Integrating Tertiary Education in Europe

Abstract

There have been recent steps toward the integration of tertiary education in the EU and Europe more widely. The intergovernmental Bologna Agreement has resulted in the adoption of an Anglo-Saxon three-year undergraduate degree and two-year postgraduate degree as a European standard. Course credits are to be common and transferable. In spite of fears of a loss of standards, the new arrangements are being widely adopted. The Maastricht Treaty gave the EU’s common institutions specific but limited responsibilities with regard to education. They have established and run schemes to promote the mobility of students, teachers, and workers in their education. These schemes, and the integration of tertiary education, are being extended to Central and Eastern Europe, but not Russia as yet. Major difficulties in educational integration include the existence of conflicting interpretations of history and definitions of an appropriate research process as well as perspectives on the development of culture and identity. Specific regional challenges await the extension of the process to Southeastern Europe.