EUA Bilten 18 - 2011

Bologna Process Update: EUA contributes to preparations for 2012 Ministerial Meeting in Bucharest

The Bologna Follow-Up Group (BFUG), which manages the follow-up of the Bologna Process in between Ministerial Meetings, met last week (13-14 October) at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland.

EUA participated actively on behalf of universities in the meeting hosted by the Polish EU Presidency. The BFUG members discussed priorities and themes for the next Ministerial Communiqué to be adopted in Bucharest in April 2012, and the progress of the different BFUG working groups that are expected to present reports and recommendations to ministers next spring. The work of the different groups (on issues such as mobility, degree recognition, transparency and the social dimension) can be found on the official European Higher Education Area website.

 

On Friday 14 October, the E4 Group (EUA, EURASHE, ENQA and ESU) organised a thematic session focusing on quality assurance. This included presentations on the external review of the European Quality Assurance Register for higher education (EQAR) and the preliminary results of the MAP-ESG project, which looks at how the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance (ESGs) have been taken up and whether they need revising (please see the story below).

Discussions on the current state of the Bologna Process and future perspectives continued on 17-19 October with a special two-day event in Bucharest, Romania, entitled: “Future of Higher Education - Bologna Process Researchers’ Conference (FOHE-BPRC)”. This was organised by the Romanian Ministry of Education, Research, Youth and Sports and the Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding (UEFISCDI) with the support of EUA.

 

The conference gathered researchers on a range of higher education topics with a direct relevance for the Bologna Process (including a number of EUA representatives) from Europe and beyond. EUA very much hopes that the outcomes of these discussions will feed into the discussions on the future development of the Bologna Process. The publication resulting from the conference will be available to participants attending the 2012 Bologna ministerial events and a presentation will be made by the General Rapporteur and Chair of the Editorial Board, Sir Peter Scott, Institute of Education, University of London.

EUA’s work was well presented through a selection of papers, in particular on themes such as quality assurance, funding, autonomy, and teaching and learning.

To find out more about developments with the Bologna Process, please visit: www.ehea.info.