The Bologna Process a stony way to a European Area of Higher Education

1
The Bologna Process a stony way to a European
Area of Higher Education

• Dr.-Ing. Martin Molzahn
• Weisenheim am Berg / FRG
• (EFCE Working Party on Education)
• ESCAPE 13, EURECHA Session
• Lappeenranta / Finland, June 2003

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Bologna Declaration (1999) Main Objectives

• Establishing the European area of higher
  education by achieving the following objectives
  within the first decade of the new millennium
• Adoption of a system of easily readable and
  comparable degrees,also through the
  implementation of the Diploma Supplement
• Adoption of a system essentially based on two
  main cycles, undergraduate and graduate.
• Access to the second shall require successful
  completion of first cycle studies, lasting a
  minimum of three years. The degree awarded after
  the first cycle shall also be relevant to the
  European labour market as an appropriate level of
  qualification. The second cycle should lead to
  the master and/or doctorate degrees as in many
  European countries.
• Establishment of a system of credits such as in
  the ECTS as a proper means of promoting the
  most widespread student mobility.
• Promotion of European co-operation in quality
  assurance with a view to developing comparable
  criteria and methodologies.
• Promotion of mobility by overcoming obstacles to
  the effective exercise of free movement

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Outline

• Bologna Declaration
• Bologna Process
• Background
• Milestones
• Status of Implementation
• EFCE WPE Bologna survey
• National reports for the Berlin Summit 2003
• Obstacles, Problems
• Conclusion, Prospect

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Bologna Process Why?

• National systems of higher education in Europe
  have been proven to become more and more
  hindrances for the mobility of students and
  employees
• Degrees are most often awarded and accredited on
  a national basis, but have to be recognized by
  the international labour market
• The attraction of European higher education to
  students and professors of other parts of the
  world has decreased continuously
• Problems with the readability and the recognition
  of degrees
• European students are asking increasingly for
  transnational programmes

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Actual Structure of Higher Education in Europe

• UK, Ireland
• Two (consecutive) cycles (undergraduate,
  graduate), as defined in Bologna Declaration
• This two cycle concept is also widespread over
  the world (USA, Asia)
• Most other countries in Europe
• Structured (parallel) types of programmes
• long (4,5 - 5 years) programmes, leading to a
  degree equivalent to the second cycle degree
  (SCD)
• short (2 - 4 years) programmes, leading to a
  degree equivalent (?) to the first cycle degree
  (FCD)
• Bologna requires to develop new, consecutive
  programmes

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Bologna Process Milestones

• 1998 Sorbonne Declaration
• 4 countries (France, Italy, Germany, UK)
• Harmonisation of the architecture of the European
  Higher Education System
• 1999 Bologna Declaration
• Establishing the European Area of Higher
  Education by 2010
• 29 (30) European countries (Austria, Belgium
  (French Community), Belgium (Flemish Community),
  Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
  Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary,
  Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein,
  Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Nether-ands,
  Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak
  Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Swiss
  Confederation, United Kingdom)
• 2001 Prague (1st follow-up conference)
• 3 more countries (Croatia, Cyprus, Turkey)
• 3 more elements (promotion of life long learning,
  involvement of students, enhancing attractiveness
  and competitiveness of the European Higher
  Education Area to other parts of the world)
• 2003 Berlin (2nd follow-up conference)

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EFCE WPE Bologna Survey

• Survey on the implementation of Bologna
  Declaration with respect to Chemical Engineering
• Countries participating 19 (out of 33)
• More than 280 institutions (universities, Grandes
  Ecoles, Fachhochschulen, faculties,
  departments, ) in these countries are offering
  Chemical Engineering and related programmes
• Most of them have to develop new programmes
• In 12 countries new first cycle and new second
  cycle programmes in CE and related fields
  according to Bologna Declaration are already
  offered now

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2nd Bologna follow-up conference)

• Berlin-Summit 18./19. September 2003
• Website (as of 25.05.2003)
• National status reports on the implementation
  process (9 countries)
• Actual (framework-) laws for higher education (5
  countries)
• A lot of work is under way all over Europe
• Information (universities, employers,
  associations, )
• Discussions and decision making
• Development of new programmes
• Establishing accreditation bodies
• Accreditation of new programmes
• ____________________
• ) http//www.bologna-berlin2003.de

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Problems, Obstacles

• Development of new programmes
• How to transfer existing programmes into the
  Bologna scheme?
• How to maintain the advantages of existing
  concepts?
• Different solutions in individual countries
• How to nominate the new degrees?
• How to organize new programmes in different
  disciplines?
• Employers lack information about the new concept
• How do they accept the new degrees? What do they
  can expect?
• How to compare the new degrees with the old ones?
• Differences in the recognition of engineering
  professions
• How to harmonize systems of registration of
  engineers parallel to the Bologna process?

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How to organize new programmes ?

