and changes after 1989,
  affecting planning system in CEE

4
Common transformations at CEE

• Political - multiparty system.
• Economic - privatization, restitution, financial
  reform service sector.
• Social - population decline polarization
  unemployment, HE diversification brain drain.
• Legislative - harmonization with EU.
• Spatial - administrative structure (NUTS)
  priorities.
• Cultural - values dual standards.
• Psychological - uncertainty and stress.

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Impact on planning system

• Planning Legislation
• Planning acts and regulations- new acts between
  1990 and 2000
• Environmental acts and regulations
• Property rights.
• Planning Institutions
• Decentralisation of power
• Regional level restructuring
• Planning Practice
• Lack of financial resources for planning at state
  municipal level
• Loss of competencies and experts
• New actors - engineers, surveyors, general public
  and NGOs.
• Planning Research
• Closing down state research and planning units
• Limited resources and funding.
• Planning Education
• reduction in number of students.

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Bulgarian Planning education

• Planning professionals, graduated at Western
  Universities Russia
• 1945 - Department of Urban Planning, Faculty of
  Architecture, UACG
• 1988 - Specialized Planning courses at 5th year
  in Architecture programme
• Regional planning
• Urban planning and design
• Landscape planning
• 1997-2000 - IM3P - Master courses for UK diploma
  - common core in management with MBA courses
• Urban planning and housing policy
• Tourism Planning
• 2002 - First BSc Planning programme in Bulgaria
• Single lecture courses at SU, UNWE, Varna

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Follow-up

• Establishing MSc programmes and joint programmes
  within the UACG
• Academic staff development
• Resource centre for the new major - additional
  supply of books, journals, video materials, maps
  etc.
• State register of professions - MoLSP
• Institutional restructuring - MoRDPW network at
  regional and municipal level
• Legislative changes - Planning Act,
  Administrative management Act, Regional
  development Act etc.

8
Bologna declaration

• A system based on two cycles
• BSc Urbanism
• MSc - Spatial planning Urban regeneration
  Tourism planning Housing policy Heritage
  Property management Transport management
  Project management
• Establishment of a credit system - ECTS
• Promotion of mobility
• TEMPUS experience - partnership with France, UK,
  Germany, Ireland, Italy, Belgium and Greece
• SOCRATES - limited students exchange with France
  and Ireland
• Leonardo da Vinci - very important for practical
  placement
• Accreditation - the only accredited programme at
  UACG
• Quality assurance -Multicountry programme PHARE
  ZZ97.27.02 European Dimensions of the
  Institutional Quality Management - CRE, ETF,
  CHEPS, CHERI - 2 universities from all CEE
  countries.
• European dimensions in higher education - single
  lecture courses- Urban regeneration, Changing
  Europe

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Prague declaration

• Lifelong learning
• Limited number of academic staff trained in new
  teaching methodology - open and distance
  learning
• Lack of resources - financial and human
• Lack of interest - no special requirements for
  professional accreditation
• HE institutions and students
• New proactive role
• Participation and influence
• Promoting attractiveness
• Potential for transnational education at SEE
• Joint modules and courses
• Intensive training - potential for intensive
  training, workshops and students competitions

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From Prague to Berlin

• The role of professional organisations
• 10 concrete measures - most important Action
  lines 3, 5 9
• Action line 3 - non-formal and informal learning
  - general public secondary education decision
  makers
• Action Line 4 - Access to European Virtual
  Universities
• Action Line 5 - A pilot scheme on European HE
  Quality Evaluation - limited number of experts in
  small countries
• Action Line 6 - European Masters and Doctoral
  courses
• Action Line 9 - A data-base on job and learning
  opportunities

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The challenges for Planning Education

• Financial restrictions and additional funding
• University management - strategic view
• Learning environment
• Competition - greater at CEE
• Human resources - to attract PhD students, young
  academics researchers
• Benchmarks - academic and professional
  accreditation
• Research and innovation units
• Links with regional and local strategies and
  priorities
• Implementation of results and dissemination
• Research on education - current needs - number of
  students and number of professionals

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Conclusions

• What type of planning professionals?
• What type of knowledge?
• What type of planning programme?
• What type of teaching methodology?
• What type of planning students?
• What type of planning academics?
• What type of HE institutions?
• Despite all differences, the constant exchange
  of information and experience will support the
  future process of mutual recognition and trust
  development.

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Information Sources

• Directory of Planning Schools 2001, AESOP
• CIA World Fact Book
• How did transition Economies perform? World Bank
  report 2002 Washington D.C.
• http//cepes.ro/information_services/statistics_00
  .htm
• http//europa.eu.int/comm/education/
• http//www.nature.coe.int/english/main/planning/
• Implications of the EU Enlargement for Spatial
  Planning and Spatial Planning in Accession
  Countries, ECTP conference, Warsaw, may 2001.
• Multicountry programme PHARE ZZ97.27.02 European
  Dimensions of the Institutional Quality
  Management - CRE, ETF, CHEPS, CHERI.
• The enlargement of the EU An Additional
  Challenge for European Spatial development
  Policy, ESDP, Potsdam, 1999.
• The European Higher Education Area. Joint
  declaration of the Ministers of Education,
  Bologna 1999.
• The Role of the Universities in the Europe of
  Knowledge, Communication from the Commission,
  Brussels, 05.02.2003
• Towards the European Higher education area.
  Prague Declaration 2001
• UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2003

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General information CEE
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Higher education CEE
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Planning education CEE
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Abreviations

• CEE - Central and Eastern Europe
• CRE - Council of European Rectors
• CHEPS - Centre for Higher Education Policy Study,
  The Netherlands
• CHERI - Centre for Higher Education Research
  Information, Open University, UK
• ECTP - European Council of Town Planners
• ECTS - European credit transfer system
• ETF - European Training Foundation, Torino
• HE - Higher Education
• IM3P - International Modular Masters in
  Management Programme
• MoRDPW - Ministry of Regional Development and
  Public Works, Bulgaria
• MoLSP - Ministry of Labour and Social Policy,
  Bulgaria
• SEE - Southern Eastern Europe
• SU - Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridsky
• UACG - University of Architecture, Civil
  Engineering and Geodesy, Sofia, Bulgaria
• UNWE - University of National and World
  Economics, Sofia, Bulgaria