National Tempus / Erasmus+
Office in Ukraine

Higher education and Bologna process The strategic goal of Bologna process is to the European Higher Education Area, competitive and attractive for European citizens as well Higher education and Bologna process The strategic goal of Bologna process is to the European Higher Education Area, competitive and attractive for European citizens as well as students and youth from all over the world.   The European Higher Education Area is rooted in international cooperation; it is expected to remove all obstacles and ensure a broad access to high-quality higher education built on the principles of democratic governance, university independence, their academic and research autonomy; to facilitate mobility of students, faculty and staff; to prepare young people to be active citizens; to lay the foundation for their personal development and professional growth.   The name of Bologna process originates from Bologna Declaration that was signed on June 19, 1999 by Ministers of Education representing 29 European states, in an Italian city if Bologna where the oldest in Europe university is located. Today, 46 states have joined the Bologna process, other members of Bologna process are:  European Commission, Council of Europe,  the UNESCO European Centre for Higher Education,  European University Association, European Students’ Union, European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, Education International, BUSINESSEUROPE and others. 

The major reforms foreseen by the Bologna process:

• Transfer to a three-cycle higher education system (bachelor, master, PhD);
• Lifelong learning, including recognition of previous formal and informal learning, flexible learning paths that allow to combine work and education, easing access to higher education for people of all ages;
• Equal opportunities in access to higher education and fostering  social cohesion through education;
• Increasing employability;
• Development, introduction and recognition of joint degree programs and joint diplomas that are issued by partner universities and are recognized by each of the partners involved in the delivery of a joint program;
• Mobility within and outside Europe;
• Recognition of learning and degrees obtained in other countries and on other continents;
• Quality assurance. 

 The driving  force of the Bologna process are Ministerial Conferences that are held once in two years, sometimes every year.  The Conferences are prepared by Bologna Follow-up Group, with support of Bologna working groups and task forces. 

Ministerial Conference took place  in March 2010 in Budapest-Vienna and it was an Anniversary Conference, celebrating a decade of the Bologna Process. With this occasion, there took place the official launching of the European Higher Education Area, which meant that, in terms of a common European framework for HE, the objective set in the Bologna Declaration was accomplished.

However, the existence of the European Higher Education Area in itself did not mean an achievement of all the objectives agreed upon by the ministers involved in the Bologna Process. Therefore, we can now say that the Bologna Process and the European Higher Education Area have entered a new phase, namely the consolidation and operationalisation one, especially in light of the very different reactions to the Bologna Process implementation across Europe.

Also, starting with the Budapest-Vienna Ministerial Conference, the EHEA has been expanded to 47 countries, the most recently admitted being Kazakhstan.

The main messege of the Bucharest Ministerial Conference, which took place on 26 - 27 April 2012 and was attended by 47 European ministers responsible for higher education, states that Higher education reform can help to get Europe back on track and generate sustainable growth and jobs.

The Ministers agreed to focus on three main goals in the face of the economic crisis: to provide quality higher education to more students, to better equip students with employable skills, and to increase student mobility.

The 47 countries adopted a new European strategy to increase mobility with a specific target that at least 20 percent of those graduating in Europe in 2020 should have been on a study or training period abroad.

Besides the Ministerial Conferences, there are also Bologna Policy Fora organized, which were so far coupled with the EHEA Ministerial Conferences.

All details at http://www.ehea.info/