The Bologna Process

The Bologna Process, which led to the development of EHEA, is an effort to harmonize tertiary college education in Europe. The mechanism aims to implement higher education changes that prioritize core values such as student and staff mobility, intellectual freedom, and autonomous student associations (Curaj 20). Furthermore, European higher education aspires to create a system of education that is consistent across Europe. Strengthening quality assurance processes, increasing student mobility, and generating career opportunities are all part of the compatibility equation. The method began in Bologna in 1999, and more than forty nations have since adopted it. Member state ministries are holding several conferences to monitor the progress of the process. For a state to enroll in EHEA, they must be a member of the European Cultural Convection and must be willing assimilate Bologna process in their system of higher education (Forest15). This paper will focus on the establishment and implementation of the Bologna process, its components, and the dedication in enhancing student mobility in Europe.





Components of European Education Area

In 1999, ministers from different states kick-started the reform in higher education by creating the EHEA. EHEA was the common goal which was enshrined in the Bologna declaration. The process is carried out in forty-eight states. Bologna declaration indicated that every state would strive to take up a higher education system that demands compatible degrees across Europe. Over the years, different ministries have organized conferences to counter-check the progress of the Bologna process. The Bologna process is overseen by the Bologna follow-up group which is also backed up by a secretariat (Gaebel 38). Notably, the Bologna was enshrined in the Lisbon Recognition Convention. The convention was formulated by the European Council with the help of UNESCO. In other words, the joint convention was created to harmonize academic qualification among European countries (Bergan& Carita 45). The Convention is implemented by the Committee of Recognition of qualification and European Network of National Information Centers

The adoption of Bologna process was going to be undertaken through three cycles. The first cycle was the undergraduate phase, the second was the graduate cycle, and post-graduate was the third cycle. The undergraduate cycle program takes approximately three years. To pass the first phase, one has to attain 180-240 European Credit Transfer credits (Piro 128). After passing the first cycle, the undergraduate degree is accepted in the European labor market, and one proceeds to the second phase. The second phase consists of masters and doctorate degrees as referred in other countries. Completion of the master degree demands 60-120 credits (Curaj 105). Notably, the doctorate level is independent with no credits attachments. The third cycle biased towards individual research alongside other studies related to the doctorate. The three cycles were to be harmonized by the establishment of the following tools related to the EHEA process:

EHEA Tools

European Credit Transfer Accumulation System (ECTS)

ECTS makes it easier for students to migrate from one state to the other. Also, the system also helps to shift from one institution to the other. The ECTS is an important tool in the composition of the EHEA process because it is the credit system in most member states. The ECTS facilitates compatibility of the education systems across Europe because it interprets and documents learning abilities across the continent. Moreover, the credit system helps to formulate a student-oriented curriculum that is acceptable in EHEA (Curaj 110).

Diploma Supplement (DS)

Diploma supplement is a documented representation of the quality, nature, and scope of studies of higher education diploma holder. The Diploma supplement was introduced by the UNESCO-CEPES alongside with Commission of Europe (Piro 123). DS was started with the intention of improving the recognition and transparency in other states. Since the DS is a major element in accountability and recognition, it was integrated into the Bologna process (Curaj 115). Every student in EHEA who has achieved at least sixty credits is entitled to a Diploma supplement within four weeks. The advantage of DS is that it offers accurate and transparent information about the content of the academic journey of the degree holder. The DS is easily transferable to other institution; therefore, it opens up opportunities for one to further their studies.

National Qualifications Frameworks (NQF)

The National Qualification Frameworks are tools developed by various countries to make sure that the levels and state of higher education are compatible with the framework of EHEA. NQF were integrated into the Bologna process in the early 2000s as a reference point on what students should learn in their academic careers, in their particular states (Curaj 125). NQFs should be formulated by educational experts and should be certified. In short, NQFs simplify qualifications in a particular state and convert them to standards of a common framework which is the EHEA framework. Many European countries developed their national frameworks, but according to the progress report in 2007, there remains a lot to be covered (Forest 147).

Student’s Mobility

One of the biggest pillars of the Bologna process was to promote student mobility. Student mobility is intended to improve knowledge distribution across Europe ranging from institutional, national to regional level. There are two types of mobility, namely vertical and horizontal mobility. Upward mobility is when a student goes to another state to study a degree that takes some years. On the other hand, horizontal mobility is going to another country to study for a short period. Exchange programs fall under horizontal mobility (Murphy 67). Moreover, student mobility aims at promoting peace, cultural exchange and enhancing democracy across the EHEA jurisdiction.

In the recent years, student mobility has increased due to the harmonization of the tertiary education system. The increase in student mobility shows that significant steps have been made in enhancing the mobility strategy. The important measures have been achieved through the scaling-up of higher education levels of various states to international standards. The internalization of various higher learning programs has been reached with various ministers confirming their commitment to the EHEA, through the Bucharest Ministerial Communiqué. The Bucharest Ministerial Communiqué emphasizes that student mobility is an important tool in ensuring quality tertiary education across Europe (Choudaha & Raul 150)

However, although the student mobility strategy has been moving in the right direction, it has faced a lot of challenges. There is an overall feeling that the learning mobility is moving at a slower pace than the one set initially. One of the challenges facing student mobility is that some countries are lagging behind in implementing mobility strategy (Choudaha & Raul 73). Further, student mobility implementation is faced with financial challenges during the execution phase. The economic phase entails states financing students through various avenues including student loans (Guruz 97). Some countries have failed to meet the financial threshold needed to implement the internationalization of higher education. Also, the economic stage requires states to fund various programs related to achieving student mobility strategy.