• Example Engineering Education in Germany (and
  others)
• Universities (more oriented to science and
  research)
• Actual Diploma (Dipl.-Ing.)
• 4,5 5 years (not included 3 month of practical
  work before start)
• Students have to pass a rigorous examination
  after two years (mainly basics (mathematics,
  science, engineering fundamentals)) no relevance
  to the labour market
• New Bachelor (of Science or Engineering)
• 3 years of studies, relevant to the labour market
  (! ?)
• Requires shifting of certain parts of the basics
  from the first semesters into the masters
  programmes, and of parts of the engineering
  specialities from the higher into the first
  semesters
• New Master (of Science or Engineering)
• 2 more years of studies ? should finally be
  equivalent to Diploma
• Question
• How relevant to the labour market is a
  scientifically oriented BSc with only three years
  of studies?

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How to organize new programmes?

• Example Engineering Education in Germany
  (contd)
• Fachhochschulen (Universities of Applied Science)
  (more oriented to applications)
• Actual Diploma (Dipl.-Ing.(FH))
• 4 years of studies (including one semester of
  practical work and one semester for Diploma
  thesis)
• New Bachelor (of Science or Engineering)
• 3 years of studies, relevant to the labour market
  (! ?)
• Requires elimination of the practical semester
  and shortening of time for lectures and final
  thesis ? level less than Diploma (FH)
• New Master (of Science or Engineering)
• 2 more years of studies ? level higher than
  Diploma (FH)
• Question
• How will the labour market accept these changes ?

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How to organize new programmes?

• Example France
• Actual
• Engineering Schools (Grandes Ecoles)
• Bac 5 ? Ingénieur Diplomé (if accredited by
  CTI) ? SCD
• Two years of studies in Preparatory Classes
  (outside the Engineering Schools (i.e. in
  certain grammar schools), mainly mathematics and
  sciences). Afterwards students are selected in a
  nationwide competition before they can go to an
  Engineering School for three further years of
  dedicated studies.
• Universities, Instituts Universitaires de
  Technologie (I.U.T.)
• Bac 2 ? Diplome Universitaire de Technologie
  (DUT) ? Technicians
• Bac 3 ? Licence (professional) ? FCD
• Bac 4 ? Maitrise ? FCD
• Question
• How to transform the Preparatory Class Concept
  into the Bologna Bac 3 2 scheme with a
  degree relevant to the labour market after three
  years?

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Different solutions in individual countries

• Netherlands
• Bachelors degree (academic) 180 (ects)
  credits
• Bachelors degree (professional) 240 (ects)
  credits
• Masters degree (engineering) 120 more (ects)
  credits
• Germany
• Bachelors degree 3 4 years
• Masters degree 1 2 more years
• Italy
• Laurea 3 years
• Laurea specialistica 2 more years
• UK
• BEng 3 years (FCD)
• MEng 1 more year (SCD)
• MEng 4 years (including 1 practical year)
  first level degree

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Organizing an Accreditation Process

• European Cooperation in Quality Assurance
  requires comparable concepts
• Many countries have to switch from quality
  control and approval of programmes by the
  government to a divided concept
• Quality control by a professional accreditation
  body in a defined procedure including a review by
  peers, and
• Approval by the government
• Example Germany
• An Accreditation Council has been established by
  KMK and HRK
• Six accreditation agencies have been founded
  three of them specialised for individual
  disciplines (e.g. one for engineering,
  informatics, sciences, and mathematics ? ASIIN)
• Actual 1600 new programmes introduced, 260 of
  them accredited
• Cooperation and exchange of experience between
  accreditation agencies of different countries is
  required and has started

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Employers lack information about the new concept

• Employers very often dont know enough about the
  new degrees
• They dont know what they can expect
• Is a Bachelor a (qualified) engineer ?
• Or is he a technician ?
• They dont know how to pay a Bachelor

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New degrees often are unknown
Translation
Infectious
What do you have? A Bachelor? Why not, its
essential that you dont infect us here
The first Bachelors are arriving on the labour
market
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Recognition / Registration of Engineers

• State regulated engineering professions need
  official recognition of engineers
• Some countries (France, Italy, Switzerland, UK)
  have Registers of Engineers in order to assure
  official recognition
• Criteria and procedures for registration are
  different
• France, Italy, and UK have already agreed to
  harmonize criteria and procedures
• Other countries (i.e. Germany) yet dont have
  Registers of Engineers. The title Ingenieur is
  protected by law, which includes the official
  recognition it can only be used with the degree
  Diplom-Ingenieur. This is not yet the case with
  the new degrees Bachelor and Master.
• Transnational recognition of engineers is
  difficult today and only possible on an
  individual case by case basis
• Europe wide mobility also requires a common
  concept of recognition and registration

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Conclusion, Prospect

• The Bologna Process towards a European Area of
  Higher Education
• is a necessary and important element of European
  unification
• has been started in the individual countries with
  different speed and intensity
• requires a lot of efforts especially by the
  universities
• requires a lot of good will by all involved to
  achieve common solutions
• is until now a stony way
• Within the next two years it is important to
  adjust, and to harmonize the individual concepts
  in order to provide stable conditions for the
  people acting and developing new programmes