The imbalance of student movement is the other obstacle facing student mobility. Some states have more students coming for tertiary education more than those leaving. For example, states like Germany and the United Kingdom have more incoming student than outgoing students. Countries like Iceland have more students leaving to seek for higher education than those coming to their country (Guruz 105). The language barrier is one of the leading causes of mobility imbalance as students avoid countries with languages that are not widely spoken in Europe. All the same, several steps have been taken to ensure smooth student mobility (Murphy 154).

One of the various steps is allowing mobility of grants and loans. Students in EHEA jurisdiction who want to further their studies in other countries are allowed to use student loans and grants. Restriction in loans ranges from complicated process related to transfer of loans to other complete limitations of portability. Some countries block transfer of loans and grants claiming that foreign programs are different from the ones in their countries of origin. Therefore, Bologna process creates an environment that is favorable for portability of loans and grants (Jewell 156). The other mitigation for obstacles in student mobility is the introduction of language classes for students and formulation of courses in different languages. Also, to increase high student mobility, various states have emphasized on the element of quality assurance.

Quality Assurance

Quality assurance in Bologna process consists of policies and strategies aimed at internationalization of tertiary education. Bologna process encourages cooperation in quality assurance process to have a harmonized criterion of comparing higher education qualifications. In 2005, different stakeholders formed the guideline for quality assurance in EHEA (Bergan & Carita 113). Since then, remarkable progress has been made with regards to quality assurance. The development has been highlighted by the formation of the European Quality Assurance Register for tertiary education. The register is the first legal document to mushroom from the internationalization process. There are internal and external levels of quality assurance.

Internal Quality Assurance

It is a requirement for all member states of EHEA to establish quality control strategies and systems within their institution of higher learning. The quality assurance procedures must be well documented and enshrined in legislation. Therefore, local maintenance of education standards is the duty of the various local universities in every country (Schwarz & Don 203).



External Quality Assurance

External quality assurance is heavily influenced by the evaluation in other universities. Every institution appoints on an assurance agency that is approved and recognized in the entire continent. The agency assigns a team to exercise the quality assurance process (Rauhvargers & Agnese 229). The agency is supposed to visit the institution and examine programs, students, and other stakeholders of the institution. The institution should later write a review of their findings and recommendation. The review should be published for public access, and a follow-up session should follow suit.

However, there is a contentious debate on how to balance the quality assurance process on institution level and independent agencies. The elephant in the house is making the institutions and independent stakeholders work in a tertiary system that is changing quickly with time. Quality assurance has faced many obstacles such as budget reduction by various governments (Bergan & Carita 118). Also, quality assurance is supposed to facilitate student mobility which leads to diversity in the tertiary education. Nevertheless, the difference makes it difficult for quality assurance agencies because of the constant change of expectations among students. Importantly, quality assurance is a major pillar of the Bologna process. It aims at improving tertiary education by supporting institutions of higher learning to formulate international strategies in their curricula ((Schwarz & Don 203).

Advantaged of EHEA

One of the major advantages of the Bologna process is to create academic freedom and promote quality individual research. Freedom in academic is the independence of various stakeholders in university to learn and carry out research. Academic freedom can be achieved by strengthening institutions of higher learning to reach international standards (Bergan & Carita 212). Therefore, the Bologna process presents a harmonized environment for teachers to share knowledge and for students to carry out research

The harmonized international tertiary education will also make the institutions of higher learning to be self-reliant. Independence means that they can make their policies and strategies of facilitating learning and research (Dima 17). EHEA liberates tertiary institution from political influence and guarantees economic freedom (Bergan & Carita 214). Moreover, it protects higher learning institutions from external forces that may influence academic research. In other words, the Bologna focuses on promoting independence in the governance of institutions, and how they allocate their funds towards research and learning.

Furthermore, the Bologna process increases the employability of graduates in the continent. The Bologna process aimed at widening the scope of job markets by creating common harmonized curricula (Bergan & Carita). Therefore, the Bologna process enhances employability by assembling students, institutions, and employers. The assembly is aimed at equipping students with the relevant skills that are required in the job market. Countries like France have formulated a funding plan to facilitate mobility of students from under-privileged (Dima 19).

Weakness of EHEA

One of the major weaknesses of EHEA is that it is expensive to implement. EHEA is expensive to implement, especially for countries like Greece and Iceland which have more outgoing students than incoming students (Bergan & Carita 219). The Bologna process is expensive because it requires extensive research on reform and strategies in the tertiary education sector. Moreover, it is difficult to implement the program as it demands a change in policies which takes time. Most countries do not have guidance and strategies to internationalize their higher learning institutions. The EHEA program might alienate the broad nature of Tertiary learning by encouraging training instead of a liberal higher education. The alienation will occur by training students to be something or researching towards something instead of allowing them to research on new subjects independently.

Conclusion

The Bologna collective process aims at internationalizing tertiary education in Europe. It seeks to produce high student mobility and create employability of all the students within the continent. Bologna process is enforced through various cycles including the undergraduate and the graduate cycles. EHEA is implemented through tools such as Diploma Supplement and the National Qualification Frameworks. The process is characterized by high student mobility which is faced with challenges such as mobility imbalance and financial constraints. However, some efforts are being undertaken to ensure student mobility, especially through loans and grants portability. Also, quality assurance is also a major component of EHEA that enables student mobility. Notably, the process has advantages such as creating academic independence, but also very expensive to implement. However, it is an excellent introduction in the education arena to ensure a standard and a quality tertiary education.









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